Centre for Social Excellence for Indonesia

Between 1990 and 2010, Indonesia lost 20% of its natural forests, and deforestation continues apace to this day. Besides an irrevocable loss of biodiversity and contribution to climate change, this phenomenon impacts more than 25,000 villages located in and around Indonesia’s forests. According to Oxfam Novib, there are 7,000 active land conflicts, largely related to private sector development. Unfortunately, there are very few social experts with the skills necessary to resolve these conflicts and create the collaborative atmosphere necessary to implement sustainable forest management.

Faced with similar problems in the Congo Basin, in 2008 TFT launched the Centre for Social Excellence (CSE), with the support of the Prince Albert II Foundation. The CSE trains future social experts through both short (week or month-long) and long (10-month) courses combining specialist teaching, practical work, and guided internships. This new project is seeking to build a network of trained social experts to help resolve outstanding conflicts and create partnerships among companies and communities to protect the standing forests.