D. The KLIMA project: Firewood for reforestation in Haiti. Freny Alcinat & Catherine Ruest Belanger
Channel: ISTF-Global
Date: 28/10/2023

The KLIMA project: Firewood for reforestation in Haiti. Freny Alcinat & Catherine Ruest Belanger

The firewood industry has long been blamed for deforestation in Haiti. CECI, an international cooperation organization, and Viridis Terra International, a company specializing in the restoration of degraded lands, decided to turn that story around and make the firewood industry a driver of reforestation. This idea gave birth to the KLIMA project, which took place in the North and Northeast of Haiti from 2017 to 2021. Since then, the project has been extended to the South of Haiti, whilst trees and mentalities have had time to grow in the North and Northeast. We will be delighted to share results and lessons learned from this experience so far.

*Freny Alcinat, Project Manager at CECI (Centre d’enseignement et de coopération internationale

Frény Alcinat is an agronomist specialized in natural resources and technology transfer. He is implicated in the design, implementation and monitoring of agroforestry projects throughout his country, working directly with farmers and local organizations to improve their technical skillsets in the face of climate change.

Catherine Ruest Belanger, Consultant for Viridis Terra International, Canada

Catherine Ruest Bélanger is a forest engineer specializing in smallholder forestry. She acts as a technical support for the implementation of international development projects in Haiti, while also counselling forest owners in Quebec, Canada, in the field of food sovereignty.