Training a community of 60 people and Planting Trees in Urrao, Columbia

One hundred years ago forests covered 80 percent of the land in Urrao, Colombia. Today, forests cover less than 60 percent of the area. People have harvested trees due to a lack of economic opportunities. For many people, selling trees is the only source of income available. The rate of deforestation is exacerbated by reliance on wood for cooking fuel and by intensified cattle ranching in the area.

As a result of this deforestation, streams and other water sources have been contaminated by pollutants, soil erosion has increased, and springs are drying up due to lowering ground water levels.

We will train 60 people in nursery establishment and maintenance and in the use of agroforestry techniques. We will distribute 40.000 seeds to these individuals so they can implement the techniques they learn about in the workshops. We will hire a local technician to work with the community to provide daily assistance with their projects and to provide data to Trees for the Future to assess the project’s performance and impact.