Introducing Forest Partners International
Newsletter: Volume1, Issue 1 - April 2004
Tropical forests cover less than 7% of the Earth's land surface,
but are home to more than half of the world's species. Two hundred
and forty million rural people live in or near tropical forests,
and many of the world's poorest people depend on forests for their
sustenance and livelihoods. In short, forests matter to people,
plants and animals, but they are being lost at an alarming rate.
Forest Partners International (FPI) was founded with the understanding
that the future of tropical forests, wildlife and the rural poor
who depend on them are inextricably linked. Conservation efforts
to preserve tropical forests and the many species that live within
them will ultimately depend on the help of the rural poor who
are most dependent upon forests and wildlife, and who are most
impacted by efforts to preserve biodiversity. Communities, often
more so than governments, play an important role in conservation.
FPI's mission is to promote sustainable natural resource management
practices in regions of high biodiversity through innovative partnerships
that address biodiversity and human needs. FPI also believes that
good science is needed to support decision-making, and that improved
education and health care are necessary steps in combating rural
poverty that threatens the future of forests and wildlife.
FPI's initial efforts will focus on Liberia, West Africa. Our
activities over the coming years will include natural resouce
research and monitoring, community level conservation planning
and implementation, and efforts to support improvements in education,
health care, and economic development.
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