Presented during the conference on the state of our forests in Southeast Asia - 24 November 2016 - Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.

2. o No prior consultation
o No compensation and/or unfair compensation
o No consent
o No environmental responsibility
o Natural resource extraction
o Mega-projects
o Mono-crop plantations
Transition in Myanmar (Decade of peace)

3. Public Campaigns

4. Public Campaign (International River Day)

5. Multi-Stakeholder meeting

6. Engagement with Government/KNU authorities
Contributing community-managed conservation approach
to the Community Forest meeting organized by MONREC
16 May, 2016, Dawei
Arranging meeting with KNU vice chairperson for villagers to
disclose the problems they are facing
28 April 2016, Dawei

7. Local Knowledge-Based Research
• To enhance local knowledge and wisdom
• To conserve and control local resources by local people
• To promote collaboration among communities

8. Local Knowledge-based Research
The local knowledge based research is a way of informing community members
that they have rights to manage their local resources by themselves in sustainable way

9. Community Initiated
Fish Conservation Zone
In order to maintain and recover the remaining aquatic species and river ecosystem, villagers
proposed the establishment of a Fish Conservation Zone on the Kamoethway River.

10. Forest Protection
Working on a fire breakPosting signs raising awareness
about forest fires

11. Monitoring river and forest ecosystems
Kamoethway indigenous people documented the condition of the
river and its ecosystem, including:
• measuring the depth and width of the river; and
• an initial test of the water for contamination of heavy metals
discharged by the mining company.
While conducting the scientific monitoring, indigenous knowledge
was used for ecosystem analysis.

12. A Socio-Economic Assessment Training workshop was held from 28-29 August 2014. The objective of the
workshop was to empower local people to understand their community, recognize the scope of their resources,
and to discuss ways to effectively balance utilization and conservation.
Villagers develop socio-economic
assessment questionnaires
Participants conduct a socio-economic
assessment (12-13 September 2014)
Village-level capacity building

13. Working Groups
Local people join working groups based on
their expertise:
•Herbal medicine
•Forest trees
•Edible wild vegetables
•Wildlife
•Handicraft
•Rotational Farming

14. Demarcation of conservation areas
o 12 villages are surrounded by these conservation areas.
o In order to manage the forest properly, nine categories of
conservation areas were demarcated:
1. Wildlife sanctuary
2. Watershed forest
3. Agroforestry land
4. Utilization forest
5. Umbilical cord forest
6. Culture forest
7. Herbal forest
8. Fish sanctuaries
9. Cemetery land

15. Community Initiated Aquatic ecosystem Conservation Zone (People’s Park)
In order to maintain and recover the remaining aquatic species and swamp ecosystem, villagers
proposed the establishment of a community protected area at the Kalapa Swamp

16. Environment Education

17. “Bringing Youth into the Movement” program took place in April 2016
Youth Camp

18. Engagement with Private sector

19. Challenges
 Several villagers who claiming their own land
were charged with trespassing private land
 Special intelligence always follow CSOs activities

20. Activist young woman was brutally murdered (19/11/2016)

21. Community Driven Natural Resources Management
(People Centered Approach)
Sustainable forest conservation can be achieved only when native people
have the right to participate in the forest management process. This
includes the right to control and manage natural resources in their
territories based on their culture and traditional practices.