The project was first developed in 2011 by Carbon Tanzania in partnership with three Hadza hunter-gatherer communities to protect 32,000 ha of their ancestral forests. It was originally known as The Yaeda Valley REDD project and won the UN Equator Prize in 2019. Witnessing the success of this project, nine surrounding Datooga pastoralist communities joined forces with the Hadza and Carbon Tanzania to develop the Yaeda – Eyasi Landscape project resulting in the protection 110, 500 ha of dryland forest legally owned by the Hadza and Datooga people.

The Hadza and Datooga communities value their land and natural resources in different ways but work together to defend their forests and prevent 171,100 trees from being cut down every year resulting in 177,284 tonnes of avoided emissions annually. These emissions are quantified and certified as carbon credits and sold on the voluntary carbon market.

The Hadza and Datooga communities are now able to directly access international climate finance through the voluntary carbon market with the assistance of the project developer, Carbon Tanzania. Now, instead of bearing the cost of conservation, the Hadza and Datooga are benefiting from a commitment to manage and conserve it and are empowered to determine their own developmental needs.

 

 

Jo Anderson, Co-Founder and Director of Carbon Tanzania, said: “We are delighted to have been able to work with local communities to build a climate solution that secures their land-rights and access to carbon finance. Our project development model has shown that when indigenous people have reliable, secure rights over their natural resources and receive appropriate compensation for their efforts to protect and manage them, powerful results in climate action are possible.”

The Yaeda – Eyasi Landscape project now extends around Lake Eyasi and connects with the UNESCO World Heritage site the Ngorongoro Conservation Area to the north. This connectivity allows for the movement of plants and wildlife, which results in enhanced outcomes for the conservation of the wider landscape and contributes to global efforts to protect biodiversity.

The scaling up of this nature-based solution demonstrates that the voluntary carbon market is an effective way to deliver climate finance to frontline and indigenous communities who are protecting biodiversity, their land rights and traditional lifestyles while improving their livelihoods.

 

Find out more via our project page or via: Yaeda – Eyasi Landscape | Carbon Tanzania