PE’s founders are former Peace Corps Volunteers who worked in Panama’s Darien province between 2002 and 2006. During ten years of cumulative service we witnessed the destructive cycle of “slash-and-burn” development that has depleted thousands of acres of old-growth rainforest. The pioneers who log and homestead this rainforest are in search of new opportunities and a better life for their families. Unfortunately, maximizing income from natural resources usually includes unintended consequences: soil degradation, loss of important biodiversity and eventually a loss of long term income. The problem can be summed by asking: Is it fair to tell a poor man not to deforest when that is the only way to feed his family?
As our Peace Corps service wound down, we noticed that some of the more progressive local landowners were renting portions of their land short-term to others for agriculture. After seeing the benefits of their increased income and better land stewardship, we thought that the land lease practice could be applied to forestry to produce long-term, steady income.
We discussed the idea with a number of local inhabitants, and each agreed that the idea presented a more sustainable way to profit from their natural resources. The idea took root in their communities, and Planting Empowerment began to grow. |
