Integrating ecosystem- and community-based adaptation: Lessons from Model Forests in Latin America

The document examines the integration of ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) and community-based adaptation (CbA) through the EU-funded EcoAdapt project. By utilizing the Model Forests approach in Bolivia, Argentina, and Chile, the project sought to develop long-term climate adaptation strategies for water resources. The integration aims to combine the protection of biodiversity and ecosystem services with the empowerment of local communities to identify their own needs. Key benefits identified include increased community ownership, a better understanding of socio-ecological interconnections, and a more holistic view of large-scale environmental processes. However, the project faced challenges such as waning community motivation, inclusive participation gaps—specifically with cattle ranchers in Bolivia—and instabilities within the public sector. The briefing concludes that successful up-scaling requires a socio-ecological systems approach, secure finance, supportive public policies, and the development of accessible tools for local actors.

• Integrating ecosystem-based and community-based adaptation provides several benefits: it fosters local ownership of adaptation processes, highlights the interconnections between socio-ecological systems, and allows local concerns to be linked with larger-scale environmental processes. Additionally, it helps different actors build a shared understanding of issues by clarifying differing perspectives and terminology.
• The EcoAdapt project implemented specific integrated activities across its sites, including ecological restoration (such as slope protection with medicinal crops), rainwater harvesting, and the creation of watershed protected areas, alongside community-focused actions like the co-production of knowledge on water governance, the establishment of municipal leadership groups, and the introduction of improved cookstoves.
• Several systemic challenges hinder the integration of these approaches, including the difficulty of maintaining long-term community motivation, power imbalances, and a mismatch between different governance scales. The public sector is often characterized by high turnover in government agencies, lack of transparency, and corruption, which undermines the credibility of adaptation processes.
• In the Chiquitania region of Bolivia, achieving inclusive participation has been particularly difficult because cattle ranchers, who possess the highest economic and territorial influence and are viewed as primary contributors to the loss of ecosystem services, have shown little interest in the adaptation planning process.
• For adaptation strategies to be successfully scaled up or out, the document argues for a socio-ecological systems approach that integrates ecosystem functions with human rights and needs. This must be supported by secure finance, supportive public policies, and the use of accessible tools such as "training of trainers" or farmer field schools.

APA

Besa, M. C., Almonacid, R. V., Cronenbold, R., Giner, G., Sandoval, C., Devisscher, T., & Barrot, J. (2015). Integrating ecosystem- and community-based adaptation: Lessons from Model Forests in Latin America. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/SEI-DB-2015-EcoAdapt-ecosystems-community-adaptation.pdf

Chicago

Besa, Mónica Coll, Roberto Vides Almonacid, Romy Cronenbold, Graciela Giner, Claudio Sandoval, Tahia Devisscher, and Julia Barrot. Integrating ecosystem- and community-based adaptation: Lessons from Model Forests in Latin America. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2015. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/SEI-DB-2015-EcoAdapt-ecosystems-community-adaptation.pdf.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{besa2015integrating, author = {Besa, Mónica Coll and Almonacid, Roberto Vides and Cronenbold, Romy and Giner, Graciela and Sandoval, Claudio and Devisscher, Tahia and Barrot, Julia}, title = {{Integrating ecosystem- and community-based adaptation: Lessons from Model Forests in Latin America}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2015}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/SEI-DB-2015-EcoAdapt-ecosystems-community-adaptation.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }