GUEST POST: Iwokrama’s one million acre forest laboratory: local and international participants welcomed for training and research

Last Updated on Saturday, 12 April 2025, 9:36 by Writer

Georgetown, Guyana – The Iwokrama International Centre for Rain Forest Conservation and Development is pleased to share information about its specialised services through its Learning Services Unit. Iwokrama’s mission is to build capacity in sustainable forest management, conservation, protected areas management and climate resilience. These services are targeted to student visits, research collaborations, intern and volunteer programmes and specialized training courses.

March 2025 saw an international group of students from Indiana University East, School of Humanities and Social Sciences participating in Iwokrama’s immersive training programme. Additionally, later this year, graduate students from Miami University, Ohio through the Earth Expeditions programme will visit as part of the annual study abroad programme on “Local Wisdom and Conservation.” Participants will explore sustainable natural resource management practices of the Iwokrama Forest. Both groups’ programmes include a livelihood and cultural component, which is facilitated by the Makushi Village of Surama.

Locally, Iwokrama continues to host Guyanese groups, for example, the Ministry of Natural Resources’ Youth in Natural Resources Apprenticeship Programme, which introduces young Guyanese to the importance of environmental stewardship and careers in the natural resources sector. University of Guyana students particularly in forestry, tourism, biology and environmental sciences have been hosted for many years in efforts to strengthen local expertise. The Centre also hosts school groups from surrounding communities and along the Coast.

Some specialised courses offered include Tour Guiding and Visitor Management, Rangering, Biodiversity Identification, Climate Change and the Role of Forests, and Sustainable Forestry.

In addition to the aforementioned universities, Iwokrama continues to enjoy important scientific and research collaborations with several universities and institutions. These include University of Guyana, Heriot Watt University’s Lyell Center, Purdue University (USA) and most recently, The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.

The Iwokrama Forest offers an unparalleled natural learning environment and serves as a globally recognised model for sustainable forest use. Trainees and researchers are given the opportunity to explore unique attractions such as the Iwokrama Canopy Walkway, Turtle Mountain, ancient petroglyph sites, forestry operations, authentic indigenous cultural experiences, and the majestic Essequibo River.

For more information on our Learning Services email: training@iwokrama.org.

The Iwokrama International Centre (IIC) was established in 1996 under a joint mandate from the Government of Guyana and the Commonwealth Secretariat to manage the Iwokrama forest, a unique reserve of 371,000 hectares of rainforest “in a manner that will lead to lasting ecological, economic and social benefits to the people of Guyana and to the world in general”.

The Centre, guided by an international Board of Trustees, is unique providing a dedicated well managed and researched forest environment. The forest is zoned into a Sustainable Utilization Area (SUA) and a Wilderness Preserve (WP) in which to test the concept of a truly sustainable forest where conservation, environmental balance and economic use can be mutually reinforcing. The IIC collaborates with the Government of Guyana, the Commonwealth and other international partners and donors to develop new approaches and forest management models to enable countries with rainforests to market their ecosystem services whilst carefully managing their resources through innovative and creative conservation practices. In more recent years, the Centre has received support from corporate partners such as Exxon Mobil (Guyana) Limited who has funded the development of its Science Programme and continues to provide an annual contribution to the implementation of this Programme.

Iwokrama brings together:

• 20 local communities (approximately 7,000 people) who are shareholders and participants in the IIC’s sustainable timber, tourism, research operations and forest management activities through complex co-management and benefit sharing arrangements;

• Scientists and researchers engaged in groundbreaking research into the impacts of climate change on the forest and measuring the scope and value of its ecosystem services; and

• A portfolio of sustainably managed and certified business models using innovative governance systems which include participation of the private and public sectors and the local communities, earning income from the forest and its natural assets whilst employing international social, environmental and economic best practice, whilst still keeping abreast of the ever changing thinking on funding for environmental projects in the face of climate change and the perennial scarcity of international finance.

This alliance and the Centre’s work programmes are committed to showing how a rainforest can be used for real sustainability, real climate change protection and real community benefit.

For further details about the Iwokrama International Centre visit www.iwokrama.org, www.iwokramariverlodge.com or contact Dane Gobin, Chief Executive Officer on dgobin@iwokrama.org.