USAID’s Global Development Alliance with EDC aligns company-led efforts with DENR’s forest protection strategy

USAID’s B+WISER trained foresters from EDC’s Watershed Management Department in Leyte, Negros Island and Mindanao to use Lawin to protect the forests within and adjacent to the company’s areas of operation.

USAID’s Biodiversity and Watersheds Improved for Stronger Economy and Ecosystem Resilience (B+WISER) Program, in collaboration with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), has successfully trained around 60 foresters and patrollers from the Energy Development Corporation (EDC) to apply the Lawin Forest and Biodiversity Protection System to protect natural forests within and adjacent to the company’s areas of operation.

Trained EDC’s rangers have already started to implement Lawin in the company’s focus areas in Leyte, Negros Island, and Mindanao, potentially protecting an area of more than 70,000 hectares of natural forest. USAID’s partnership with EDC and the DENR supports the country’s efforts to improve the management and protection of the remaining natural forests in the Philippines. The Lawin system was jointly developed by USAID and DENR to address the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation. Named after the Philippine Hawk Eagle, Lawin introduces science-based conservation strategies to improve forest conditions, wildlife habitats, and to foster climate resilient communities. The system hinges on regularly monitoring forest conditions and responding to observed biodiversity threats. After the DENR adopted Lawin as part of the country’s forest protection strategy in March 2016, EDC is the first private company to adopt and mainstream Lawin in its own forest protection strategy. EDC is the Philippines’ largest producer of geothermal power, a technology which relies on intact forests and sustained groundwater levels, making the adoption of Lawin a core-business aligned move.