Native Future Receives Grant to Support Wounaan Natural Resource Management

Native Future Forms Partnership with US Forest Service International Programs

We are happy to announce a new partnership with the US Forest Service International Programs to support up to seven Wounaan communities to assess their natural resource management needs and identify and carry out actions to protect and manage at least one non-timber forest product (NTFP). Communities will also receive technical assistance, training and materials to reforest and restore their forests.

The project, Strengthening Wounaan Forest-based Livelihoods, will also assess and identify ways to improve the Wounaan art market, for the benefit of Wounaan women and communities. Activities also aim to strengthen the participation of Wounaan women and youth in the governance and management of their natural resources.

US Forest Service International Programs resources, expertise and training in natural resources assessment, NTFP value chain analysis and reforestation of tropical forests is a critical input to this project, which will be carried out with the Wounaan National Congress and Foundation for the Development of the Wounaan People. Strengthening Wounaan Forest-based Livelihoods is part of US Forest Service International Program’s overall work to reduce illegal logging and improve forest management and forest governance in Panama. Native Future is a key US Forest Service partner in promoting sustainable livelihoods among indigenous peoples in Panama.

Wounaan of Panamá are an indigenous peoples numbering approximately 7,200 and living in 17 small villages scattered throughout the eastern rainforests of the Majé and Darién regions. Their traditional lands comprise some of the most intact ecosystems in Panama and the Americas. Moreover, Wounaan depend on these forests, streams and mangroves for both their livelihood and culture. The large remnants of forest that define Wounaan territories are increasingly targeted by loggers looking for prized and protected tropical hardwoods such as the endangered cocobolo tree (rosewood in English, or Dalbergia retusa). Cocobolo occupies an important space in Wounaan cosmology and ritual. It is also an important source of building material for Wounaan houses, and is the raw material from which Wounaan carve beautiful representations of local wildlife and nature which are sold in markets in Panama city and provide income to Wounaan families. Deforestation also damages the plants from which the world class Wounaan baskets - hösig di – are crafted.

Wounaan artist holding a high quality basket, hösig di

For decades, Wounaan weavers and carvers have perfected their art into a livelihood and source of household income. Recently, global economic forces and changing local markets have significantly diminished Wounaan participation in a craft that was once practiced in up to 90% of their households. It is easy to assume that with the changing market, Wounaan socio-economic needs, livelihoods and forest resource use is also changing. This project will assess problems and opportunities along all stages of the value chain of at least one Wounaan handcrafted product, including harvesting, production, gathering and transportation, and marketing and sale. It will identify opportunities to increase value and returns to Wounaan and improve NTFP management.