The Sodo Community Managed Reforestation Project
The Sodo Community Managed Reforestation Project is an initiative of the Sodo community and World Vision Ethiopia to restore and protect the montane high-forest on the slopes of Mt Damota, in the highlands of Southern Ethiopia. The aims of the project include maintaining and increasing native flora and fauna diversity, improving soil conditions to reduce the risk of floods, erosion and to improve agricultural yields and potential livelihood, environmental rehabilitation for carbon sequestation and to support long term sustainable ecosystem regeneration of the 503 hectares of the Mt Damota project zone. The project has achieved pre-validation under CarbonFix Standard, and proposes a certification period of 35 years, resulting in the sequestration of 189,026 metric tons of CO2 equivalent. The project area is owned by the five Sodo communities in vicinity of the project zone, who have secured Ethiopian Government endorsed land user-rights certificates to the site. In addition, the Ethiopian Government has endorsed that ownership of carbon rights, and therefore revenues derived from carbon offsets, are owned by the community. Co-operatives have been established to manage the project zone including Gurmu, Kokate, Kunasa, Waja, and Wogene.
World Vision Ethiopia (WVE), in collaboration with World Vision Australia (WVA) has invested significantly with the Sodo community to support environmental training and education programs, site rehabilitation, forest establishment, job creation for local community members and collaboration with the zonal government during project implementation. World Vision continues to collaborate with the community to work to sustain the project over its 35 year life. Monitoring of carbon, biodiversity, and community impacts will be undertaken for the duration of the project. It is intended that Climate, Community, and Biodiversity (CCB) Standard Gold Level may be achieved through valuable community outcomes realised in vicinity of the project zone. In addition, ecosystem rehabilitation is providing much needed adaptive and environmental resilience for communities exposed to flooding, drought and food security risk. Livelihood enhancement is already delivering value to the community with fodder/pruning/thinning supplies. The restoration of medicinal plant species offers health benefits to community. Improved soil condition is helping secure improved agricultural yields in adjacent areas.