Large scale and unsustainable forest operations like firewood collection, uncontrolled timber exploitation, extension of farmlands is leading to fragmentation and degradation of forests. Dwellers in local communities who depend largely on the forest and its resources for their livelihoods are well placed to be custodians of their forests, but they also exert great pressure on these forests, their resources and the wildlife there-in. Their activities such as encroachment into protected forests in attempts to extend farmlands, opening of new patches of farms in the forests, rampant and indiscriminate hunting of endangered animal species, illegal logging, bush meat trade as means of livelihoods keep leaving long lasting scars on the environment, especially climate related effects.
To mitigate and slowdown the effects of these unsustainable environmental practices on biodiversity and in the society, CCREAD Cameroon has been intervening through her Rise4Nature program. Her interventions have focused on/benefitted forest-dependent communities across the South West and Littoral Regions of Cameroon, like those in Kupe-Muanenguba division in raising awareness on forests and wildlife conservation. These awareness campaigns are often merged with livelihood diversification and improvement and some of the activities carried out to do these are the setting up of native tree nurseries via agroforestry workshops and the introduction of beekeeping. The planting of these native trees contribute to mitigating the impacts of deforestation on climate change as well as a food and income source while the introduction of beekeeping also serves as an easy and alternative source of livelihood. These activities go a long way to contributing to the achievement of UN’s SDG 1,2,12, 13 and 15 respectively.
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