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Results

Immediate results and outcomes in 2022

In the first year of Siemenpuu’s programme period 2022–2025, progress was made towards the result targets set for 2025. Here are the combined results from the 23 Siemenpuu-supported projects that were completed in 2022, according to the results framework’s indicators (followed by the project-specific results):

Communities’ climate resilience has strengthened and they have benefited from new land/forest/seed use or management rights; communities have received new clean energy services and reduced the use of fossil fuels and firewood (in their homes, workshops, public spaces and areas, schools, health centers, farms, etc.); communities have benefited from new sustainable use plans and biocultural community protocols; and communities have benefited from new know-how in agroecological farming and natural product processing, as well as new production tools.

• In the 23 completed projects, the livelihoods of 21,774 people were directly improved. At least 40% of these are women, and at least 2,617 people belong to indigenous peoples.
• The actions taken in the projects and the prepared plans for sustainable use and protection contribute to the development of sustainable living conditions and livelihoods for a total of approximately 73,000 people.

Duty bearers act for the realization of environmental justice, and environmental justice initiatives in the issues of community environmental rights, land rights, forest policy, food sovereignty and energy policy have progressed.

• One implemented policy initiative. In Nepal, in a project of the HIMAWANTI organization in the Rautahat district of the Terai, guidelines for local government operations were drawn up that take into account the needs and concerns of poor, landless and marginalized women, on the basis of which the needs of women’s groups were also taken into account in local government budgeting.

New forested areas have been included in community-based sustainable use and protection, and local communities have been able to defend their areas included in community-based sustainable use and protection.

• 9351 hectares. In Indonesia, in the project of the JIKALAHARI network, community forest permits were obtained for a total of 9,330 hectares in the territories of two communities thanks to active advocacy work. In Kenya, the SALT organization’s project protected the sacred natural sites of the Tharaka indigenous people in a total area of ​​21 hectares.

Local communities have been able to defend the areas included in the scope of community sustainable use and protection.

• 0 hectares. No areas have been moved away from sustainable use or protection from the affected areas of completed projects.

Civic movements and their cooperation and networking have strengthened locally and globally to promote environmental justice.

• 253 organizations (NGO, CBO, CSO, social movements) have participated in the implementation of the projects. In 86% of the projects’ account organizations report increased cooperation. 86% of the project’s account organizations have women in decision-making roles.
• The number of supported environmental human rights defenders used as an indicator was not yet used in reporting in 2022.

Finns have acted more to promote global justice.

• Siemenpuu received 77 new donors during the year.
• The response rate to participant and reader surveys is not sufficient to assess the proportion of participants and readers who estimate that they have benefited from the information produced by Siemenpuu and that it has influenced their own behavior. 95% of those who gave feedback felt that they benefited from the information produced by Siemenpuu.

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Project-specific results

(Due to security concerns, the organisation names and locations of the projects in Myanmar are hidden)

Biocultural Rights theme

Organisation X (Myanmar): Preserving ethnic customary land and natural resources management to ensure economic, social and culture rights. Project duration 25 months, Siemenpuu support €45,000

The goal of the project was to gather information about the legal status of Myanmar’s indigenous communities and the structures of natural resource management and the pressures on them. Both the corona pandemic and the 2021 military coup made it difficult to implement the project, but the project implementers were able to collect a lot of material and prepare two background analyzes related to the land and natural resource management rights of indigenous peoples. These were delivered to the UN special rapporteur who investigated the human rights situation in Myanmar and the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Organisation X and its partners carried out broad-based cooperation among different ethnic groups in order to prepare political principles and practices to support federalist and democratic social development after military rule. There were more than 800 people who directly benefited from the project.

Organisation Y (Myanmar): Our future is in the hands of our community. Project duration 19 months, Siemenpuu support €14,227

The project provided training to local youth for community forest and rights-related data collection and mapping among indigenous peoples in a district of Shan State. The video production Our resource, our identity and our future was made based on the training. Movement restrictions related to the corona pandemic and the military coup in February 2021 prevented the larger data collection and documentation planned in the communities. The produced video material will be presented and utilized in the villages to support the work done for biocultural rights.

Ribdung-Jaleswori Education Foundation (REF) (Nepal): Enhancing knowledge and leadership capacity of youths for appropriate recognition of bio-cultural rights in federal Nepal. Project duration 27 months, Siemenpuu support €28,000

The project strengthened community-based conservation practices by involving young people in their planning and implementation: youth and young adults aged 13-35 were trained in the documentation, analysis and information sharing of biocultural conservation practices, and they were involved in the political discussion about conservation through civil society networks. The project focused on four communities participating in ICCA activities (Rai, Bote, Tsumba and Chepang as ethnic groups) in different parts of Nepal. Five ICCA youth groups were established during the project. In the Bote and Chepang areas, young people and youth leaders prepare policy initiatives on biocultural rights and protection at the municipal level.

There were about 1,500 direct beneficiaries, of whom about two-thirds were young people and about 40% were women and girls. With the increased knowledge and leadership of young people, the aim is for effective and sustainable biocultural conservation practices and constructive public-administrative debate in federal Nepal.

Society for Alternative Learning and Transformation (SALT) (Kenya): Strengthening biocultural rights and cooperation among Tharaka communities in Kenya. Project duration 19 months, Siemenpuu support €48,500

According to the mapping done in the project, there are more than 40 sacred natural sites of the Tharaka indigenous community (e.g. forests, waterfalls, wetlands) in their areas. The Tharakas documented their traditional management bylaws and mechanisms and did lobbying work with the authorities to get these regulations incorporated into official legislation. Sacred natural sites were protected in an area of ​​21 hectares, and through the exchange of crop seeds and related experiences between the communities, the nutrition of more than 1,000 people was diversified.

In the project’s 18 community dialogues, cultural identity, governance structures, spirituality and locally based lifestyle were strengthened. In total, there were about 2000 participants in these dialogues, of which about 1200 were women. The project also organized 10 meetings related to the exchange of experiences between ethnically different communities and supported the establishment of an organic herb garden as part of experiential learning. The project also piloted the use of arts (e.g. poetry, music, dance and handicrafts) as part of cross-generational learning and revitalizing the rights of nature.

Indigenous Information Network (IIN) (Kenya): Strengthening natural resource governance in hunter-gatherer communities. Project duration 13 months, Siemenpuu support €23,000

In the project, a biocultural community protocol (BCP) for Waatas was drawn up by gathering information from Waata community leaders and other representatives in Marsabit, Isiolo and Tana River districts. The protocol creates a strong foundation for the Waatas’ own awareness, sharing of experiences and joint action to defend their cultural heritage, environment and rights. The BCP is a living document, which will be updated as the feedback from the communities and the changing social, environmental and cultural situation so require.

The project also supported the conditions of the Marsabit Botanical Garden to share information and experiences on the cultivation of medicinal herbs and other useful plants important to Waatas. There are about 2,000 direct beneficiaries of the project, but the entire Waata community of about 20,000 people will indirectly benefit from it.

Organisation Z (Myanmar): NN Landscape Area: An Indigenous-led approach to manage and conserve forests, lands and natural resources. Project duration 6 months, Siemenpuu support €29,500

In the villages of the Karen indigenous people along a river in the Tanintaryi region, a survey of community traditional lands and community forests is carried out, which creates a basis for the maintenance of Karen traditions, the defense of rights, and the sustainable management and protection of natural resources. The outer borders of the landscape area have been mapped and now the individual communities are formalising their own management systems and mapping the border lines between the communities.

This project strengthened the land and natural resource management systems in two villages in the area by conducting a participatory mapping of the areas and providing training on GPS mapping, as well as strengthening the land use governance. Communities can apply for registration from the Karen National Union based on their territorial boundaries and documented bylaws. The villages have a total of 874 inhabitants, of which 445 are women. The total area of ​​the villages is 14,419 hectares.

Global Forest Coalition (GFC) (international): Destructive Industries, Biodiversity Offsets and their impacts on Forest-dependent Communities. Project duration 7 months, Siemenpuu support €9,500

The project, carried out in cooperation between the Global Forest Coalition (GFC) and the CBD Alliance, focused on influencing decision-makers at two global events: the fifth UN Environment General Assembly (UNEA) in Nairobi in February 2022 and the UN Biodiversity Convention negotiations on the biodiversity framework in Geneva in March 2022. GFC published a study on biodiversity compensations titled “Net Gain” is a lose-lose for rights, gender justice and social equity in biodiversity policy (in English and Spanish), which highlights the harmful effects of biodiversity compensations on the rights and livelihoods of women, indigenous peoples and local communities. As alternatives for compensation projects, the report presents direct support of community-based conservation projects and strong, legally binding international corporate responsibility regulations.

The report was distributed through cooperation networks in the framework of key international meetings, mainly electronically with the support of active social media campaigning. The project has contributed to the fact that “net” approaches and nature-based solutions are viewed increasingly critically in relevant international forums.

Energy Justice theme

Human Rights and Environment Development Center (HuRENDEC) (Nepal): Construction of a carbon-neutral power plant to diversify education and income sources in Nepal’s Kalikot district. Project duration 25 months, Siemenpuu support €41,000

The goals and results of the project plan were not realized, because the planned 20 kW solar power plant and electricity grid were not built in Suvakalika rural municipality. Instead, the Siemenpuu support served as partial financing for the World Bank’s project financing granted by Nepal’s renewable energy agency AEPC for a 100 kW solar power plant and small grid. In addition, the project increased awareness of renewable energy both in the target communities and more broadly in Kalikoti district, e.g. through local radio. In the larger project, there are 365 direct beneficiary households and about 2,000 people in them; local small businesses and administrative and school buildings also receive electricity. Indirectly, the project will support the development of livelihoods in the entire area and reduce the fuelwood use and thus deforestation. Siemenpuu received co-funding for this project from EKOenergy’s Climate Fund.

Organisation Å (Myanmar): National energy advocacy as well as community-based research and cooperation between Irrawaddy Basin and watersheds areas of Shan State. Project duration 24 months, Siemenpuu’s support €40,000

The corona pandemic and especially the military coup that took place in February 2021 made project activities difficult, and Organisation Å had to abandon the planned cooperation between the upper and lower reaches of the rivers and the public energy influence work. Instead, trainings on the sustainable use of natural resources were organized in an area of indigenous communities, and three community-owned micro hydropower plants were fundamentally improved. In addition, the project coordinator participated in writing a publication on area’s energy self-sufficiency. The project reached a total of about 4,000 direct beneficiaries (about half women), whose awareness of energy and natural resource rights improved, who participated in forest protection and reforestation, or who benefited from clean renewable energy. The project involved cooperation with almost 100 community organizations, organizations or networks.

Center for Rural Technology, Nepal (CRT/N) (Nepal): Solar electrification of a remote village and promoting energy planning based on reliable data collection in Nepal. Project duration 20 months, Siemenpuu support €68,658

The project built a 10-kilowatt solar-powered mini-grid in the mountainous Saure Bhangtar 3 village in Khanikhola rural municipality. The electricity grid provides clean electrical energy to the village’s 96 households (595 people), improving the residents’ social and economic status. In addition, 24 houses in the surrounding area will benefit from the village’s electrified grain mill. The local community was supported in small entrepreneurship, such as raising poultry.

The advocacy part strengthened awareness of renewable energy among two community-based organizations, 10 non-governmental organizations, local government representatives and energy companies. The competence of the local administration in making energy plans and policies appropriate to the conditions was strengthened; during the project, a municipal energy planning tool (Municipal Energy Planning Tool) was introduced and a five-year energy plan for Khanikhola was drawn up. Watch the video of the project with English subtitles. Siemenpuu received co-funding for this project from EKOenergy’s Climate Fund.

Association Malienne pour l’Appui et la Promotion des Initiatives Locales (AMAPIL) (Mali): Improving the living conditions of women and their families through modern and clean energy services in two villages of Nossombougou. Project duration 8 months, Siemenpuu support €30,000

Submersible pumps using solar electricity were installed in wells, irrigation systems were built, and equipment maintenance personnel were trained in the women’s horticulture areas of the villages of Ouarala and Siemon in Nossombougou rural municipality. The designers and beneficiaries of the project were women who use horticulture and their families: the project improved the living conditions of a total of 435 people (221 of whom were women and 7 with disabilities). The project made farming work easier and increased the productivity of farms. The project also increased village communities’ information about climate change and sustainable forms of energy: the radio programs reached over 20,000 listeners. Siemenpuu received co-funding for this project from EKOenergy’s Climate Fund.

Association de Soutien aux Initiatives Communautaires (ASIC) (Mali): Solar electrification of a women’s multi-purpose center in Kolokani. Project duration 8 months, Siemenpuu support €43,000

In the project, the buildings of the women’s multi-purpose center in the city of Kolokani were electrified with 5 kW solar panels, a large solar dryer for drying agricultural products was installed in the center, a solar-powered pump was installed in the well in the center’s horticulture area, and an irrigation system was built. The beneficiaries were all 17 women’s groups using the center and their 340 members. In particular, the project benefited 55 women participating in sewing education and activities, 60 women engaged in further processing of agricultural products, and 50 women engaged in horticulture. The center was also supported in the development of administration and organization. In addition, events on climate change and the corona pandemic were organized during the project for the women of the center and representatives of the municipality. Siemenpuu received co-funding for this project from EKOenergy’s Climate Fund.

Namsaling Community Development Center (NCDC) (Nepal): Small scale renewable (micro-hydro) electricity project in Nepal’s Taplejung district. Project duration 6 months, Siemenpuu’s support €46,000

In the project, a 15 kW micro-hydro power plant was built on the banks of the Ghatte Khola river in the 5th village of Mikwahola rural municipality. The power plant electrified 75 households, where 412 people belonging to the Sherpa and Limbu ethnic minorities live, as well as two schools and a health center. Electrification replaced the use of kerosene for lighting and the use of firewood, especially for boiling water. The project also adds new forms of livelihood: villagers were trained in micro-entrepreneurship and six new companies were founded. The power plant is owned and operated by an electrification committee formed by the villagers (with at least 50% women), and people chosen by the villagers were trained to use and maintain the system. Siemenpuu received co-funding for this project from EKOenergy’s Climate Fund.

People, Energy and Environment Development Association (PEEDA) (Nepal): Improving access to energy through installation of 5 kW solar-wind hybrid system and proper energy planning in Lo Manthang, Mustang, Nepal. Project duration 12 months, Siemenpuu support €38,931

The project built a 5 kW solar-wind hybrid power plant and a small electricity grid in the remote village of Kimling in the rural municipality of Lo Manthang. 41 households and 205 residents benefit from electricity, as well as community, school and administrative buildings. Electrification improves Kimling’s living conditions, enables micro-entrepreneurship and reduces the use of firewood in the dry mountain highlands. The one-kilowatt wind turbine was assembled on-site from parts sourced elsewhere, increasing local learning and ownership. The electrification project was supervised by the village’s youth club, 36% of whose members are women, and the system’s operation and management.

The project also included the preparation of the municipality’s renewable energy plan: the project implementer facilitated the creation of the plan, trained officials and involved the municipality’s residents and companies in the preparation of the plan. As a result, both a report on the municipality’s energy situation and a plan for the development of the municipality’s energy supply until 2026 were completed. A 10-person energy development committee was established in the municipality. All 2,634 residents of the municipality will benefit from the energy plan. Siemenpuu received co-funding for this project from EKOenergy’s Climate Fund.

Feminist Agroecology theme

South Asian Dialogues on Ecological Democracy (SADED-Nepal) (Nepal): Support for Sustainable Livelihood of Marginalised Farmers in Rural Nepal. Project duration 36 months, Siemenpuu support €60,000

In the project, the necessity and possibilities of the diversity in agriculture, nutrition and livelihoods were highlighted, especially among female farmers and young people, in order to reduce rural emigration. In the project, a cooperative of 63 women farmers and a model garden were established in Mandandeupur, and seedlings of useful plants were distributed in the project communities. A total of 29 local-level groups participated in the project. The experiences of the community dialogues were shared in publications, the writing of which especially involved young people. Through the World Social Forum process, socio-political ties were created from the local level all the way to international networks. There were a total of 2090 direct beneficiaries of the project, of which 682 were women and 487 were young people.

Foundation for Community Initiatives (FCI) (Liberia): Advancing Rural Women Rights in Agriculture. Project duration 18 months, Siemenpuu support €40,500

In the project, women in four villages of Grand Gedeh province were trained in climate change, adaptation and food production. Two model plots were implemented as a pilot with women in the most vulnerable position, whose food production model aims to improve livelihoods and protect the region’s natural resources. Community dialogues focused on land rights were also implemented in the villages to guarantee women’s land rights. In addition, communication and training material in plain language related to women’s land rights and the land law approved in 2018 was produced and distributed. 244 people participated in the activities as direct beneficiaries, of which 235 were women, but the project benefited entire village communities.

As a result of the project, the beneficiary women have started to demand their land rights with community decision-makers and discuss them on local radio and in markets. The longer-term goal is the realization of women’s land rights and the achievement of food sovereignty by implementing self-sufficient food production according to model plots.

Himalayan Grassroots Women’s Natural Resource Management Association (HIMAWANTI) (Nepal): Women leadership in food sovereignty and environmental democracy in Rautahat District, Nepal. Project duration 14 months, Siemenpuu support €30,000

In the project, marginalised casteless (dalit) and landless women’s groups in the Rautahat district of southern Nepal were given training and operational support in relation to crop cultivation, mushroom cultivation and livestock husbandry – both from the perspectives of food sovereignty and income generation and entrepreneurship. In the future, women will be able to engage in versatile food production on leased land, small unused communal land areas and yard areas. The project also prepared guidelines for local administration that take into account the needs and concerns of landless and marginalized women. There were a total of 2,271 participants in the project’s activities, of which a total of 1,845 were women.

Thanks to the project:

• 255 members of the groups (approx. 70% of all members) have started practicing organic and diverse farming (mainly horticulture) on the available land. In addition, they grow mushrooms and domestic animals for food and sale.

• Group leaders no longer hesitate to deal with local authorities and raise their needs and demands in order to assert their rights.

• Registering groups and opening bank accounts has made it possible to receive technical and financial support from the authorities and other reference groups.

• The cooperation of the groups and their saving activities have bound households to cooperate more strongly with each other and brought financial security even in exceptional situations such as a pandemic.

Acción por la Biodiversidad (AcBio) (Latin America and Mozambique): Women as defenders of the commons and dignified life in the Global South. Project duration 6 months, Siemenpuu’s support €26,000

The project produced a printed theme issue of Biodiversidad magazine based on 11 interviews in Spanish, podcasts and online articles about women as defenders of the commons and a dignified life in the Global South. Three interviews were also published in Portuguese. The interviewees are individual female defenders or female collectives from 9 Latin American countries and Mozambique.

With the help of the project, the aim was to make visible the experiences, challenges and solution proposals of women defending the commons, and to put them more widely on social agendas. It was intended to promote food sovereignty and combat the criminalization of women. The beneficiaries of the project were the recipients of the information it produced (small farmers, indigenous peoples, civil societies, researchers, teachers, students, journalists and authorities): by the end of the project, 27,023 people had read the project’s materials on the website and 313,389 people had been reached on social media.

Community Forests theme

Jaringan Kerja Penyelamat Hutan Riau (Jikalahari) (Indonesia): Integrated protection of forests in Kampar Peninsula and Kerumutan through law enforcement, advocacy and community-based management. Project duration 39 months, Siemenpuu support €175,000

The project promoted the implementation of forest and land use laws in Riau province by collecting and publishing evidence on peat and forest fire cases, illegal logging and land use violations, monitoring court cases, campaigning and training legal observers. In addition, the project campaigned for community-based forest management at the village, provincial and national levels, strengthened capacities for community-based forest protection and sustainable use at the village level and made permit applications, diversified sustainable livelihood opportunities for peatlands, strengthened the position of women in community-based forest management and restored peatlands.

The outputs of the project were the reports on forest and land use violations by pulp and palm oil companies and their communication, 14 monitored corruption trials and summaries of legal processes, 11 new trial monitoring team members trained, a comprehensive protection model for Kerumutan, trainings on community-based forest management and livelihood development (395 participants), one restored forest land, 2 granted community forest permits for a total of 9,330 hectares, a group of women entrepreneurs, and 5 dammed peatland drainage canals. The project directly benefited 395 villagers who participated in the trainings and indirectly the 23,000 inhabitants of 11 villages in the Kampar and Kerumutan region.

Conselho Nacional das Populações Extrativistas (CNS) (Brazil): CNS’s advocacy work to defend and create co-management areas in the Brazilian Amazon. Project duration 31 months, Siemenpuu support €62,988

The project strengthened the capacity of traditional gatherers in the Brazilian Amazon to defend the existing gatherer reserves against threats posed by the country’s government’s hostile policy towards protected areas. The project especially strengthened the internal organization of the gatherer population and influence work at different levels. In 2019, regional meetings of the gatherer movement were organized in all nine states of the Amazônia Legal region, after which the CNS general meeting was held and the rule reform was approved. As a culmination of national-level advocacy work, representatives of the CNS General Assembly participated in the hearing of the Brazilian Parliament’s Environmental Committee. 730 members of the gatherer communities participated in the project’s activities, but indirectly the project benefited about 1.5 million residents of the jointly administered areas.

Sustainable Development Institute (SDI) (Liberia): Empowering an enabling Management of Barconnie-Harmonville Community Forest Governance and Structure. Project duration 15 months, Siemenpuu support €62,247

The challenges of the Barconnie-Harmonville community forest area have been the unsustainable harvesting of small forest products, as well as illegal loggers and charcoal burners that accelerate deforestation. The project strengthened the conservation of the 123-hectare Barconnie-Harmonville Community Forest by supporting conservation practices and developing alternative livelihoods for the local community, such as sustainable fishing. The workshops strengthened women’s role and participation in forest protection, increased awareness of forest protection, and drafted community forest protection rules.

A total of 292 (144 women, 148 men) direct beneficiaries participated in the project meetings and trainings. Indirect beneficiaries are the 16,500 inhabitants of the area and the 3,256 inhabitants of the Tarsue community in Sinoe County, who received further support for monitoring their forests.

Social Entrepreneurs for Sustainable Development (SESDev) (Liberia): Strengthening sustainability practices in the management of community forests in Liberia. Project duration 16 months, Siemenpuu support €79,000

In the project, the management practices of two community forest areas were assessed in relation to the required standards, the areas’ natural resources were mapped and forest management plans were drawn up based on them, sustainable income generation options were identified, and community forest management bodies were trained.

The outputs of the project for the two forest communities were the report reports on natural resources and their management, community forest management plans, lists of identified income generation opportunities and trainings on good forest management.

As a result of the project, the local communities were expected to improve the sustainability of their forest management so that the forests are protected more effectively, the management of natural resources is of a higher quality and the communities get a better livelihood at the same time. More than 150 people (60 of whom were women) participated in the activities as direct beneficiaries. Indirect beneficiaries include all the residents of the Salayea community (20 villages) in Lofa County and the residents of the Gba community (12 villages) in Nimba County, a total of 65,000 people. The communities manage a total of 19,209 hectares of forest.

Justiça Ambiental (JA) (Mozambique): Defending the rights of communities, our natural forests and our shared prosperity. Project duration 10 months, Siemenpuu support €38,139

Mabu is home to the largest (7880 ha) remaining mid-altitude rainforest in Southern Africa. The residents’ livelihood depends on the forest and 8 local associations have applied for an official community-based conservation management permit for the area. Muzo, on the other hand, is Mozambique’s first community-based forest management permit area, covering 33,000 hectares.

The project organized exchanges of experiences on community-based forest management and the defense of rights in the squeeze of monoculture plantation projects, provided training on legislation, biodiversity and microfinance, and supported project communities in forest management permit matters and legal violations. Thanks to the project, the awareness and expertise of 210 members of local communities (84 women and 126 men) in issues of community-based forest management increased. Indirect beneficiaries were the 135,880 residents of Mount Mabu and Muzo forest-dependent local communities.

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See also the results from the programme period 2018-2021.