A structured training and coaching programme that equips community forest leaders with the skills to collect, analyse, and manage forest data and develop robust Community Forest Management Plans using digital tools and participatory methods.
This initiative is implemented by RECOFTC Thailand, a regional leader in community forestry supporting local communities to sustainably manage forest resources through capacity building, research, and policy engagement in the Asia-Pacific region. RECOFTC has nearly four decades of experience strengthening capacities in community-based forest management in the region. Since 2024 RECOFTC Thailand office has developed science-based tools (including digital) and methodologies for building local planning capacity. As of March 2026, our tools have been adopted by over 30 community forests across ten provinces in Thailand.
This capacity development programme addresses challenges faced by many communities across Thailand. There are approximately 11,984 registered community forests covering 1.07 million hectares—about 6% of national forest cover—yet most communities lack the skills to independently develop their forest management plans legally required every five years. Furthermore, many communities are unable to develop their plans in a data-driven and context-appropriate manner. Without proper plans based on actual data collection including biodiversity and forest health assessments, communities cannot effectively protect forests from escalating climate risks, sustainably manage biodiversity and other natural resources, and demonstrate their forest management capacity to government authorities.
This training aims to scale impacts across more community forests and provinces in Thailand. Participating communities will strengthen their skills for sustainable community forest management, from forest resource and socio-economic data collection to forest assessments and data-driven forest management plan development
The CF-NET Index will also be introduced to communities. It is a community forest management assessment tool developed by RECOFTC Thailand and partners. The Index comprises nine indicators covering environmental factors (forest health, biodiversity, threat management capacity), social and economic factors (forest resource dependence, benefit sharing, community enterprises), and governance (planning and monitoring, participation, committee effectiveness). Scores range from 0.00 (very low) to 3.00 (very high), providing communities with clear benchmarks for improvement.
Success is measured through number of community forest managers trained (approximately 10 per cohort), improved community forest management plan quality assessed against official standards, increased use of digital forest data tools, and CF-NET Index score improvements demonstrating strengthened forest management and governance.
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