Professional Documents
Culture Documents
THE EARTH,
NURTURING
THE SOUL
17 18 20
The Community Journeying with the Selection and Training
at the Core Community are Critical
21 24 25
Recognizing Local Practicing What Communities Taking
Knowledge They Preach the Lead
30 30 32
Core Research-based From Research
Business Implementation to Action
33 36 37
Changing Individual Environmental Institutionalizing
Practices Education is Key Environmental Practices
43 44 47
Poverty Coexists with Understanding Local Strengthening
Environmental Fragility Livelihood Systems Livelihood Assets
48 50
Introducing Sustainable Linking Farms
Livelihood Practices to Markets
53 55
The New? OCSAT: A Framework for
The Old? Organizational Strengthening
61 62 63
Asynchronous Strategic Incentivizing
Learning Monitoring Performance
66 67
En-gender-ing Knowing
Development When to Leave
71 72 74
Cultivating Sincerity The Spirit of
Relationships and Integrity Sharing
76 78
Fostering Local Building
Ownership Reputation
Credits 85
Acknowledgments 87
capabilities of project staff and extension workers. Convinced that the geo-physical
eco-system called the watershed is the operative planning and implementation unit,
the Foundation embarked on its first three comprehensive, integrated and cooperative
ventures to start the rehabilitation of three watersheds, one each in Cebu, Negros
Oriental, and Negros Occidental. Since these three initial projects, the Foundation has
completed implementation of almost a hundred environment projects in four regions in
the Philippines during the last three decades.
The second reason why it is difficult to answer the question is the nature of activities and
approaches that SWCF has implemented since its inception. The networks extensive
experience in natural resource management in the Philippines and other parts of
the world lent itself to a bottom-up approach to planning, a participatory system of
management, an equity-led development focus, and a facilitative style of assistance to
public agencies and private organizations involved in environmental projects. SWCF
implemented initiatives in employment generation, targeted species conservation, rural
micro-credit, literacy, eco-tourism, and heritage conservation, among others.
However, despite the diversity, there seems to be a unifying thread in all of SWCFs
efforts. The efforts of the Foundation are anchored on its vision statement that reads:
To provide more focus in the writing of this book, two things needed to be done constrict
the geographic focus to one area, and make SWCFs vision statement as the primary
message that weaves the different stories highlighted in this book. For this purpose,
Bohol was chosen as the area for several reasons. First, Bohol is the place where SWCF
has tested all its approaches in natural resource management in partnership with other
stakeholders from community residents and students to policy-makers. Second, Bohol
is the province where SWCF has stayed the longest and has established the strongest
community presence. Finally, Bohol is the place where SWCF has partnered with one of
its longest standing donor-partners, the Organization for International Co-operation on
Development Projects (DISOP), whose support is instrumental in the writing of this book.
The title of this book speaks volumes of what SWCF wanted to do, and has been doing
since its beginning to nourish the earth and nurture the soul two processes that feed
into each other and articulate SWCFs development philosophy. SWCF does not only
intend to change the landscape but also the people. This involves understanding deeply
why people and communities lose appreciation for Gods creation and finding ways how
stakeholders are collectively able to restore this. This book narrates how these processes
evolved in the Bohol communities, how people were touched, and how it has led to the
restoration of the environment.
Project evaluations conducted in the past rated SWCF projects the highest in relevance.
A project is deemed relevant when this is designed to address the problems
and needs faced by beneficiaries. Interventions intended to address these needs are
undertaken in order to achieve results and effect changes in the lives of end-receivers.
One of SWCFs greatest strengths is its approach in working with communities.
The approach has not changed since SWCF started working in Bohol. Projects are
developed together with communities and with high regard for local systems and
cultures. In August 1998, before SWCF started working in La Union, Sierra Bullones,
the agricultural technician assigned in the area made a courtesy call to the barangay
captain, and two weeks after, a barangay assembly was held with each household
represented to talk about community needs, and how, together, the community could,
with the assistance of the project, achieve them. Twelve years later, even before SWCF
submitted its project proposal to DISOP about a project to be implemented in the
barangays of the municipality of Batuan, it first conducted a problem tree analysis with
targeted communities to identify the pressing needs that the project could respond to.
The community is fertile with assets the earth, its people, the plants, the trees, community
practices and culture where SWCF can build its project implementation. According to
Mila Baisac, bookkeeper of Bohol Multipurpose Cooperative and one of the mentors
hired for bookkeeping trainings by SWCF, the recognition that bookkeepers can emerge
from communities with low educational achievements is a testament that SWCF has
strong belief in people and their ability to contribute to the development process.
In this process, SWCF is a facilitator that journeys with the communities in their quest
for a better life. This is exemplified by the fact that SWCF technicians, in the first few
years of the project, live in the area where they are assigned.
This approach though comes with disadvantages, because the quality of the personnel
assigned in the area is critical. The majority of the agricultural technicians that SWCF
deploys in the area are persons of competence and commitment. The projects have, so
far, achieved not only significant improvements in community participation but also
economic empowerment. However, there was one experience where the character quality
of the assigned agricultural technician sowed division among residents, disenchanted
active women leaders, and raised suspicions on the intentions of SWCF, especially when
accountability over project funds was put into question. This was, however, only an
isolated incident, an exception than a rule. Since then, SWCF has not experienced
another mishap as SWCF management made sure that financial controls are in place
and that community residents are made fully aware of financial transactions of the
projects that it implements.
This is the reason why we put primary importance on the selection and training of
agricultural technicians, says Aida Granert, SWCFs development officer. In the
selection of technicians to be deployed on site, SWCF is biased towards early career
professionals or fresh graduates of agriculture or forestry courses who are from Bohol,
who have considerable experience living in rural areas, and with strong commitment
towards development.
True enough, most of the technicians currently working at SWCF are those that have
stayed with the organization for more than 10 years. Those who have left still feel a strong
affinity with the organization which has nurtured their capacities and has contributed
significantly to their professional and personal growth. Agricultural technicians are
trained in the rigors of community organizing, in project management, leadership,
Clockwise:
new practices it will introduce will be immediately assimilated into local practices. For
example, while SWCF is a staunch advocate of organic agriculture, there are still a few
farmers (around 30%) who are reluctant to practice it. Over the years though, SWCF has
not lost patience in educating the farmers and in convincing them that organic farming
tremendously benefits both them and the environment.
SWCF is not just about talk. It models the practices it wants to propagate.
For example, a technician lives in a plant nursery site, that also serves as the office of the
organization that SWCF helps to establish, and is also a source of seedlings and planting
materials that showcases organic farming practices. SWCF also teaches transparency in
financial record-keeping so it discusses and shares with project participants what funds
are allocated to them, and how these are spent. As a commitment to co-management
of project funds, leaders of peoples organizations co-sign documents to authorize the
disbursement of project resources.
Several of the project activities require voluntary work, like the building of the nursery,
the maintenance and upkeep of the demonstration farms, and the management of
cooperative stores. The people do not mind this because they have also seen how the
SWCFs project implementation team goes out of its way to make the different activities
successful. Agricultural technicians stay late at night to correct books of accounts and
check minutes of meetings. They stay during weekends and do not go home to their
families so they can attend meetings and trainings. They respond to requests for assistance
from project participants even beyond office hours. All these show the well-intentioned
commitment of the organizations technicians to the welfare of the community.
This reinforces the organizations integrity in the communities. When SWCF started
working in Bohol, rumors circulated around that the organization was looking for gold
treasure and used the community development projects as an excuse to enter communities.
Early on, SWCF focused its work in barangays covered by the Rajah Sikatuna Protected
Landscape (RSPL), an area of forested limestone hills, grasslands, and natural springs.
When people saw what SWCF did and how it treated local communities and
the environment, all negative publicity that the organization received even
before it started, slowly dissipated.
SWCFs credibility is enhanced by the participatory nature of its processes. The project
recognizes the capacity of local people to manage their own development. As such,
proposals for interventions come from them, management of these interventions is done
by them, and sustaining the benefits out of these interventions is entrusted to their care.
When problems arise, it is not the technician who solves them. The community
organization holds meetings and defines the problem, diagnoses its causes, and looks
for potential solutions. The identified solutions are then assigned to specific persons
with corresponding timelines. All throughout this process, SWCF personnel observes,
facilitates, and mentors. The level of involvement at the beginning may be high, but as
the organization and its members gain more capacity, slowly SWCF retreats into the
background and lets the community residents take the lead.
CORE BUSINESS
It is an understatement to say that the very reason why SWCF does all the things that it
currently does is its deep care and concern for the environment. To realize its vision, the
Foundation operates five (5) program thrusts, namely; 1) advocacy and environmental
education, 2) protected area management, 3) livelihood for rural communities, 4) natural
resource management and 5) karst management. Underpinning these program thrusts is
the objective of making the earth a sustainable place to live in.
All of the projects that SWCF implemented in Bohol, not only those that were supported
by Organization for International Co-operation on Development Projects (DISOP), are
geared towards environmental management, especially of forests and their resources. Its
project within the Rajah Sikatuna Protected Landscape (RSPL), those that were geared
towards the empowerment of Eskaya communities, the Micro-Watershed Component
project, the establishment of a Biodiversity Center, its youth and student programs, are all
directed towards capacitating peoples and organizations in taking care of environmental
resources from rivers, to trees, birds, bats, ferns, to caves, streams, forests and many more.
Rumila Bullecer, dean of the College of Advanced Studies of the Bohol Island State
University and one of those involved in the implementation of SWCFs projects, said
that SWCFs greatest strength is the integrity and personal passion towards sustainable
natural resource management of SWCFs top management. Referring to Executive
Director William Granert, she said that the passion is too infectious that the staff and
all workers couldnt help but imbibe the values and put them into practice.
RESEARCH-BASED IMPLEMENTATION
extensively informed by research, and whose activities also inform future learning and
research processes. It conducted extensive inventories of flora and fauna within RSPL,
conducted research on bats, dipterocarps, and ferns, conducted feasibility studies on
guano and bamboo production, and did value chain analysis of organic chicken, organic
pork meat, and bananas.
What SWCF knows from research, it uses to influence communities to implement concrete
actions. Over the years, SWCF, with the support of Organization for International Co-
operation on Development Projects (DISOP) and the cooperation of the community
residents, have established Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR) sites for the restoration
of forest landscapes, continuously collected data from Biodiversity Monitoring System
(BMS) trails in fifteen barangays, and established a communal bamboo production site
and a native tree gene bank at 7 primary schools. These activities do not only help
restore the environment but also protect rapidly vanishing species from extinction.
These practices, along with continuous awareness raising and education efforts, have
resulted to noticeable changes in the environment.
John Mark Porinas, a child of a project participant from Rizal, Batuan, in a creative
visualization exercise, reported that the most significant change he noticed in their
barangay is the increase in the number of trees and birds, and the improvement in the
condition of the environment. This observation is confirmed by results of BMS which
reports a 22% increase in the number of seen/heard birds in the project areas when 2014
figures are compared with the previous year.
However, BMS does not only function as a monitoring tool in SWCFs project sites.
Different organizations, together with local officials, agreed to implement more sustainable
practices at the household or individual level. For example, community residents have
increased awareness in waste management and have practiced waste segregation in
households. Families have also engaged in recycling activities. Households have installed
composting facilities and burning of household and farm residues decreased. Communities
do not burn plastics anymore. Farmers, on the other hand, no longer burn rice straw in
the fields but instead use it as material for organic fertilizer.
Planting and growing trees has become a practice of most communities. Families, becoming
increasingly aware that climate as well as water supply is positively affected by growing
more trees, have made it a conscious effort to plant trees and replace those that were cut.
Finally, use of organic fertilizer has increased over time. Farmers are now aware of the
harmful effects of inorganic fertilizer on the long-term condition of their farms. While a
total switch to organic fertilizer is not observed, there are more farming households who
practice organic agriculture now as compared to before the arrival of SWCF.
Central to these changes is SWCFs efforts to educate the public. SWCF conducts
extensive trainings on environmental awareness, produces information materials for
distribution, and uses display billboards to publicize information about environmental
management. SWCF engages different actors and stakeholders women and men,
farmers, government officials, and even children and youth.
Lucia Virador of Bugsoc, Sierra Bullones said that she benefitted largely from the
trainings that SWCF conducted that increased her knowledge on sustainable farming
practices. She was able to attend different trainings contour farming, organic farming,
environmental management, leadership, management, and bookkeeping, among others.
Children of project participants like Angeline Bravo also confirmed this, saying that
the changes in the environment were brought about by the education activities that
their parents have attended. Among those she highlighted were the trainings on contour
farming, use of organic fertilizer, livestock management, and nursery establishment.
There is a need to sustain these practices. One of the activities that SWCF does
is to lobby for policy issuance at the level of the barangay, the Philippines basic political
unit. For example, SWCF and its barangay-based organizations lobbied for the passage
of local ordinances on non-burning of rice straw, which a majority of covered barangays
were able to pass. In the Municipality of Batuan, SWCF, in partnership with the towns
vice mayor, passed an ordinance requiring upland farmers to implement contour farming.
Other practices are embedded in organizational policies, for example, the application of
sustainable farming practices is required before any grant of livestock loan is released.
After presenting the results of a Biodiversity Monitoring System (BMS) research which
Framework Plan of Bohol which is in line with the development vision and thrust of the
province. This framework aimed to guide the municipalities to adopt major strategies for
the conservation of biological resources and the unique natural and cultural heritage of
the Boholanos. Through this engagement, SWCF was able to influence public discourse
in environmental policies.
SWCF has been very active in these opportunities to influence policy. SWCF Executive
Director, Mr. Bill Granert, was once the vice-chairperson in Bohols sectoral technical
working group under the Environment and Natural Resource Management Sector and
has been very active in discussions on environmental management. He is currently
the focal person for the biodiversity sub-sector for the Bohol Physical Framework
Plan 2016-2021. SWCF personnel were also actively involved in the drafting of the
Bohol Environment Code (1998). This was the first such document of its kind at the
provincial level in the country. SWCF also participated in the upgrading of the Bohol
Environment Code in 2014-2015. Through these opportunities, SWCF asserts its role
in ensuring that the environment is protected by law, and that people are encouraged
to ensure its implementation.
Sustaining Peoples
Livelihood:
Key to Environmental Conservation
Sustainable development
is development
that meets the needs of the present,
without compromising
the ability of future generations
to meet their own needs.
In the areas where SWCF operates, poverty is a prevailing condition. For example,
using December 2010 figures, poverty incidence averaged 20% in the barangays where
the projects are located. At the same time, the areas covered by SWCF are part of a
vulnerable eco-system. Portions of Batuan and Sierra Bullones are part of the fragile
ecosystem comprising the Rajah Sikatuna Protected Landscape and also the Chocolate
Hills Natural Monument. All of these five municipalities are within major watershed
areas of the province. Pilar and Guindulman are part of the Caruod Watershed; Batuan
and Sierra Bullones are part of Loboc Watershed; Pilar, Sierra Bullones, Duero and
Guindulman are part of the Wahig Inabanga Watershed. Parts of Duero also form part
of the Alijawan-Cansuhay-Anibongan Watershed Reserve Area.
UNDERSTANDING
LOCAL LIVELIHOOD SYSTEMS
Mrs. Temotea Biscayda weaving
a bag using abaca strips, Biabas,
SWCF provides an alternative view that earning income Guindulman, Bohol.
The trainings that SWCF provides are matched with financial assistance. SWCF
provides capital assistance for livelihood projects that farmers themselves identify
livestock, agricultural production, consumer stores, among others; this in a context
where livelihood finance comes with hefty costs. For a select number of beneficiaries,
SWCF is able to assist them in buying carabaos to use in their farms.
Jessel Gano, of Inaghuban, Pilar is very thankful to SWCF for the financial and technical
assistance that her family received. The different trainings together with the financial
assistance she received (in a form of a loan) helped her develop an entrepreneurial
mindset. One of the greatest changes I have experienced personally is becoming a
farmer entrepreneur. I now treat my farm as a business that I manage on a daily basis,
she said. Jessel was able to send her children to college using income from her farm.
SWCFs main effort is to introduce sustainable farming practices across its project sites,
veering farmers away from the use of inorganic inputs and pest management practices
that are hazardous to both human and environmental health. Farmers practice contour
farming, use organic inputs, conduct integrated pest management in their farms, raise
naturally-grown livestock, and use compost to convert organic waste to fertilizer.
Farmers now plant their farms with more trees, and are very conscientious in waste
management practices.
According to Conrado Brigoli, a long-time SWCF Senior Project Manager who is now
working with Organization for International Co-operation on Development Projects
(DISOP), The attitudes of farmers now towards the use of sustainable farming practices
is a far cry from what I have experienced 19 years ago. When SWCF started in
Sierra Bullones, he saw how people were lukewarm especially to practices like organic
agriculture which had an initial negative effect on production yield. But people began
to realize that livelihood is not only about profits, but also of ensuring that nature is not
sacrificed in our pursuit for better income figures, he added.
Sergio Macabudbud of Cambacay, Batuan, greatly appreciated how SWCF helped him
see that he can take care of the environment while at the same time continue earning
income from his farm. Like other farmers, he realized that agricultural productivity is
dependent on the capacity of his farm to produce. Without sustainable practices, the soil
will eventually lose fertility and jeopardize productivity in the long run.
To date, SWCF was able to strengthen more than 2,000 jobs or livelihoods in various
forms carabao, swine, and chicken production, consumer store, food vending, fertilizer
production, vegetable vending, among others. A major factor in this success is SWCFs
ability to ensure that producers are linked to markets. It sponsored feasibility and value
chain studies to serve as basis for its advisory inputs to farmers. It participated in trade
fairs to introduce SWCF products to more buyers. The foundation created a federation
of organizations so that it can act as a link between farmer producers and buyers.
The improvements in economic condition in the country and in Bohol also contributed to
the renewed strength of the local economy. Bohols tourism was able to bounce back after
the earthquake that devastated the province in 2013. Demand for agricultural products
remains high especially for specific crops and livestock. Bohol is still a net importer of
vegetables and spices. For naturally grown chicken, Bohol is unable to meet local market
demands. The opportunity exists. This is the reason why SWCF tried to facilitate
processes that would link farmer producers to a stable demand base. In most cases
though, it is the farmers inability to meet market demands in fixed and determinable
quantities that is lacking. SWCF will still test whether the farmers federation, it helped
to establish, will be able to fulfill the role of linking farms to markets.
Mr. Godo Limotlimot (wearing white polo shirt) teaching SWCF staff
and BIAMPC the use of participatory impact monitoring tools.
SWCF desires to work with local organizations based in the project sites to
become its partners in facilitating development processes over the course
of project implementation. The intention is that these organizations will
sustain the projects efforts when SWCF exits the place as project ends.
Which organization will SWCF work with is a critical question. When SWCF arrives
at an area, there are generally already existing organizations, formal or informal,
registered or unregistered. Some organizations are sectoral in nature like womens
groups that were organized to deal with gender and development issues, senior citizen
organizations composed of women and men aged 60 and above, farmer organizations
that look into farm productivity, or informal savings and social security groups that meet
weekly to contribute and share resources for business, family use, or for death in the
family. Others are more formal like cooperatives that have been in operation for several
years, or associations registered with the Department of Labor and Employment.
The question then becomes Will SWCF work with an existing organization or create
a new one? In some project areas, the answer is simple, especially when no such
organization exists. Because SWCF would like to involve households, both men and
women, and deal with holistic issues, organizing a new one will be a natural choice.
In areas where organizations similar to the ones that SWCF would like to have (e.g.
cooperatives, cross-sectoral associations) exist, determining whether the organization is
the best group that SWCF will have to work with is sometimes a difficult task.
It requires that SWCF studies or gets to know the organization better, looking at current
membership, rules and regulations, financial systems, history of cooperation, and
reputation within the wider community. This is important because SWCF needs to trust
the organization, and the project participants from the community need to trust it as well.
To improve governance, it facilitates processes so that organization can define its strategic
vision, mission, and goals, and develops a cadre of leaders within the organization that
has the ability to achieve this governance. To strengthen organizational management,
it helps the organization to formalize its organizational structure, train officers in
leadership and management, and define with them a process of planning, monitoring
and evaluation.
Strengthening existing
organizations than
establishing new ones.
Using a framework
to structure interventions
in organizational
strengthening (e.g. OCSAT).
Developing a
core module of basic
trainings that can be run as
refresher courses regularly.
Peer learning
and field visits.
On-site coaching
on key critical skills
as bookkeeping.
Annual assessment
using OCSAT.
Allowing organizations
to freely define
organizational goals.
Progressive hand-over
of tasks to organization
officials.
ASYNCHRONOUS LEARNING
SWCF has a core module for organizational strengthening that it conducts on a regular
basis as a refresher course. This includes trainings on (1) leadership and values formation,
(2) basic bookkeeping, (3) cooperative management, (4) audit management and (5) policy
and resolution formulation. These trainings are designed and delivered in different
formats, depending on the context and need of the participants. However, most of the
courses are done through initial training and followed-up with mentoring sessions on
site. This approach recognizes the fact that the SWCF assisted organizations are at
different development levels and are coming from different starting points.
To facilitate sharing of experiences and cross learning from each other, SWCF conducts
at least two activities that hasten this process. First, SWCF supports field visits which
can be farmer to farmer, PO to PO, PO to NGO, and PO to LGU. It also conducts
annual Peoples Organization Congress where leaders from different organizations are
gathered together to share best practices, receive awards for outstanding achievement
(PO or farmers), discuss updates on product trends, funding opportunities, and basic
laws affecting them, and conduct evaluation and planning activities.
STRATEGIC MONITORING
The presence of field technicians in the site allows close monitoring not
only of project activities, but also of organizational maturity. The field
technicians know what the current discussions are, what challenges the
organizations are facing, and what internal problems need to be resolved.
On the other hand, if organization leaders or members have questions or need advice,
the technician is there. The technicians attend project meetings, join the organization
in volunteer work, visit households from time to time, inspect minutes of meetings, and
looks at organizational books of accounts.
INCENTIVIZING PERFORMANCE
Organizations and individuals assisted by SWCF set their own goals what they would
like their organization to achieve, and what they want as individuals to pursue. These
goals serve as their sign-posts in deciding what courses of action to take, what activities
to pursue, what skills are necessary, and what partnerships with external stakeholders
are critical. This is SWCFs recognition of peoples right to self-determination. What
makes the organizations and individuals motivated are the incentives that they receive
when achieving their own goals.
Incentives are mostly intangible in nature. During the annual peoples organization
congress, the best performing organization is awarded, and so is the model farmer.
Over the course of the year, high performing organizations become learning hubs, best
performing officers are tasked to mentor other organizations; every good deed is publicly
recognized.
Project participants feel that when they perform better, they are trusted more and are
given more support. Dionisio Palingcud Jr, of Rosariohan, Batuan, is one of SWCFs
model farmers. He takes pride in being one and is very happy that he is chosen by SWCF
to offer mentoring support to other farmers like him. Now, he is asked by SWCF to act
as a resource person in several trainings. He is also very active in his own community in
helping solve the persistent problems of poverty.
Regina Sagpang, SWCFs project manager, said that while they are very strict in the
implementation policies, they are also generous with rewards. They do not condone bad
behavior, but they also do not allow a good deed go unnoticed. This is the reason why
people appreciate how SWCF manages the project. They realize that everything that
SWCF does is for their own good.
EN-GENDER-ING DEVELOPMENT
With SWCFs projects, women in the communities have reclaimed their role in the
development process and performed it very well. Arnulfa Almedona of Janlud, Batuan
is very thankful that through SWCF she has learned livelihood skills and was able to
use them to increase her familys income. Nemesia Sajulga was able to send her child
through college because of the assistance of SWCF in improving her farming practices
and with the organizations financial assistance.
There are many women in the barangays who are now occupying top posts in the
organizations, positions that were normally held by men. They have become chairpersons,
vice chairpersons, secretaries, and treasurers. They participate in voluntary work, join in
biodiversity monitoring, participate actively in meetings, and lead community initiatives.
They are no longer at the sidelines in their communitys development.
Consolacion Vinluan captures this change very profoundly in her own words:
For SWCF, a three-year project in strengthening organizations is too long for already
performing organizations, but too short for the struggling ones. This is the reason why,
when SWCF designs its project, for new sites, it still includes the old sites for monitoring,
continuous capacity building, and technical support. At the end of the project term, SWCF
turns-over to the organization, not only the project funds that they were able to grow
through their collective efforts, but also the responsibility of carrying on the activities.
The organizations readiness for turn-over are differentiated across organizations, and also
differentiated across the types or nature of activities. For example, some organizations are
already very good at enterprise management but weak in terms of pursuing environmental
conservation. Some groups are good at financial management but weak in policy
implementation. A key mechanism in ensuring that organizations that SWCF supports
are able to support each other well is through the creation of the federation.
It is our greatest hope that the federation will be able to continue what we have started
and also do greater things for the farmers and the communities where they live, said Aida
Granert, SWCFs development manager. There are already signs that the federation is
moving towards this direction.
CULTIVATING RELATIONSHIPS
I have been with the Foundation since 1991 and have observed many changes in the
lives of the people who are our clientele, our partners in development. One important
aspect of the foundations work is networking, and we do this not because it is required
but because it is integral to our work, William Bill Granert, founder and executive
director of SWCF said.
Bills passion for people and environment and capacity to work meaningfully with
other stakeholders is greatly admired by the partners. Engr. Ronilita Bunado of
Bohols Provincial Planning and Development Office recalls with fondness how SWCF
has significantly influenced environmental planning at the province especially in
crafting the Bohol Ecotourism and Biodiversity Conservation Framework that paved a
significant change in the way provincial stakeholders view economic development and
the environment. Engr. Bunado said that the then prevalent conventional view was that
for economic development to happen, some destruction in the environment needs to be
allowed. Now, the view is that both goals are not incompatible.
Describing SWCFs approach, Engr. Bunado said, SWCF, through the leadership of
Mr. William Granert, was able to establish and maintain smooth working relationships
with the provincial government of Bohol, national agencies, and other partners in
development that we turn to them not only for technical, but also for financial support.
Bill showed extraordinary resourcefulness in his ability to find external assistance for
development and environmental projects, and generosity to part with whatever he is able
to gather and find.
Bill and Aidas work ethic and vision of the organization has meaningfully cascaded to the
SWCF team. Engr. Wilson Pajo, Municipal Vice-Mayor of Pilar, Bohol said that SWCFs
sincerity is best exemplified by how its personnel live their lives as an example to other
people on how people should take care of the environment, on how they should make
their lives more productive. The technicians live on-site, and everything they do will
be known by the people they work with. In this context, it is difficult for them to say one
thing, and do another. They need to lead by example, he added. Building relationships,
in this case, is a daily affair, and critical to that process is to live what one preaches.
Those that have participated in SWCFs projects have attested to this. Several farmers
mentioned that SWCF technicians are always willing to help them every step of the
Participation in local
policy making bodies
(barangay to provincial
levels, governing
board, Protected Area
Management Boards, and
Forum on Environmental Justice, Iloilo City. coalitions).
access funding with help and support from SWCF to implement different projects as
water systems, agricultural development, and organizational trainings. It helps the
organizations build their network as well by sharing with them call for proposals,
contacts, and other relevant information that they can use in finding more resources for
biodiversity conservation and employment generation.
Beyond Bohol, SWCF is also active in promoting its environment agenda with other
organizations. Bill mentioned that SWCF has also influenced other Organization
for International Co-operation on Development Projects (DISOP) partners to look at
biodiversity as part of their programs. This has been done through visits of our staff
to their sites and their staff personnel visiting Bohol. We freely exchange information,
technologies and practices with other agencies, institutions and sector organizations.
SWCF is also active in knowledge production and sharing. Over the years, SWCF has
produced several research papers that they share in regional and national conferences
and fora that deal with natural resource management and other topics. The more our
name is known, the more are our opportunities to enhance our vision and mission call
to action, Bill added.
We feel that SWCFs work is our work too, Rizalino Canda, Municipal Planning and
Development Coordinator of the municipality of Batuan said. He highlighted the fact
that critical to SWCFs success in their project sites is how they involve every person
from government officials at the municipal level to the barangay, teachers, students,
farmers in the implementation of the project, always stressing the fact that the project
is not SWCFs, but that of the community.
This networking philosophy does not just build stronger relationships with local actors it
also builds local ownership. As Bill said, Our projects do not operate in a vacuum within
a given site. There are many other actors affecting the same group of stakeholders with
which we work. Bringing them into the picture boosts cooperative effort and enhances
the work of the field technician and the local residents themselves.
BUILDING REPUTATION
Bill recalled:
The biodiversity information, especially about birds was recently provided to the
Provincial Planning and Development Office (PPDO) that is now developing the
Provincial Development and Physical Framework Plan for Bohol, 2016-2021, a key
planning document required under the law. The collected data will be used to support
activities suggested as part of the framework plan to conserve Bohols biodiversity.
The information from the farmers will also be used to update displays at the Bohol
Biodiversity Complex (BBC) in Bilar, Bohol. This educational facility, including the
Dipterocarp Center and native tree nursery, provide visitors with a glimpse into the
wildlife and plants of Bohol.
SWCF helped build the BBC over the last 12 years. It is now part of the official Bohol
Tourism office education tour route in the province. It is extensively used as a training
center for both teachers and students from Cebu Island. The complex provides an
example of how to set up educational information structures and trails as well as preserve
wildlife and plants. The complex has influenced 44 different public high schools and
elementary schools in Cebu Province. Thus, our networking with the DepEd continues
to expand, not only in Bohol, but in other parts of Region 7.
What this book attempts is to document what SWCF has done in the last 20 years or
so in its continuous struggle to promote biodiversity conservation and the well-being of
poor farming communities. It may however only offer a glimpse of what has been made
possible, not necessarily attempting to do justice to the numerous sacrifices and best
efforts made by SWCF to advance these goals, relying largely on the memory of several
informants to whom the writers are most grateful and the available photographs taken
and documents produced since SWCF started its work in the province of Bohol.
Indeed, the previous chapters have documented what SWCF has done to achieve the
kinds of change that it now sees in the lives of farmers, community leaders, women,
students, children, government officials, researchers, community development
workers, technicians, founders changes that have enriched each individuals
appreciation of the environment and understanding of ones capacity to
destroy or protect our one and only home. As nature cannot speak, the previous
chapters have also attempted to describe how SWCFs efforts have made progress in
bringing back the trees, bringing back the birds to sing in its branches, and making the
streams flow with water again. For sure, the harvest has been bountiful, though
not yet enough.
The quest to nourish the earth and nurture the soul is not yet over. More than ever, the
need for SWCF and other similar organizations to continue its efforts is huge, in a context
of declining moral values, weakening social and political institutions, and a warming
earth. As this book ends, it is hoped that more organizations do what SWCF does, that
more organizations and individuals will invest in the kinds of work that SWCF engages
in, and that more people of this planet will realize that there is no other opportune time
to care for the only home we have but now.
We congratulate SWCF and its partners for the great work so far as we challenge them
to do more for the sake of the earth and all that live in it.
Book Concept
Workshop Participants: Conrado Brigoli Nemrod Dolotina
Regina Sagpang Marilie Magduza
Gerardo Payot Nilo Engbino
Lydia Acedilla Geno Omac
Gemelina Piollio
Resource Persons:
Arnulfa Almedona Leonilo Lafuente
Mila Baisac Corazon Latorre
Julie Barcelona Sergio Macabudbud
Rumila Bullecer Wilson Pajo
Ronilita Bunado Dionisio Palingcod, Jr.
Rizalino Canda Antonio Quieta
Jessel Gano Nemesia Sajulga
Julito Gumapac Lina Sumaylo
Lolita Hingpit Consolacion Vinluan
Reizl Jose Lucia Virador
This book will not be possible without the generous support of the DISOP, DISOP
Philippines, and MISEREOR.