Babatana Rainforest, Solomon Islands

The Babatana rainforest has remarkable biodiversity due to its isolation and is the home to six tribes all committed to joining the Babatana Rainforest Conservation Project to end industrial logging to preserve the forests as sustainable source of food, building materials and resources for generations.

The project compensates tribal communities for the loss of income from industrial logging with carbon finance. The tribes now have a new source of income that enables them to stop industrial logging while bringing sustainable benefits to their tribes through employment opportunities and Women’s Savings clubs.

Community governance systems have been strengthened to effectively manage carbon revenue for development initiatives and the distribution of member dividends. The Babatana project area is part of an IUCN Key Biodiversity Area that supports endemic rainforest plants and animal species, and rare tree species in the Solomon Islands.

The forest is a fundamental part of the local tribes’ cultural identity. The Sirebe Tribe is the first in the project to stop industrial logging thanks to the establishment of a protected area, preserving the livelihood for their tribe and future generations. Following their leadership five more tribes— Siporae, Vuri, Padezaka, Garesa and Lukulombere— are currently developing forest conservation and carbon projects.

Alongside carbon mitigation, one of the key project co-benefits is biodiversity conservation. The rainforest in the Babatana area has remarkable biodiversity due to its isolation and biogeography, being located within Mt Maetambe to Kolombangara River Corridor - an area identified as a Key Biodiversity Area by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The project area is home to a total of 156 plant, 58 bird, and 50 fish species.

In addition to delivering emission reductions to help take urgent action to combat climate change (SDG 13), the project delivers a number of other sustainable development benefits:

• No Poverty: Provides an alternative and sustainable income to the remote Babatana tribes built on payment for ecosystem services (PES)
• Clean Water and Sanitation: Protected rainforest along the Kolombangara River reduces water pollution ensuring access to clean water for the Babatana tribal groups. Carbon finance is being used by Babatana communities to install water tanks and WASH facilities.
• Decent Work and Economic Growth: Community companies are established to manage the credit income and business. Company staff (Director, Operations Manager and Financial Manager) are from the community. A team of Rangers receive income to monitor and protect the Babatana protected areas. A women-led savings group is established for each community, facilitating members with a simple money saving service and providing micro-loans.
• Reduced Inequalities: Women’s savings groups are established to ensure women have a say in how community income from credits is spent. The Nakau Programme requires fair decision-making and benefit-sharing systems. All benefits from credit sales are shared equitably within the Babatana tribe communities. 
• Life on Land: Protects and restores more than 806 hectares of critical rainforest ecosystem so birds, plants and animals are protected, and biodiverse rainforests remain for future generations.