Conserving global conservation targets in a productive landscape.

The Green Corridor project is a four-year project implemented by the WWF Vietnam programme and Forest Protection Department of Thua Thien Hue province, with funding from the World Bank - GEF, WWF, Thua Thien Hue PPC and SNV. The aim of the project is to strengthen the capacity of local stakeholders and to conserve the landscape of the Green Corridor area.


Conservation in a diverse landscape

The Green Corridor project’s purpose is aims to protect and maintain the Green Corridor landscape by strengthening management and capacity building. The project will apply a landscape-level approach, identifying areas of biodiversity and forest conservation importance.

The projet purpose will be achieved through the implementation of four main project areas.

1. Strengthening conservation and illegal activity prevention

• - Identifying biodiversity hotspots and wildlife corridors, mapping forest areas, and achieving protection.
• - Strengthening regulations on logging, hunting, and wildlife trade, and improving enforcement capacity.
• - Supporting land-use planning and promoting long-term sustainable development practices.

2. Forest landscape restoration and supporting local communities

• - Designing and implementing a strategy to restore high conservation landscapes.
• - Demonstrating incentive schemes to improve livelihoods and sustainability.
• - Supporting local communities to obtain land certificates.

3. Capacity building and awareness raising

• - Implementing training courses on forest management and conservation.
• - Raising awareness and achieving behavior change.
• - Educating local, national, regional, and international interest groups and policy-makers about the project.

4. Forest landscape monitoring and evaluation

• - Establishing an adaptive landscape management system.
• - Conducting biological monitoring and research.
• - Implementing a system to monitor the effects of the Ho Chi Minh highway.

Forests and watersheds

The Green Corridor includes some of the longest remaining stretches of lowland river within intact forest habitat in Vietnam, and contains the Huu Trach, Ta Trach and Bo watersheds. Effective conservation of the Green Corridor area affords effective protection of the three river system’s and a watershed valued at millions of USD per year.

Threats to the environment

The Green Corridor is under threat from illegal logging, hunting, and the unsustainable extraction of natural resources, increased access to forests, and conflicting development interests. The project will tackle the issue of illegal hunting through targetted enforcement training and awareness campaigns. In addition, the public can report illegal trade in willdife by phoning the Hue Hotline for Willdife Trade. The current list of illegal species is available in the download section.

Forest and local communities

Thua Thien Hue’s forests have enormous socioeconomic value for both the province and local communities. Natural forests provide non-timber products, watershed protection, and help to prevent floods. They are a valuable resource for sustainable community basedincomes. Ethnic groups include the Ca Tu, Pa Hi, Pa Co, and Ta Oi who depend on the forests resources to support livelihoods.

Local communities are seen as key to responsible and long-term forest management. The following activities will be accomplished to ensure that livelihoods, forests and biodiversity are managed sustainably:

• - Creating environmentally-oriented income generation opportunities
• - Working to galvanize community support and raise environmental awareness
• - Supporting forest land allocation processes
• - Establishing community agreements and regulations to improve local forest governance
• - Empowering and engaging communities to protect their forests
• - Supporting targeted local community training

Forest landscape restoration

The project will work in partnership with the 661 programme to restore degraded forest, through promotion of high value native species and effective restoration strategies.