Local groups lead protection of Aklan watershed
As the world marked the International Day for Biological Diversity on May 22, local conservation groups spoke about how communities are helping protect ecosystems that sustain both people and wildlife.
The Aklan River Watershed Forest Reserve (ARWFR) on Panay Island is a massive 20,544-hectare forest watershed. Protecting it will rely on a critical resource: local and indigenous knowledge.
“We need to focus on building the knowledge and capacity of our members rather than on financial matters, because knowledge lasts. As I would say, knowledge is a treasure that cannot be taken away, no matter what happens,” said Arth Gregorio, punong barangay of Panipiason in Madalag, Aklan province.
Gregorio is one of the community leaders who have partnered with Haribon Foundation and its Agos project or ARWFR Governance and Safeguards.
The project places residents at the center of environmental protection. By anchoring conservation work in community knowledge, Project Agos ensures that those who live closest to the land become its primary defenders.
Critical part
The ARWFR forms a critical part of the Central Panay Mountain Range. It is not only home to people, but also threatened wildlife found nowhere else in the world—the Visayan spotted deer, some of the largest flowers in the world such as the Rafflesia flowers, and the endangered rufous-headed hornbill (locally known as dulungan).
It is also Aklan’s main water source, sustaining agriculture, food security, and the livelihoods of communities including indigenous people.
Unfortunately, these forests face mounting pressures from unregulated development, wildlife hunting, illegal logging, charcoal production, and slash-and-burn farming, which lead to forest degradation and weak enforcement of environmental laws.
To counter these threats, Project Agos focuses heavily on people and what they know. Community members from project areas—including Barangays Panipiason and Ma. Cristina in Madalag, and Barangay Oyang in Libacao—participate in workshops where they share local knowledge about natural resources in and around their neighborhoods.
“One community explained the importance of trees for medicinal purposes. They try to take what they need for medicine but without harming the tree,” said Ritchel Calihig, Haribon conservation specialist.
To turn these insights into action, the Agos team worked with over 25 community members to become parabiologists or “citizen scientists” conducting wildlife research and data collection.
Haribon is also working with two indigenous people’s organizations and one farmers’ association to align conservation goals with community needs. This progress helps ensure that people have a seat at the table where environmental decisions are made.
“They say knowledge is power, but the exchange of local knowledge about natural resources combined with data is even more powerful. Conservation becomes truly sustainable when communities themselves conserve and manage the natural resources they have long benefited from,” said Calihig.
Formal designation
Haribon aims to establish the groundwork for the watershed’s formal designation as a protected area or PA. Under the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System (Enipas) Act, PAs are specific areas of land or water set aside because of their unique wildlife and environmental value, and properly managed to keep their ecosystems healthy.
Ideally, PAs are run by local community members and groups through a Protected Area Management Board.
“Once these indigenous peoples have a seat at the governance table, their traditional knowledge can inform the research lens for conservationists and contribute to the development of fully socially inclusive policies,” said Calihig.
This collaborative effort is supported by the Reversing Environmental Degradation in Africa and Asia Program, which is funded by UK International Development from the Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office and managed by the International Institute for Environment and Development.
