ELTI in Forest Day 6

Forest Day is a global forest event held annually on the sidelines of the UNFCCC Conference of Parties meetings and hosted by the Collaborative Partnership on Forests under the leadership of the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR). It brings together forestry experts and

Successful Conclusion of APASPE's First Project

APASPE, the Association of Agrosilvopastoral Producers of Pedasí, recently concluded the implementation of a 1-year project in the town of Los Asientos, province of Los Santos, Panama.
With support from ELTI's Leadership Program, funding from the Small Grants Program, and

ELTI Supports the National Greening Program

The Environmental Leadership and Training Initiative (ELTI), together with the Institute of Tropical Ecology and Environmental Management of the Visayas State University (ITEEM-VSU) and the rest of the Rain Forest Restoration Initiative (RFRI), have developed a series of trainings on

The National Greening Program Just Got Greener

On February 24, 2011, the president of the Philippines, Benigno S. Aquino, issued Executive Order No. 26, launching the National Greening Program (NGP). The program involves the planting of 1.5 billion trees in 1.5 million hectares of public domain lands from 2011 to 2016. It is the latest

Phenology to Promote Environmental Values among Youth

A phenological study requires patience and observation skills, scientific rigor to record accurate data, and lots of perseverance. Not exactly the task for a child, one would think; but ELTI leaders Adriana and Julián Giraldo think different, and for a reason. A few years ago, when they were still

APASPE Learns About Organic Fertilizers

As part of the continuing capacity building efforts contemplated in their Small Grants Programme project, APASPE members recently attended a workshop on organic fertilizers and pesticides. During the past year and with support from ELTI's Leadership Program, APASPE members have

Resource Extraction and Infrastructure Development in Tropical Forests

Despite covering only 7% of the Earth’s emergent land surface, tropical forests are believed to house up to half of the Earth’s biodiversity and to support the livelihoods of 1.4 billion people. These ecosystems, however, continue to be lost at an alarming rate driven by conventional land

ELTI Leader: Eufracio Maratas

Name: Eufracio "Dodong" Maratas Jr.
Organization: Municipality of Pilar, Camotes, Cebu, Philippines
Position: Vice Mayor
ELTI Event: Rainforestation National Trainer’s Training, April 2009, Leyte, Philippines

Symposium on Restoring Coal Mines in Indonesia

The province of East Kalimantan, Indonesia is one of the country’s largest producers and suppliers of coal. Vast tracts of lands have been degraded due to this economically important, yet environmentally and socially–damaging activity. Regulations that govern the rehabilitation of

Rene Vendiola Wins Prestigious Award!

We are thrilled to announce that on March 22, 2012, Mr. Rene “Nong Ite” Vendiola won the prestigious Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI) Award in the Exemplary Individual category for his work on Rainforestation in Negros Oriental, Philippines. Rene was selected among 300

Visit to Más Bosques para Medellín Project

During a recent trip to Colombia, ELTI alumn Jaddy Toro guided ELTI staff on visit to the Más Bosques para Medellín project. As we visited different sites, she explained how she is now applying concepts learned in the ELTI-CIPAV course to improve plantation designs, favor

Inventory of Native Trees in Caquetá, Colombia

ELTI leaders, Oscar Tafur and Edwin Hurtado, recently launched their project to conduct a floristic inventory of native trees in Caquetá, Colombia, located at the transition between the Andean foothills and the Amazon region. Over the next 10 months they will focus on identifying native

ELTI Gathers Information for New Online Training Program

The Environmental Leadership & Training Initiative (ELTI) is developing a Web-Based Training and Certificate Program that aims to strengthen the capacity of students and field practitioners to design and implement forest conservation/restoration strategies.

Rain Forest Restoration Initiative Seminar Series: Green Mondays

The Rain Forest Restoration Initiative (RFRI) is a network of non-government organizations, governmental institutions, and universities working together to promote the use of native tree species for forest restoration and other land-use management objectives in the Philippines. The

Forest Governance & Policy Workshop in Singapore

Ongoing deforestation and forest degradation within Southeast Asia has placed its ecosystems, and the people whose livelihoods depend on them, under acute stress. Despite this historical record, increased optimism and concerted global efforts to address global forest challenges are

Workshop on Reforestation with Native Trees Species in Singapore

After clearing most of its native vegetation in 19th century, Singapore is now taking progressive steps toward conserving its remaining forests and expanding tree cover across the island. In its effort to become “a city in a garden”, in contrast with the more common approach of having

ELTI supports conference on Landscape-Scale Restoration

On January 26-28, the Yale Student Chapter of the International Society of Tropical Foresters held their 18th annual conference at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies in New Haven, Connecticut. The conference, titled Strategies for Landscape-Scale Restoration in the

Sustainability Strategies for Connectivity Corridors

Cattle-ranching is not only an economic activity, but a way of life. Most traditional cattle-ranchers will balk at the idea of growing trees or shrubs on their pastures and taking space away from planting improved varieties of grass. This tends to be a “cultural norm” of the industry, and the