Exchange Visits are a form of field method for local implementors from one community management site to learn through the experiences of another by visiting field sites and engaging in dialogue with local and national actors. Inter-country exchange visits aim to attain horizontal interactions (e.g. between local implementors in different countries) and strengthen vertical relations (e.g. among community, local government, and policy makers in one country). Through earlier interactions, it was found that people could deal with difficult issues and ask tough questions outside of their own country and context if given the proper opportunity and venue for the open sharing of concerns.
Visitors and host teams are strategically matched. This is done in such a way that both can relate to themes of mutual interest which are of direct use to them. In consideration of the language differences, exchange visits are designed to accomodate a maximum of 10 visiting participants to achieve more meaningful interactions.
• PHILIPPINES EXCHANGE VISIT TO JAVA, INDONESIA
• NGO FORUM - CAMBODIA EXCHANGE VISIT TO SAMAR PHILIPPINES
• VIET NAM EXCHANGE VISIT TO THE PHILIPPINES
• CAMBODIA EXCHANGE VISIT TO THE PHILIPPINES
• PHILIPPINES EXCHANGE VISIT TO INDONESIA
• THAILAND EXCHANGE VISIT TO THE PHILIPPINES
PHILIPPINES EXCHANGE VISIT TO JAVA, INDONESIA
20-25 March 2006
Java, Indonesia
The SPARK Learning Visit of Filipinos to Java, Indonesia from 20-25 March 2006 focused on small-scale tree farming in Asia. The activity emerged from a previous visit to the Caraga Region, Philippines organized by the Environmental Science for Social Change (ESSC) for the Philippine Working Group (PWG) on Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM).
The Philippines-Indonesia Learning Visit on Small-Scale Tree Farming in Asia is an offshoot activity from a visit to the Caraga Region in September 2005. The Philippine Working Group on Community Based Natural Resource Management (PWG), facilitated by Environmental Science for Social Change, visited tree farms in Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur. A diverse group of professionals and practitioners in CBNRM from various sectors looked at the situation of small-scale tree farmers, planting trees on private lands, and at the potentials and constraints that the tree farming industry faces.
The visit revealed the great potential that tree farming in the Philippines has, in terms of being an economically viable livelihood activity, especially for the natural-resource dependent communities in the region. At the same time, tree farming on private lands also shows great promise as a way to meet domestic wood demand.
As a follow-up to the PWG visit, the Voluntary Service Overseas-Sharing and Promotion of Awareness and Regional Knowledge programme (SPARK) offered support to an activity wherein tree farmers from the Philippines could learn from areas where small-scale tree farming on private lands has been successful. Environmental Science for Social Change organized the visit in collaboration with Asia Forest Network.
The visit proper focused on experiences of two villages, Bogoran in Wonosobo District and Girisekar in Gunungkidul District. A day was also set aside to meet the District Governments under which these two villages belong. Both districts are very progressive in terms of dealing with hutan rakyat areas, and supportive of community-based strategies for management.
As an exposure to the dynamics of the wood market in Java, visits were also made to medium and large-scale wood processing industries, as well as to a furniture factory that sources wood from hutan rakyat areas.
Documentation:
Final Report [pdf 3829kb]
Field Guide [pdf 461kb]
Photo Essay [pdf 991kb]
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NGO FORUM - CAMBODIA EXCHANGE VISIT TO SAMAR PHILIPPINES
3-10 April 2005
Samar, Philippines
In response to a request by Mr. Sok Khim of OXFAM-GB, the Asia Forest Network facilitated an exchange visit to the Philippines for members of NGO Forum on Cambodia. The visit was designed to allow the participants to exchange views, concerns, and knowledge regarding community forest management with Filipino communities, NGOs, and local government officials.
The exchange visit was designed with the following objectives:
- General Objectives
- 1. Understand environmental issues in the Philippines and compare these to environmental issues in Cambodia.
- 2. Understand how Filipino communities protect their environment and livelihood and how they do advocacy.
- 3. Build linkages among NGOs and communities in the region.
- Specific Objectives
- 1. Learn strategies that help protect local people’s rights and livelihoods.
- 2. Learn how Community-Based Forest Management (CBFM) in the Philippines was established and how it is being managed.
- 3. Understand land and fishery issues in various contexts.
Documentation:
Activity Report [pdf 2738Kb]
Field Guide [pdf 6070Kb]
Participants [html]
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VIET NAM EXCHANGE VISIT TO THE PHILIPPINES
9-13 August 2004
Bohol, Philippines
The specific objectives of this exchange visit were:
- to provide an opportunity for coastal Vietnamese communities to learn from other communities working in the similar context of fish and forest management
- to encourage sharing between community members from the different countries (community-to-community, LGU-to-LGU) on resource use and ecological services
- to provide a mutually respectful context of communications between community members, non-government organizations, and local authorities from the same country
Two communities, other than those from which the local community participants come from, were visited by the group. This allowed all participants to learn new things particularly since these were mangrove sites with commonalities which the participants could empathize with,
as well as significant differences which led to learnings and insights.
Documentation:
Agenda, Field Guide, and Participants [pdf 751Kb]
Activity Report [pdf 2166kb]
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CAMBODIA EXCHANGE VISIT TO THE PHILIPPINES
21-25 June 2004
Bohol, Philippines
The participants from Cambodia come from or work with communities that dwell in the vicinity of Tonle Sap Lake, a wetland ecosystem covering about 1,500,000 hectares. 7 provinces surround the lake comprised of communities who are highly dependent on the fish stock provided by the lake. A significant ecological feature of Tonle Sap is its flood forest made up of species similar, but not equivalent to mangrove forests.
The Philippine contingent, on the other hand, was made up of community members who live around mangrove forests, plus some of their local government representatives and officials from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
During the exchange and site visits, both participating groups learned that although flood forests and mangrove forests may seem different ecologically, there are a lot of similarities in their management and use. Fish as well as crab harvest (specifically for the Bohol communities) rely heavily on the health of their environment and proper management of these environments must be actively taken up by the communities themselves. Support from local government and national agencies is likewise important. The exchange visit has shown that a proper venue for dialogue among stakeholders is not only possible but ideal given the requirements of a cooperative and integrative management approach to local issues.
The objectives of this exchange visit,
- to expose visiting participants to the local realities and environmental conditions of mangrove-related communities of Bohol
- to help participants gain a better understanding of their context by learning from another's situation
- to share on mechanisms for resource planning and developing collaborative resource management agreements between communities and local government
were certainly achieved but the actual success of such an exchange will rely on the participants' following-up on the learnings and sharing these with their respective communities and agencies.
Documentation:
Agenda, Field Guide, and Participants [pdf 2784Kb]
Activity Report [pdf 2530Kb]
Photo Essay [pdf 6059Kb]
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PHILIPPINES EXCHANGE VISIT TO INDONESIA
November 1998
East Kalimantan, Indonesia
Chosen participants from the DENR's Community Based Forest Management Programme (CBFMP), from the National Integrated Protected Area Programme (NIPAP), from local government units, and from indigenous people (IP) communities were invited to Indonesia with the following objectives:
- To provide Filipinos with an opportunity to view the traditional rattan management systems of Dayak communities, as well as to provide insights into the processing techniques and marketing support mechanisms that are working and not working within the Indonesian context.
- To provide a venue for dialogue with Indonesian counterparts regarding certain aspects of community forest management policies and programs that can support traditional forest management systems.
Discussions were focused on three major topics: community level learnings, policy support mechanisms, and implementation mechanisms.
Documentation: AFNews Vol. IV, No. 4, December 1998 [html]
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THAILAND EXCHANGE VISIT TO THE PHILIPPINES
June 1998
Manila, Philippines
AFN invited Thai government agency representatives, NGO members, and members of the Regional Training Centre in Community Forestry (RECOFTC) to visit communities in two Philippines provinces (Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya) to examine movements in devolution and mechanisms for documenting indigenous management systems. The group also met with the Philippine Working Group (PWG) in Manila whose members are drawn from donor agencies, the central DENR, and other NGOs.
Documentation: AFNews Vol. IV, No. 3, August 1998 [html]
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