Advancing Forest Governance and Climate Resilience Along the Sarstún River

In the Sarstún River region of eastern Guatemala, rural and Indigenous communities are playing a central role in protecting natural resources, strengthening local forest governance, advancing women's access to sustainable livelihoods, and building resilience to climate impacts.

Strengthening Forest Protection Through Community Leadership

One of the project's focuses is the community-based protection of 415 hectares of tropical forest within the Sarstún River Multiple Use Area. In recent months, with technical guidance from EcoLogic and financial support from the Mesoamerican Reef Fund (MarFund), residents have led the preparation and follow-up of 22 forest conservation land files (expedientes), a critical step toward securing legal recognition and long-term forest management. These files must be formally submitted to Guatemala's national land authority, OCRET, to advance community tenure rights.

As part of this process, community representatives from San Juan and Buena Vista Tapón Creek participated in follow-up meetings with national agencies in Guatemala City, accompanied by EcoLogic and MarFund, emphasizing the importance of continued coordination between local actors and government institutions in achieving effective forest conservation.

At the same time, community forest brigades strengthened their monitoring capacity through technical training and the use of digital tools. In February, workshops introduced participants to Global Forest Watcher. This mobile-based forest alert system uses satellite imagery, open data, and machine learning to track changes in forest cover, detect illegal logging, monitor fires, and identify other environmental threats. Each participating community received smartphones and supporting equipment, enabling them to track deforestation and receive real-time fire alerts. These new tools and skills better equip community members to detect threats and safeguard forest health from the ground up.

Supporting Women's Leadership and Sustainable Livelihoods

Women's participation in conservation and resilience-building has also been a core component of the project. Across six communities, 66 women are actively involved in community-based enterprises that support both household income and environmental sustainability. These activities are designed through participatory planning with EcoLogic and its local partner, APROSARSTUN, ensuring that women's knowledge, priorities, and lived experiences inform each project and that participants receive tailored technical assistance, community-based infrastructure, and leadership training.

We're building confidence and showing what women can accomplish together.

In the communities of Sarstún Abajo, Blue Creek, Sarstoon Creek, and Tapón Creek, women are advancing several livelihood projects grounded in small-scale, resilient agricultural systems that support food security and income generation. To support long-term success, women have participated in hands-on training in animal care, nutrition, housing, and biosecurity, while regular technical visits by EcoLogic's team verify animal health, proper enclosure construction, and ongoing compliance with best practices.

While these efforts create economic opportunities, they also strengthen women's visibility and collective decision-making within their communities. Women provide in-kind contributions to co-finance infrastructure, and they often take on key roles in managing inputs, coordinating maintenance, and planning future activities. The initiative has also delivered gender-responsive capacity-building: so far this year, 35 women have already been trained on leadership, entrepreneurship, and climate resilience with a gender lens, laying the foundation for a stronger collective voice and sustainable enterprise governance. As one participant shared: "We're building confidence and showing what women can accomplish together."

Promoting Water Management for Ecosystem Health

Recognizing the connection between upstream land use and downstream ecosystems, the project is also supporting improved water management in Barra Sarstún. Early this year, EcoLogic and its partners helped community members initiate a community-led feasibility study on wastewater management, aiming to identify practical solutions to reduce pollution in the Sarstún River, which ultimately flows into the Mesoamerican Reef.

Alongside this effort, youth in Barra Sarstún have been engaged in environmental education activities focused on water conservation and pollution prevention. A group of them is also working with EcoLogic to explore low-cost options for treating household greywater using locally available materials, such as sand, charcoal, and gravel.

Rural and Indigenous communities along the Sarstún River continue to lead the way.

Improvements to local infrastructure and transportation complement these activities. For example, project funds supported equipment upgrades to APROSARSTUN's monitoring boat, including a new battery, lighting, and protective gear, enhancing mobility and safety during fieldwork and environmental monitoring.

Sustaining Momentum Through Community Action

Together, these activities demonstrate a shared commitment among communities, local organizations, and partners to enhance environmental governance and foster resilience to climate change. Regardless of whether through formalizing land tenure, improving forest monitoring, supporting women's livelihoods, and enhancing water management strategies, the pillar of our work is grounded in local knowledge and driven by collective action.

As the project progresses, rural and Indigenous communities along the Sarstún River continue to lead the way, protecting the forests they depend on and investing in their future while contributing to the conservation of one of Central America's most important ecological corridors.

We are deeply grateful to the Mesoamerican Reef Fund (MARFund) for their generous support and partnership, which has been instrumental to the success of this project.