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Annual Report 2014

Annual Report 2014

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Annual Report 2014

Contents

Postgraduate ........................................................... 3

Regional scientific platform ................................... 10

Integrated programs .............................................. 22

Outreach for impact .............................................. 28

Solid and efficient ................................................. 38

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Annual Report 2014

Postgraduate

A year of great achievements

New leaders of change 62 new hopes

CATIE: an international university that trains leaders for Latin America and the world. The student population at CATIE in 2014 was 202, distributed among doctoral, master’s and graduate diploma and exchange students (Table 1). A notable characteristic of this student population is that a majority of them are women (66%).

The prestige and character of CATIE as an international university and of the Graduate School is demonstrated by, among other characteristics, a cosmopolitan population of students and professors and its joint programs. Students in 2014 came from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salva-dor, France, Germany, Guatemala, Haiti, Holland, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Spain and the United States. The faculty includes outstanding professionals at the highest level of academics and research from 21 countries. CATIE has joint programs with prestigious universities such as North Texas, Idaho and Bangor in addition to cooperative programs with many other universities.

First-rate educationCATIE is moving toward diversification of its offerings in education, greater possibilities for virtual train-ing, solid partnerships with prestigious institutions and consolidation of a high-caliber faculty for continu-ous formation of leaders of change. We are an international university that combines education, research and extension specializing in agriculture and natural resources.

The processes of graduate education take advantage of the integration of students into the institution’s research activities and the framework for extension that CATIE has in the countries.

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In 2014, 62 new students were selected to enter the master’s program in January 2015; 31 of them are women and 31 are men. They come from 15 countries in America.

Table 1.. 2014 Graduate Program by the numbers

Variable Men Women Total

No. of graduate diploma students 5 9 14

No. of academic master’s students 51 71 122

No. of doctoral students 9 13 22

No. of exchange students 15 29 202

Total students 80 122 202

No. of countries students represent 23

No. of countries faculty represents 21

Multiple efforts…excellent offeringsNow in Spanish. Almost 20 years after the Doctoral Program began in English, CATIE opened the option of a doctorate in Spanish in response to multiple requests and the needs of the countries of Latin America. The program upholds the standards of quality that have earned international recognition and prestige for CATIE. Its main objective is to offer opportunities for academic education and scientific research to qualified professionals for earning the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree. Students from various countries have now begun study for their doctorates in Spanish and many more are completing the admission process.

Proven quality. CATIE initiated accreditation of quality for its graduate programs from the National Accreditation System for Higher Education (SINAES, Spanish acronym) in Costa Rica, a process to be completed in 2015. Accreditation is increasingly important as a process to legitimate the university in the eyes of society and the national and international academic community and as a mechanism to guarantee a high quality of education to its students. During this year, work was mainly on preparation of the self-evaluation, which will be corroborated by international peers and will serve as the basis for a final decision on accreditation.

Strengthening strategic bonds. The interaction, relationships and continuous interchange with other universities around the world is fundamental to an international university. In 2014, CATIE signed nine new agreements: Pennsylvania State University (USA), University of Arizona (USA) University of Florida (USA), University of Delaware (USA), University of North Texas (USA), University of Costa Rica (Costa Rica), National Agrarian University-La Molina (Peru), National Agrarian University-La Selva (Peru) and University of Chocó (Colombia). This brings the active agreements with universities from around the world to a total of about 60.

From dream to reality: living the legacy of Henry A. Wallace. The Strengthening Agriculture and Rural Development through Education for Leadership Program (CATIE-IICA), implemented by the CATIE Graduate School, was expanded to benefit 14 new students and other academic activities. This program receives economic support from the United States Department of Agriculture and carries the name Henry A. Wallace Legacy Scholars, based on reviving the dream of Wallace, founding father of IICA and CATIE, during his time as vice president of the United States and as secretary of agriculture. It was Wallace who envisioned agriculture as a powerful impetus for the countries’ development and a bond of brotherhood among peoples. He also saw America as an important alternative for tropical crops and livestock, which would require establishment of research and teaching systems according to regional needs.

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Synergies and alliances for development practice and conservation of biodiversity. The CATIE Graduate School’s Development Practice Program has synergies with many local and national institutions in Costa Rica (for example, INDER, SENARA, ACCVC, ABOMORE, ACLAC and ACTo) to carry out studies in the guided practices tours and the courses. This collaboration has resulted in various products: among them are eight systemizations of experiences and participatory processes, analysis of capitals and livelihoods in nine communities, situation analysis of landscape management, collaboration analysis of conflict resolution around conservation of marine turtles, conservation plans for three biological corridors in the Tortuguero Conservation Area, and building business skills in eight productive organizations in the Talamanca Central Volcanic Biological Corridor and the Hojancha-Nandayure Biological Corridor.

Mesoamerican Meeting on Advance toward the Practice of Biodiversity Conservation. Held in August 2014 at CATIE, this important meeting brought together 40 participants from organizations in six countries in the region and support from IARNA, OAS, WCS, CONABIO and COOPESOLIDAR, under sponsorship of the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Topics important for positioning the practice of biodiversity conservation in the region were analyzed and discussed. The activity was organized and coordinated by the Graduate School’s Development Practice Program.

Virtual knowledgeThe Orton Memorial Library (CATIE-IICA) achieves important advances in technology and access to bibliographic information. The OML is part of the CGIAR Library, which expands users’ access to different bibliographic resources, such as CAB Abstracts, Oxford Journals (Oxford University Press), the Nature Journal, Science Magazine, Springer Journals, etc. It has also now implemented the integrated library system KOHA, which includes modules about acquisitions, cataloging, periodic publications, OPAC, virtual bookstore, institutional CATIE repository and design of the library web page.

Orton also successfully completed its main function of providing multiple services and bibliographic products to users. Highlights include attention to user consultations in the library, online consultations, interlibrary loans, automated loans and manual check-out of books and documents, totaling more than 6,000 activities in 2014. Other services include reproduction of documents (color and black-and-white photocopies. scans, binding, retrospective digitation) of more than 408,000 pages; multiple trainings for library users; and development of systemized searches—for examples, that for the USAID Regional Climate Change Program on “Bibliographic Systemization of Allometric Equations for Volume, Biomass and Carbon for Central America and the Dominican Republic.”

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Strategic TrainingTraining activities in 2014 were developed both at CATIE headquarters and in several countries in the Latin American region, with participants representing at least 29 countries (see annex). Activities held at headquarters follow:

• Strategic courses: nine courses were taught, attracting 147 participants (51 women and 96 men). Among the topics were protected areas, diversified forest management and tools for monitoring carbon sequestration.

• Special courses: 585 persons (181 women and 404 men) attended a total of 39 courses in 2014. Topics addressed include, among others, business development, watershed management, territorial management, ecosystem approaches, sustainable rural development and modern cocoa farming.

• Virtual courses: four virtual courses were developed (two courses and two diplomas) with a participation of 99 participants (27 women and 72 men) in the following subjects: business development, geographic information systems, integrated watershed management and climate change, and fruit farming.

• Cooperative Study Abroad Program (CSAP): eight international groups took part in this program, involving 134 participants (40 men and 94 women). Among the visiting universities were Guelph, St Leo and Purdue.

• Diplomas: five diploma courses were taught in classrooms, with a total of 43 participants (19 women and 34 men). Principal topics involved biostatistics, management of water resources and climate change.

• Other training activities held included, for example: Workshop on Resilient Seed Systems: Tools for the Analysis and Adaptation of Crops to Climate Change, in which 20 men and five women participated; the seminar “Looking toward Modern Cocoa Farming: Tools in the Agronomy of the Crop,” attended by 21 persons (four women and 17 men); and in-service training.

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Scope

• CATIE has begun a process of strengthening the virtual education program in order to position itself as an institution of excellence and leadership, using virtual teaching methodologies to complement the traditional classroom education process.

• Though the CATIE Study Abroad Program is already positioned at a global level, it will seek through new strategies to increase its visibility in new institutions and countries. CATIE is well aware of the growing importance of international studies around the world and of the fact that Costa Rica is currently one of the most important destinations in Latin America.

• CATIE continues to be considered by governmental and nongovernmental institutions in Latin America as a principal and excellent option for strengthening skills and competencies of target groups in order to improve technical management of agriculture and natural resources.

Country Women Men Total

GUATEMALA 19 92 111

ECUADOR 29 71 100

HAITI 1 4 5

COLOMBIA 35 48 83

BELIZE 2 7 9

FRANCE 0 1 1

BRAZIL 2 1 3

MEXICO 18 23 41

KENYA 1 0 1

COSTA RICA 55 102 157

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC 1 8 9

PERU 39 43 82

NOT LOCATED 8 44 62

UNITED STATES 91 36 127

VENEZUELA 1 0 1

PARAGUAY 0 2 2

HONDURAS 17 20 37

GERMANY 1 0 1

PUERTO RICO 13 14 27

FINLAND 0 1 1

CANADA 13 4 17

EL SALVADOR 6 52 58

SPAIN 1 0 1

CHILE 0 1 1

NICARAGUA 7 42 49

PANAMA 2 14 16

BOLIVIA 3 7 10

URUGUAY 0 1 1

ARGENTINA 2 4 6

SWITZERLAND 0 1 1

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BiostatisticsCATIE creates Latin American human capital in Biostatistics. Through its Biostatistics Unit, in 2014 CATIE developed an ample program in capacity building and creation of human capital in this important area of scientific research and information analysis. Three diplomas were taught (in Ecuador, Bolivia and Costa Rica), 13 short courses, two workshops and 12 in-service trainings (in Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru and Spain), covering topics such as planning of scientific studies, advanced statistical modeling, analysis of multidimensional and multivariate data, interpretation of results and approaches for analyzing biodiversity.

Updating and developing programs for statistical analysis. The CATIE Biostatistics Unit, jointly with researchers at this institution and the Agronomy Faculty’s Statistics Chair at the University of Cordoba in Argentina, broadened the software for monitoring of functional diversity (FDiversity), which has more than 4,200 users in 154 countries. During 2014 alone, the program was downloaded by users in 117 countries. In addition, the Q-Eco software was developed, utilized for analysis of data in ecology, as was a module for the analysis of generalized mixed models within the InfoStat program. This module was developed jointly with CATIE scientists, the National University of Cordoba in Argentina and the University of Puerto Rico.

FromtheclassroomtothefieldA total of 55 graduate studies were developed in 2014: four were doctoral theses, 26 were scientific master’s theses and 24 were final graduation papers for professional master’s degrees. Studies were carried out in 12 Latin American countries. Topics included biophysical, socioeconomic, environmental, institutional and other aspects of agriculture and natural resources that have relevance in the region—among these, studies on coffee rust, impact of climate change and carbon storage in coffee farms, bioprotocols, food security, conservation of agrobiodiversity and local knowledge in indigenous populations, as well as defining principles and criteria for establishment and monitoring Climate Smart Territories.

Tesis relevantes

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Annual Report 2014

As part of their educational process, CATIE students carry out high-level research. Here is a glimpse of some of the topics addressed in 2014:

Thesis: Bioprotocol as a mechanism to strengthen indigenous rights. The study consisted in development of a proposal for consultation and free, prior and informed consent with the Mayangna Sauní Arungka indigenous people in Nicaragua (Irina Narváez, Ángela Díaz, Róger Villalobos and María Pía Hernández). The bioprotocol will help the indigenous people claim their rights through their governance structures and demand that the State, as guarantor of the consultation process, duly apply the protocol when someone proposes to undertake a development activity in their territory.

Thesis: Biocultural and traditional knowledge is relevant to indigenous peoples’ food security and conservation of agrobiodiversity. Two studies carried out in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, one in Santa María Cahabón (Nancy Merlo, Karina Pérez, Isabel Gutiérrez, Alejandro Imbach and Reginaldo Reyes) and the other in San Agustín Lanquín (Carlos E. Villanueva, Isabel Gutiérrez, Alejandro Imbach, Julio López and Eduardo Say) conclude that home gardens can contribute significantly to reduction of food insecurity, especially of the most vulnerable populations, due to the diversity of species in those gardens and the variety of uses that these species have. In addition, the gardens have an important conservation function, constituting gene banks of native species because of their diversity in form and composition. The animals characteristic to the zone also find a source of food in the gardens.

Thesis: Impact of climate change on coffee productivity in Honduras and Nicaragua. The research analyzed possible impacts using the CAF2007 model (Oriana Ovalle, Bruno Rapidel, Peter Lâderach, Olivier Roupsard and Elías de Melo). The model was previously calibrated under field conditions. The simulations indicate that changes in annual rainfall will affect coffee production (increase or decrease), depending on each site. Increases in temperature will directly affect production, although this change will depend on type, area and shade density of the plantation. Management of trees on the coffee farm will be key to reducing the impact of climate change on coffee cultivation, in combination with good planning for the farm that takes conditions at each site into account.

Thesis: Research on coffee rust. Thesis: Research on coffee rust. Various thesis studies address the topic of coffee rust, one of the greatest challenges to production of the bean in the Central American region. Among the topics undertaken are The Effect of Shade on Coffee and Management of Incidence, Severity, Quantity of Inoculum and Dispersion of Coffee Rust” (Jimmy Pico, Jacques Avellino, Elías de Melo, Clementine Allinne and Sergio Vílchez); “Analysis of Management Conditions that Contribute to the Impact of Coffee Rust in the Coffee-Growing Zone of Nicaragua” (Rogelio Villarreyna, Rolando Cerca, Elías de Melo and Raffaele Vignola); and “Effect of the Chemical Condition of the Soil and Fertilization on Incidence, Severity and Physiological Resistance of Coffee to Coffee Rust” (Sindy Lagos, Jacques Avellino, Rolando Cerda, Clementine Allinne and Reinhold Muschler).

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A solid platformCATIE is a regional scientific platform that contributes to education, training and transfer of results to partners in member countries through development of methodologies and technologies and evaluation of policy instruments. It manages knowledge in two ways: it compiles and synthesizes information from its international environment as well as its own results and experiences; it disseminates knowledge through a wide range of publications, databases, graduate education and diverse events for different types of clients.

The Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN) is a global consortium under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that promotes north-south and south-south technological and scientific exchange to resolve problems related to climate change. CATIE is a regional member with responsibility for strengthening knowledge and for coordination and participation in development of answers based on scientific and technical evidence for the water, forests and agriculture sectors, with input from other regions. It also promotes formation of a network of institutions and organizations with experience in technology and knowledge related to climate change mitigation and adaptation. Current partners include the Technical University of Denmark, United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the Institute of Biology and Biodiversity in Chile, as well as governmental experts from Mexico and Spain.

The Mesoamerican Agroenvironmental Program (MAP) is an initiative financed mainly by Norway to develop Climate Smart territories (CST) in Trifinio (the transborder region between El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala) and Central Nicaragua, with actions carried out through applied research, training and technical assistance focused on agroforestry and agroecological technologies. Cross-cutting themes include gender, value chains, territorial management and water, in addition to addressing how to adapt to or mitigate climate change with interventions that contribute to food security of rural communities. MAP has attracted human resource and financial investments from AVRDC, CGIAR (see later paragraph) and Heifer International. It also works with an ample network of national and local partners (36 contracts signed in 2014).

The Scientific Cooperation Platform (PCP, Spanish acronym) Agroforestry Systems with Perennials is a regional scientific cooperation (Central America) over the long term (first phase 2007–2017) with seven partners: CIRAD, CATIE, Bioversity

Regional scientific platform CATIE strengthens its role as a regional scientific platform, specialized in agriculture and natural resources, with consolidation of strategic alliances, more researchers from highly prestigious institutions and projects that attend to urgent regional needs. This platform takes advantage of the integration of the research conducted by graduate students and the framework for extension that CATIE has in the countries.

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International, ICRAF, CABI, Promecafé and INCAE. Its main approaches are ecosystem services, agroecological control of pests and diseases, and organizations and value chains in which farmers participate. It has attracted the cooperation of universities from the United States as well as Europe and from the region (for example, UNA-Nicaragua, UCR-Costa Rica). Since CATIE and CIRAD have been accepted as members of the CRP (see section below), PCP has become a high-level scientific platform for the CGIAR centers and their CRPs. The recognition of the high scientific quality of this PCP recently led to an invitation by the European Union to three members (CATIE, CIRAD and Promecafé) to become partners, under IICA leadership, of a regional program against coffee rust (roya) (Central America and the Dominican Republic; 15 MM euros in five years).

CGIAR has recognized the role of CATIE as a scientific platform for Central America—in particular CIFOR, ICRAF, Bioversity International and CIAT. CATIE led in the establishment of a transborder Sentinel Landscape in the Caribbean area between Nicaragua and Honduras, which has as a central goal understanding the processes that lead to deforestation or reforestation. This initiative includes the MAP key territory in Nicaragua (see above). CATIE was accepted as a full member of the Forests, Trees and Agroforestry CRP; along with CIRAD, we are the only non-CGIAR members. Other signs of the significant increase in CATIE collaboration with CGIAR are the numerous contracts that our MAP, CCC and GAMMA programs manage with the CCAFS CRP (Climate Change). There are collaborations with the Livestock and Fish CRP (Nicaragua) and even with the consortium’s central office (CGIAR) in planning and revision of strategic frameworks. Recently collaboration was established with the Genebanks CRP, with a view to support over the long term the globally important collections that CATIE conserves.

The Ibero-American Model Forest Network (IAMFN) is charged with facilitating interdisciplinary work in 30 key territories in Latin America that are rich in forests but that develop multiple activities related to land use. Model Forests (MFs), as well as CATIE, through various of their programs and projects (see section XX), work in 15 countries in research, technical cooperation, capacity creation and consolidation—especially in areas of forest, agroforestry and silvopastoral management—as well as in restoration of soils and forests, with transversal themes such as biodiversity, climate change and territorial governance. MFs themselves also have similar tasks within their territories and execute projects to achieve sustainable human development. More than 700 organizations are involved in these efforts. The individual management of the MFs is bringing them close to becoming Climate Smart Territories.

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CATIE functions as a scientific reference center for the Latin American and Caribbean region in the comprehensive management of manure within the framework of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC). Activities are focused on creating spaces for revision and modification of policies and opportunities for practices of change (OPC, Spanish acronym) that have impacts at a local and regional level for decision makers as well as on development of programs and networks to share experiences and better practices about the socioeconomic and environmental benefits of manure management with scientists, extensionists and producers. CATIE would be responsible for coordinating with partners two OPCs, entitled “ Improve the Regional Political Framework of SICA to Make Use of Manure in a Comprehensive Way” and “Adapting to the Revolution of Cattle Fattening in Stables: Informing Policy and Changes in Practice to Promote Comprehensive Management of Manure in Argentina.”

Around an IDEAThe Research Program in Development, Economy and Environment (IDEA) in 2014 had a research agenda rich in diverse topics, including protected marine and terrestrial areas, energy efficiency, water and community organizations, adaptation to climate change and agriculture. Six scientific articles were published in recognized international journals. It has worked in close collaboration with governmental agencies (for example, MINAET, SINAC, FONAFIFO, AyA and CNFL, among others), providing advice and critical analysis of policies and programs. The research agenda is based on strong collaboration with international researchers from Oregon State University, Resources for the Future, George Washington University, University of Geneva, University of Gothenburg, Georgia State University and Duke University.

The two major IDEA Program projects dedicated 2014 to collecting and processing data. The project entitled Water for Human Consumption, Communities and Climate Change: Expected Impacts and Adaptation in Central America, financed by IDRC of Canada, aims to improve decisions on adaptation to climate change in some 5,000 community organizations that offer water services for domestic consumption to millions of people in rural areas of Guatemala, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. A systematic evaluation of the factors that influence vulnerability of these organizations to droughts and the resulting effect on households was

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carried out. The findings of this work indicate that the principal barriers to successful adaptation by these organizations are their technical, administrative and financial weaknesses, as well as poor coordination with strategies at the governmental level. These conclusions are based on an exhaustive collection of information through interviews and workshops in 180 communities, as well as 5,500 household surveys in poor rural communities in dry areas in these countries.

Within the framework of the CASCADA project, IDEA, together with partners of Conservation International, CIRAD and CATIE’s Climate Change and Watersheds Program (PCCC), has worked in a participatory way with small agricultural producers in the identification of strategies for “Ecosystem-Based Adaptation” (EbA) applied in coffee and basic grains productive systems in vulnerable communities in Guatemala, Honduras and Costa Rica. More than 1,000 household experiences have allowed us to learn about the reality of agricultural systems, as well as the situation of the people who live in them, their perception about changes, risks, and barriers and opportunities that they themselves identify. The results of the analysis of adaptive capacity, sensibility to impacts and exposure to future scenarios begin to be a benchmark among technicians and Central American decision makers.

Finally, the Agribusiness Development Unit UDA has been immersed in a strong process of adjustment in its thematic, methodological and capacity-building axes. As a result, 21 proposals were presented in 2014, of which five were approved,; two of these with funds from PRUCAM (USAID) stand out, dealing with value chains for honey (Guatemala and El Salvador) and cocoa (Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador) for a total of USD 550,000 (total amount of approved proposals USD 591,500). The first virtual diploma for Development of Rural Businesses was developed, in which 17 persons from seven countries (70.6% women) participated. In addition, it worked in integration with the other CATIE programs, presenting UDA’s work in PAAS, Forests, IDEA and all of the NationalOffices.

PAAS: a tree bearing many fruitsIntimate genetic secrets of Arabica coffee. For the first time, the molecular characterization of the complete population of 785 wild genotypes of Coffea Arabica conserved at CATIE has been done. This germplasm was collected in 1965 (FAO), 1985-1986 and 1995-1996 (ORSTOM) and 1991 (IBPGR), mainly in Ethiopia, Sudan and Yemen. According to the DNA sequencing of these accessions, together with other germplasm from the region, there is 98.8% similarity in comparison with the 70-80% in other crops such as rice, corn and wheat, suggesting that C. Arabica is less diverse. The genetic study also permitted identification of the most genetically diverse genotypes (a small group of 100 in this case) that will constitute CATIE’s core collection. Seeds from these 100 genotypes were distributed and will be planted on farms in Costa Rica and El Salvador. These accessions will be the parents of the next generations of the F1 hybrids generated in the region.

Seventy years of cocoa at CATIE!. In October 2014, we celebrated the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the International Collection of Cocoa Varieties, with researchers, producers and representatives of chocolate-making businesses in Latin America, the United States and Europe at the event. This collection provides the foundation for an active genetic improvement program that has already made available to farmers in Central America and Mexico varieties that are more productive, disease-resistant have good industrial quality. Don’t miss how Mark Schatzker, a Canadian journalist highly recognized in culinary matters, describes with creativity and humor the excellent organoleptic quality of the new CATIE clones: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzEn_tduKOY).

Agroforestry news: ICRAF in Central America. After scarcely three years, ICRAF’s deep involvement in CATIE and various agroforestry actions in the Central American region is more than evident. For example, consider the taxonomic diversity and functionality of trees in agroforestry systems in Central America and various climate change topics, in alliance with Bioversity, HIVOS, CEDECO and CATIE (coffee in Nicaragua and Guatemala; livestock in Costa Rica and Colombia). The ICRAF scientific team expanded with arrival of a postdoctoral fellow, who carries out research with four CATIE master’s students on sustainable use of trees in farms and forests in the Nicaragua-Honduras Sentinel Landscape (NHSL).

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Underthemicroscope:theCATIE-FTAscientificalliance. The first year in the life of the scientific initiative between CATIE and the CGIAR’s Forests, Trees and Agroforestry consortium is now history. CATIE, a full member of the consortium (made up of CIFOR, Bioversity, CIAT, CATIE, CIRAD) carries out activities in Central America through the FTA-CATIE project. Internally, this project works in close collaboration with MAP Norway and Finnfor, CATIE’s Forest Program and the National Office in Nicaragua. In 2014, baseline studies begun in 2012 were completed (biophysical, socioeconomic, household, communities, institutions) in four key sites in the Honduras-Nicaragua Sentinel Landscape (NHSL). The databases, which include 126 spatial data sets and CATIE agroforestry databases, went through a long cleansing process and were then placed in the public domain (http://thedata.harvard.edu/dvn/dv/N-H-SL; http://thedata.harvard.edu/dvn/dv/SL; http://thedata.harvard.edu/dvn/dv/CATIE).

SentinellandscapesareaglobalscientificinitiativeoftheFTA consortium. Seven sentinel landscapes exist worldwide, selected competitively among a list of more than 40 possible candidates. The NHSL covers 300 km, from the central mountains of Nicaragua and northeast part of Honduras to the lower zones of the Caribbean slopes in both countries. It

is representative of the humid Atlantic slope in Central America and includes the principal reserves of humid forests (Bosawás, Rio Plátano, Mosquitia Reserves) in Central America. NHSL studies (60,000 km2, planned and executed in a close partnership between CATIE and ICRAF, focus on 1) changes in the presence of trees in forests and outside the forest, 2) the causes and processes underlying these changes, 3) consequences of these changes in terms of decreases in livelihoods and environmental services provided by the trees and forests and 4) options and alternatives for optimizing the presence of the tree in the forest and outside the forest on farms and in the landscape (more information at www.paisajecentinela.org).

Giving voice to science-policy-education-rural development in Nicaragua. In alliance with the National Council of Universities (CNU, Spanish acronym), Nicaraguan Council of Science and Technology/Vice Presidency of Nicaragua (CONICYT/VP, Spanish acronym), CAN, CIRAD, CIAT, UNAN-CINET and MINJUV, we organized (FTA/CATIE-ICRAF and the National Office in Nicaragua) the first workshop-symposium to analyze the articulation of science-education-rural development in Nicaragua. The events was a success for its broad institutional representation, the value of the content and the depth of the discussions; it ended with a request by all present to establish (from CONICYT) a permanent round table for articulation of science-education-policy-rural development for sharing, information and cooperation among these actors. The round table has been set up and now has activities programmed for 2015 in close coordination with the Central Government’s National System for Technological Innovation.

Long-term coffee and agroforestry studies. Two large experiments (total of 15 ha) have completed 15 years of evaluating different lowland coffee production systems (altitude 500-600 m) in situations of contrasting rainfall: Turrialba, Costa Rica (2600 mm/year with two dry months), and Masatepe, Nicaragua (1500 mm/year with six dry months). They include shaded and full-sun coffee, various type of shade-tree species (leguminous or timber), nitrogen fixers or not), organic or conventional production and two levels of organic and chemical inputs (http://www.catie.ac.cr/es/en-que-trabajamos/agroforesteria/agro-cafe/proyectos-

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agroforesteria/ensayos-saf-con-cafe). When they were established, they were globally unique. They offer results and lessons learned for the design of new systems of coffee production adapted to climate change and resilient to diseases, climatic events, fluctuations, downturns in markets, etc.

CIRAD in action: science in the PCP alliance.

• Research has continued on the causes of diseases—the crisis of coffee rust that has affected the region since 1980, the mechanisms of its diffusion and losses in production it has caused—among other pests and diseases. .

• On adaptation of coffee to climate change, various projects focus on research and modeling of the impacts of climate change (models CAF2007, MAESPA) and of options for diminishing negative impacts, such as, for example, use of shade trees. Experimental studies in Nicaragua show that, according to climate situations, shade trees can little improve or even worsen the water situation for coffee in comparison with plantations in full sun: that is, shade trees are not an appropriate solution in all situations.

• In congresses, symposiums, workshops, etc., around the world, PCP researchers and students lectured on the ecosystem functions of shade trees in plantations of perennial crops (coffee and cocoa).

GAMMA: an intense year¨Climate Smart Agriculture¨ Congress, Montpellier France. In an invited paper, we agreed with previous studies (other countries) that improving the quality of feed of lactating cows on dairy farms in Costa Rica leads to fewer emissions of greenhouse gases per unit of production but also to less economic efficiency due to the cost of external inputs. In contrast to previous studies, there was no positive correlation between more economically efficient farms and their carbon footprint.

Compensation Program for Parisimina River Watershed. The site management plan for Parismina Watershed compensation was developed. The compensation mechanisms were defined based on a detailed analysis of the rivers’ physical and ecological aspects as well as the economic (productive activities, led by livestock farming) and socioenvironmental conditions of the populations that live in the area of influence and the existing social fabric.

South-South exchanges. The US Forest Service, jointly with the GAMMA Program, organized an interchange of experiences and lessons learned in relation to payment for environmental services (PES) in Costa Rica for the forestry department in India. The event generated dialogue and discussion among experts about historical aspects and functionality of the FONAFIFO PES Program; PES challenges and the new strategy; the relationship between PES and ecosystem services, challenges to inclusion of gender in PES; PES monitoring and management; and mapping of ecosystem service priorities at the landscape level

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Economic assessment of mangroves in Panama. An estimate was made of the contribution of the mangroves in David and the internationally important wetlands of the Gulf of Montijo to provision of ecosystem services along with the economic viability of their conservation. This exercise helped define a corresponding conservation strategy developed by MarViva to link and promote actions for marine spatial planning.

Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC). Phase l (2014) revealed the state of the art of policies and policy instruments and good practices that have been applied to management of manure in the Latin American and Caribbean region. This input was incorporated into the consortium’s report on the global evaluation of manure management. Approval and financing (2015) were received for two initiatives to improve manure management, one of which will be implemented with IICA to support SICA.

Save the Children. Two training events for 60 agricultural producers-leaders were held on topics of agroecological management of soils and forage production with local resources. Local woody species were also identified and prioritized through preference tests with goats that will then be evaluated for production and quality of goat milk, with the aim of improving the families’ food and nutritional security and income.

Developing Competitive Livestock Production Systems with Low Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Central America—FONTAGRO-NZ Project (2015-2017). The project has a goal of developing competitive livestock production systems with low greenhouse gas emissions in Central America. In 2014, cooperation was consolidated with INTA Costa Rica, the institution that is executing the project in Costa Rica.

ConservationofBiodiversityandSustainableCattleProduction:UsingCertificationSchemestoPromoteGoodPractices. This project began at the end of 2014 and renews collaboration of the GAMMA Program with the Wildlife without Borders program, financed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). The project’s area of influence is the Talamanca Central Volcanic Biological Corridor (CBVCT, Spanish acronym) and its buffer zones in Costa Rica. Objectives include: i) training of the livestock sector; ii) systemization of information about livestock farming and conservation of biodiversity in the CBVCT; and iii) research activities focused on bird monitoring and generation of a biodiversity conservation index for the area’s livestock landscapes. Training activities will be held in coordination with the CATIE Commercial Farm in order to promote it as a training center for topics related to sustainable livestock and certification processes at local, national and regional levels.

Bird Monitoring Program. (BMP). The BMP contributes to conservation of biodiversity in agricultural landscapes through research on the effect of different land uses on bird communities; in 2014, it completed six years of uninterrupted operation. The program has demonstrated the positive effect of birds in removal of the coffee berry borer (broca); preliminary results were presented at the Ecosystem Services Partnership (ESP) Conference held in Costa Rica in September 2014. The project participated in evaluation of the status of bird conservation in Central America with Partners in Flight (PIF), Cornell Lab of Ornithology, CONABIO in Mexico, the Central American Regional Biodiversity Institute (IRBIO, Spanish acronym), US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Audubon, Mexico’s ProNatura, US Geologic Survey (USGS), Environment Canada and the Missouri Conservation Department and the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory in the United States.

Productive reconversion component of the project entitled Innovative Mechanisms for Adaptation to Climate Change in the Coastal Sierra Madre in Chiapas. The project objective was to strengthen local capacities of livestock producers in order to improve the livestock production system, help them adapt to climate change and incorporate livestock-raising families in green-economy commercialization processes, The project ended in 2014; the results will be published in CATIE’s RRNN journal in 2015.

Competitiveness of Meat and Milk via Sustainable Intensification and Access to Specialized Markets in Nicaragua.Solidaridad/CIAT. CATIE supports monitoring and evaluation activities, capacity building for livestock producers, research and marketing support.

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Climate Change and WatershedsThrough the Climate Change and Watersheds Program, CATIE is consolidating lines of research in mitigation, modeling of global change, decision-making processes and watershed management. In 2014, specific strategic advances were made in establishing the following areas.

Collaborationwithscientificnetworks

Since the founding of the Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture, CATIE has been a member and the PCCC is a focal point for coordinating communication and initiatives. Currently it is participating in the Action Group on Knowledge, led by FAO and the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS). During 2014, the program strengthened its ties with CGIAR and its global programs CCAFS and FTA (Component 4), collaborating with the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), Bioversity International and the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) in specific research projects, helping us increase our influence (see section below) through technical documents, scientific publications and participation in conferences and seminars.

Collaboration in technology and knowledge transfer

A major consolidation of PCCC was achieved in 2014 through the Mitigation Unit as the main executing entity of the Sustainable Landscapes Component of USAID’s Regional Climate Change Program (RCCP), which has a fund of USD 18.5 million.

Through its Sustainable Landscapes Component, RCCP seeks to promote development of capabilities, tools and coordinated actions that allow the countries of Central America and the Dominican Republic to develop and implement their national strategies and systems of Monitoring and Measurement, Reporting and Verification (MRV) for REDD+. Through RCCP, and with presence in seven priority territories, the Mitigation Unit is offering technical assistance and contributing to capacity building directed to the governments in the region, specifically on critical topics such as the definition of forest reference emissions levels/forest reference levels (FREL/FRL), development of REDD+ subnational pilot programs, quantification of forest degradation, development of allometric equations, construction of harmonized components for the MRV systems for REDD+, blue carbon and synergies between mitigation and adaptation.

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Through the CATIE Modeling Laboratory, a joint effort with CCAFS, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), CIRAD, the Regional Hydrological Resource Center (CRRH, Spanish acronym), MetOffice and Costa Rica’s National Meteorological Institute (IMN, Spanish acronym) led to a workshop on Climate Risks for Agriculture in Central America in May 2014 at CATIE. The objective of the workshop was to bring together academic, productive, governmental and technical assistance sectors to analyze the context, challenges and opportunities for climate- risk management for agriculture in the region. About 50 people participated.

Another relevant collaboration, carried out through the Modeling Laboratory, and working together with CCAFS and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP-Regatta), resulted in a study on the analysis of vulnerability of the agricultural sector to climate change in Central American countries.

During 2014, the Mitigation Unit has continued to consolidate strategic relations with FAO and provide technical assistance to strengthen MRV systems for REDD+ in Latin America, positioning the unit as the Latin American node in FAO’s GlobAllomeTree platform (www.globallometree.org), which seeks to systematize all allometric equations for volume, biomass and carbon stock assessment at the global level. Some of the most significant results of the work carried out in 2014 were a) documentation of the allometric volume, biomass and carbon information for 20 countries in the region to feed into the global platform; b) a workshop at CATIE headquarters involving experts from around the world on development of allometric equations, which resulted in publication of four scientific articles in the international journal Annals of Forest Science; c) provision of technical assistance to Ecuador’s Ministry of Environment to process field data and calculate existence of biomass and carbon based on the National Forest Evaluations (ENF, Spanish acronym), which resulted in production of two policy briefs, one technical and one scientific, that Ecuador is using as the strategic base for establishment of the Forest Resources Monitoring Unit within the ministry.

•Havinganeffect

In the arena of incidence, one of the standouts is a study carried out by the Latin American Chair on Environmental Decisions for Global Change (CLADA, Spanish acronym) for the World Bank, entitled “Methodology for Evaluation of Political, Socioeconomic and Environmental Context for a Program on Inclusive Green Growth: Case Study in Productive Landscapes of Costa Rica.” The objective of this study was the design and application of a methodology for joint analysis of the different elements of inclusive green growth at a territorial level, to serve as input for a dialog to facilitate agreements about policy and action priorities that promote productive activities geared toward an economy with low emissions and resilience to climate change.

Also at the request of the World Bank and with CIAT, another study produced through the Modeling Laboratory dealt with progress toward climate-smart agriculture in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and El Salvador. Such collaborations support regional processes to strengthen the region’s agricultural sector relative to the challenges posed by climate change.

The Mitigation Unit also actively contributed in the International Blue Carbon Initiative, which continued conceptual and methodological development that will permit consolidation of a Central American and Caribbean Blue Carbon Network. This novel international initiative seeks to recognize the role of marine-coastal ecosystems in climate change mitigation and adaptation. Work was also carried out on blue carbon in mangroves in Costa Rica, Panama and El Salvador through a combination of inventory methods at the ecosystem level, capacity building, diagnosis of livelihoods, valuation of ecosystem services and analysis of vulnerability to climate change. Financing was provided by Conservation International (CI), Swedish Charity Lottery and USAID.

Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC, the Mitigation Unit, in coordination with the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI), prepared an article on the agreement for

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agriculture, forest and other land uses. It was part of a series of articles that including participants such as Libélula in Peru, Torcuato Di Tella Foundation in Argentina and the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Brazil, aimed at contributing to the discussion on building international policy on climate change and addressing the land-use sector from an approach based on experiences in the Latin America and Caribbean region. An important factor is that an early version of the article was presented in Chile in October 2014 at the meeting “Latin American and Caribbean Think Tanks on Sustainable Development and Climate Change: Views on the Road to COP 20 in Lima,” organized by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). The article offered important input to the countries for discussions in Lima and also helped position CATIE as a leader institution in this field.

Another 2014 study was “Update and Redesign of Two Conservation Measures for Adaptation of the Biodiversity Sector to Climate Change,” within the framework of the Adaptation to Climate Change project, as part of technical cooperation with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and executed by Costa Rica’s National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC, Spanish acronym).

The study focused on representative samples of biodiversity (in land, continental water and marine-coastal systems) that was established during the process of GRUAS II (2007) and studying changes in them under future climate scenarios, as well as checking whether existing biological corridors will function as a connective routes (climatic) under climate change scenarios. Sites chosen in this study could be analyzed to prioritize management and administrative alternatives for land use to reduce biodiversity’s vulnerability to climate change, according to system, function of identified site and local conditions for implementation.

•Strengtheningtheterritorialapproach:Climate-SmartTerritories

In order to strengthen CATIE’s Climate Smart Territories approach, work to create the Watershed Unit was underway in 2014. Though not finalized until the beginning of 2015, it nevertheless received the WaterClima-LAC Management of Coastal Zones project in 2014, which is aimed at strengthening resilience of coastal watershed to climate change in Argentina, Haiti, Mexico and El Salvador, to be executed between 2015 and 2017. A number of partners will participate in its implementation, such as the Technology Center of Manresa Foundation (CTM); Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM); Amphos 21; SL Consultants; Water, Environment and Business for Development (WE&B); Chile Foundation (FCH); Europe for Business (EFB); Quisqueya University; Santo Domingo Institute of Technology (INTEC); Global Center for Partnerships for Development (CAD) and the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET). These partners have offices in countries such as Germany, Belgium, Chile, Spain, the United States, France, Haiti, Mexico, Peru, the United Kingdom, the Dominican Republic and Tunisia.

The FuturAgua project also began in 2014, with the same purpose of strengthening the territorial approach and specifically with the objective to help structure and formulate future decisions related to drought. Emphasis is on building resilience to water scarcity in socioecological systems prone to drought, working in the area of Guanacaste, Costa Rica. The project is coordinated jointly with the Center for Climate and Energy Decision Making (CMU), CIRAD, Latin American Chair on Environmental Decisions for Global Change (CLADA) and the University of British Colombia through its Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences Department (EOS) and Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES).

As for the Climate-Smart Territories approach promoted by CATIE, in 2014 the article “Climate Smart Territories (CST): An Integrated Approach to Food Security, Ecosystem Services, and Climate Change in Rural Areas” was published. It was written by a team of CATIE professionals and programs, led by PCCC. The alliance achieved with Ecoagriculture Partners was important.

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In the heart of the forestThe Ibero-American Model Forest Network (IAMFN) is made up of 30 Model Forests (MFs) in 14 countries in America and Spain, covering almost 33 million hectares. They form research laboratories with multiple participants. The MFs are social processes to build governance, oriented toward achieving human sustainable development in territories rich in forests. However, the agenda is not exclusively forests but addresses topics such as water, climate, restoration of degraded lands, forest management for small and medium owners, agroforestry and silvopastoral systems, etc., through research activities, capacity building, knowledge interchange and strengthening of territorial governance. In other words, to put science at the service of local populations and integrate local, national, bilateral and international resources to improve territorial management, IAMFN is part of the International Model Forest Network (IMFN), and among its directors are organizations such as FAO, CUSO, CIFOR and CATIE, which holds both the management and the presidency.

These territories demonstrate very concrete actions and achievements:

EcoAdaptProject(EUfinancing).The project is a research-action initiative in three MFs (Argentina, Chile and Bolivia) that seeks to influence water management processes that support local development and reduce the territory’s vulnerability to climate change through capacity building, knowledge exchange, prevention and mitigation of conflicts and promotion of joint work with key local and national actors. Its research has contributed directly to policies and the promotion of local participation in conflicts related to water, as well as to development of probable scenarios for climate change, ecosystem and species impacts and development of databases. A network of observatories has been established to collect information relevant to the long term.

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CLIMIFORADProject(IDFfinancing). The Climate Change in Ecosystems in Latin American Mountain Forests and Tools for Adaptation to Management project contributes to the regional process of adaptation to climate change (CC) through research on CC impact on forest ecosystems in the high mountains, in particular to development of tools that allow better forest management. It is made up of a consortium of seven institutions in Latin America and Spain, together with IAMFN, related to research on forest topics and climate change, with mandates to improve management of ecosystems in the territories and to mitigate human impacts. CLIMIFORAD works in five countries, including three MFs in Costa Rica, Colombia and Chile.

Restoration of Lands and Forests. IAMFN has joined Initiative 20 x 20, along with WRI, CIAT, IUCN and led by Latin America countries, to restore 20 million hectares of degraded lands in the region by the year 2020 as part of the Bonn Challenge. It actively participated in the launch of this initiative in the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) and in a parallel event at COP 20 in Lima in December 2014, during which national commitments for restoring 21.6 million hectares were made. MFs have begun and documented processes of restoration; its effectiveness is known and there are concrete results. Some experiences, which have been going on almost a decade, will serve as support for restoration at the landscape level. One of the advantages of MFs is the existence of a platform of local actors having good governance. IAMFN has also identified a total of 1.6 million hectares to be restored in 17 MFs in 11 countries under the 20 x 20 Initiative.

Sustainable Income Forestry (FIS). Management of territories is a problem of governance and management capacity, but also of availability of technologies for good management of forests and trees. The Territorial Forest Management Chair has a line of research that is systematizing experiences that enable improvement in cash flow for forest plantation, secondary forest and primary forest systems, incorporating crops, products and intermediate services that cut the waiting period to final harvest of timber. Research has been done on six farms, located in MF territories, to offer profitable solutions for sustainable forest management in the hands of small and medium producers. It has begun to give more value to the territories’ bioenergy potential, to the drivers of firewood consumption and to technological studies of different biomasses; in many MF territories, the problem of forest destruction for firewood consumption is important.

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The Finnfor II project made important advances with its original partners in 2014 related to value chains for forest products identified by the project and it initiated activities for improvement in the majority of places where the project is being carried out.

Consolidated value chainsThe continuous work developed in 2014 is reflected in the consolidation of value chains for forest products, as is the case in Nicaragua, where 11 original microenterprise partners completed the technological transition from charcoal production via piles to use of brick ovens, substantially increasing yields and income and reducing health risks. The project added 11 new producers, along with nine ovens in the municipality of Posoltega. Work in two neighboring municipalities is also improving.

In Honduras, Finnfor II technical assistance continued to increase efficiency, yield and good practices in forest management for both of the cooperatives affected by a decline in the market—El Palisal and Coraguil. A similar process of managerial and operational capacity building took place in the community enterprise Chachaklum S.A., converted now into a small business that provides management services to plantations and harvesting and sales services to its members, as well as adding administrative and financial management capacity and formalizing relations with key buyers and transporters.

In Peten in 2014, the Community Forest Development Fund was launched with an initial capital of USD 200,000 from Finnfor II. At that time, five businesses delivered requests for funds to improve their machinery and obtain working capital that will reduce their dependence on conditional cash advances from intermediaries.

Integrated programsThe interdisciplinary research under ecosystem approaches, such as Climate Smart Territories, changes the lives of thousands of persons and families in the region.

One of CATIE’s strengths is development of regional projects that have different characteristics, such as the integration of various countries, different CATIE capabilities and the capabilities of various strategic partners, all of which increase impact.

Fortifying chains

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New commercial relationships In Peten, Guatemala, Finnfor II and its partners expanded the market niche in the process of creating added value for mahogany and cedar species by establishing new commercial relationships with guitar makers in the United States and convincing the second largest buyer of first-grade mahogany to purchase dry lumber, with an associated increase of 5% in price. This agreement has the potential to transform the model of the buyer-seller relationship that has existed up to now—to the benefit of the producer.

Another highlight, which took solid form at the end of 2014, was the start of negotiations with the business Hacienda Tres Cepas in Costa Rica to supply green charcoal, legally and sustainably produced in Nicaragua, to three supermarket chains, including Walmart. This means a significant increase in income for families involved in charcoal production. The first shipment was agreed to be made on March 20, 2015.

ScientificandtechnicalknowledgeIn the creation of new scientific and technical knowledge, Finnfor II led in the design, implementation and development of a scientific analysis of the state of conservation of the five most important species of timber in the forest concessions of the Maya Biosphere Reserve in Guatemala. The analysis demonstrated that, to date, the sustainable long-term management of the reserve’s forest has been successful.

In the area of Hojancha in Costa Rica, the project contributed information that will help maximize income of the partners through a financial analysis that provides teak producers with recommendations about optimal age to harvest plantations considering different rates of interest.

In addition, a strategic alliance with the World Bank’s Program on Forests (PROFOR) enabled FinnFor, with CATIE, to develop and publish a toolkit, which contains three documents: 1) Field Manual for Verification of the Origin of Timber; 2) Let’s Take Care of Our Property and the Value of Our Forests with Good Practices in Timber Contracts; 3) Manual for Inspections of Volumes of Timber in Industrial Forestry and Depositories for Sale of Timber. This toolkit is being strategically distributed to key actors that work in forest control and supervision in the countries.

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Incidence In Nicaragua, together with INAFOR Region 4, FinnFor launched an initiative to formalize certification of origin (forest permits) of the eucalyptus plantations of 42 producers. This is part of the strategic work performed with the national forest authority to create a system to locate agroforestry biomass for charcoal production.

In Honduras, Finnfor II was instrumental in calling national attention to an increase in infestation of mistletoe in pine forests in the western region of the country and used the opportunity to reactivate and strengthen the governance of local forest institutions.

In Hojancha, Costa Rica, the project and its partners facilitated establishment of Proteca, an association of small producers of teak set up to defend better markets and policies, as well as a new marketing unit set up in the Centro Agrícola Cantonal Hojancha (CACH), which is providing assistance to businesses with buyers.

Capacity buildingIn the zone of Trifinio, the project designed and jointly implemented an accredited certification course on integrated territorial management of trees, forests and watersheds in the context of climate change, filling a gap in training opportunities for local environmental and technical professionals in this trinational territory.

Under the leadership of CATIE, this program has become a regional implementation and coordination platform for a vigorous network of prestigious institutions (CATIE, IICN, Terra Global Capital, CARE and DAI) that contributes in a complementary and strategic way to the needs and opportunities of the region as it addresses climate change, offering technical assistance to governments and their organizations to promote sustainable territories and climate information systems.

This cooperation agreement with USAID is recognized by regional authorities. Its work plans have been endorsed by the environmental subsystem of CCAD and CAC of the Central American Integration System (SICA, Spanish acronym). Annual plans of the sustainable landscapes component have been agreed upon by national authorities, gaining complementary support for national REDD+ strategies.

Strategic synergies among CATIE programs• The Regional Climate Change Program (RCCP) has sought synergies, creating opportunities to integrate research, outreach

and education.

• More than 20 staff members of various scientific programs at CATIE provide their services to implement this initiative, which has also actively involved the National Offices in Honduras, El Salvador and Panama.

USAID Regional Climate Change Program: Facilitating integration of efforts in Central America and the Dominican Republic

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Outstanding milestones• In Guatemala, ministerial approval was given to the Regional Strategic Program for the Management of Forest Ecosystems

(PERFOR), launched by SICA, CCAD and CAC in a process supported by IUCN as an RCCP partner and others such as FAO and GIZ.

• With a potential of restoring up to 3.9 million hectares of degraded lands, Guatemala made a political declaration that contributes to the Bonn Challenge, national ongoing processes and the REDD+ strategy.

• Technical support continues toward development of the restoration of the national forest landscape in El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala and the Autonomous Region of the North Caribbean Coast (RACCN, Spanish acronym) in Nicaragua.

• The PROBOSQUES Law to promote forest establishment, recuperation, restoration, management, production and protection in Guatemala has been approved by commissions of the Guatemalan Congress. This would represent some USD 50 million annually to promote forest landscape restoration.

• The main economic incentive instruments for a reduction in emissions and the prevention of deforestation and degradation in Guatemala were approved by the World Bank through the Carbon Fund of the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF). This process has been supported by the program through Terra Global Capital and IUCN.

• A methodology for developing three local protocols (Honduras, Nicaragua and Guatemala) and a regional one of FPIC was approved by the RCCP regional actors. In addition, the indigenous Mayangna peoples in the Bosawas Biosphere Reserve in RACCN formulated one. This protocol is the first of its kind in the use of a self-determined methodology.

• National REDD+ strategies in the countries of the region have been supported by the expertise of co-executing partners. CATIE has helped in MRV and methodological aspects; IUCN, in social and economic topics; and Terra Global Capital, with courses, workshops, publications and meetings.

• Progress in development of regional capacities in MRV expanded with the agreement made between the SilvaCarbon program of the United States Forest Service and CATIE.

• The REDD+ Regional Finance Workshops held in Guatemala and Panama prepared the countries to negotiate REDD+ decisions during COP 20 in Lima.

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• In Sico Paulaya in Honduras, Guatemala, RACCN Nicaragua and Comarca Emberá in Panama, initiatives were coordinated to reduce emissions in the field, serving as feedback to national processes.

Adaptation • Work goes on to establish a network of networks on risk management for water and energy, made up by CAC together with

PROMECAFE, CRRH, IUCN regional networks on biodiversity and CEPREDENAC.

• The Central America Climate Perspectives Forums and the link established to understand products and users are being strengthened.

• The concept of a climate tool for coffee was defined and will be discussed with the counterpart PROMECAFE for its development.

• The CRRH and directors of Hydrometeorological Services approved the work plan for joint development of a regional clearing house for climate services and related activities.

From the name that identifies us as the USAID Climate Change “Program” in the region through the group of partners—multinational, clearly complementary and globally recognized as expert organizations in their respective areas—to the scientific and governance authority that CATIE exhibits, all provide the program with an unequalled regional power to convoke that is used to promote CATIE’s strategic themes, such as its comprehensive vision of rural development in the face of climate change.

A key CATIE initiative to meet challenges and opportunities in a collaborative manner

With activities in the central region of Nicaragua and in Trifinio, MAP Norway represents the second phase of the Mesoamerican Agroenvironmental Program (MAP). This platform links research, education and development to address the urgent needs of thousands of rural Central American families, promoting the Climate Smart Territory (CST) approach.

In 2014, the program focused its efforts on contributing to the search for solutions to five of the global problems that affect the Mesoamerican region: poverty, gender inequality, food and nutritional insecurity, degradation of ecosystem services and vulnerability to climate change.

To accomplish this, MAP Norway intervened at five levels: 1) strengthening producer families and their households; 2) agroecological and agroforestry management of farms; 3) strengthening business organizations of men and women producers and the value chains linked to MAP Norway families; 4) improvement of public and private governance of the territories in terms of sustainable management of ecosystems, natural resources and their adaptation to climate change; and 5) national, regional and extraregional platforms to achieve scaling up or scaling out of CST approaches and lessons learned.

At the first level, some 2,052 families participated in Farmer Field Schools (FFSs), maintaining a framework of equity (47% men and 53% women) with at least two members of each family in the 139 FFSs presented. These families have strengthened their knowledge and practical skills and shared in decision making in planning and carrying out actions to diversify production in their home and community gardens. All of this is geared to improve the food and nutritional security of their households and communities.

Mesoamerican Agroenvironmental Program (MAP)

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The agroecological and agroforestry management of farms was significant for some 2,042 families that made plans of their farm and home garden using innovative technologies. Through the FFSs, 38 agroecological and agroforestry technologies were promoted; the families received fruit and forest plants from nurseries and germplasm banks and solidarity was fostered among the families through seed exchanges. The families used 24 technologies in home gardens, 28 on farms and three in community gardens. To cope with the drought, pilot technologies were implemented for efficient use of water for sustainable vegetable production in the home garden.

In another effort, capacities of 30 business organizations of men and women producers were strengthened by initiating an information management program to manage production data of the partners, carrying out value chain studies and promoting different scenarios of participation by actors that make up the value chains.

Among the most outstanding achievements in improving public and private governance of the territories as far as sustainable management of ecosystems, natural resources and their adaptation to climate change is the development of five participatory tools for territorial management with MAP partner platforms in the key territory of NicaCentral. The tools are being used to guide planning processes as well as to incorporate key elements of the CST approach in planning frameworks and work agendas of MAP partner platforms.

In addition, an agreement was signed with the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock in El Salvador for an exchange of methodologies for CATIE’s CST approach and the incorporation of the CST approach in the planning frameworks of MAG. This agreement provides for support in producing a proposal for climate change mitigation and adaption in the Salvadoran dry corridor.

The MAP web page was also launched, in Spanish and English, with a modern and flexible design. This site offers information about program advances in promoting CST in the region, enabling constant visitation to this new platform.

Finally, to achieve scale up and scale out of the CST approaches and lessons learned, approaches and methodologies of work at the institutional level were incorporated in both territories, mainly with strategic platforms and at the level of the education sector. Several partner institutions began leveraging resources to expand MAP lessons learned and initiated a discussion on strategies of scaling out in areas of work located beyond the scope of MAP. Successful financing proposals were developed jointly with CGIAR programs and other international centers for development of research projects, which reinforces MAP as a platform that links development, education and research.

These organizations belong to the Maya Chorti people in Honduras and they began production of vegetables with MAP Norway—traditionally they worked only in cultivation and sale of basic grains. They provide an example of how innovation in the way vegetables are sold has been key to positioning themselves in local markets and to be preferred by consumers because the vegetables are produced with an agroecological approach.

Luisa López ManzanaresCommunity of Maizama, Muy Muy, Matagalpa, Nicaragua“For me, the Farmer Field Schools have been very important. In my home garden, I have made some changes, such as planting vegetables, and I expanded my chicken house. I feel like a woman with more knowledge. I can participate in activities in my community and I can make better decisions that benefit me and my family.”

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Dominican RepublicOverall coordination of the participatory process to prepare seven conservation and sustainable-use plans was undertaken for important protected areas in the Dominican Republic. This effort was carried out under the auspices of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources and the United Nations Development Program.

Within the framework of the Regional Climate Change Program, a course/workshop was given to initiate a process of strengthening capabilities of technicians and public officials and key actors through identification of opportunities to implement actions and formulate policies and integrated national strategies for mitigation and adaptation to climate change. A total of 21 professionals participated, representatives of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, the three Model Forests located in the country and representatives of recognized NGOs and grassroots organizations.

Honduras: allied with rural sustainable developmentThe year 2014 was one of many changes in the Honduran government, characterized by a strong restructuring of governmental institutionalism. In this context, CATIE had to make various adjustments to respond to the new dynamic in the country.

One of CATIE’s areas of work was integration of national policies and instruments. For example, we participated I the National Policy on the National Environmental Strategy for Climate Change REDD+, the Investment Plan of the Country for the Agrofood Sector, National Strategy for Food Security and Nutrition, Central American Rural Territorial Development Strategy (ECADERTH) to generate enabling conditions for implementation of the Climate Smart Territories (CST) approach, as well as the Vision for the Country and the Plan of the Nation—proposals that seek to promote socioeconomic growth in harmony with natural and human resources and with social justice.

Outreach for impact The contribution of CATIE reaches into the countries, where a full agenda includes numerous activities, a strong entrepreneurship through UGO and a solid communication platform.

Extension to the countries

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Also, we supported developed of a pine-oak forest, the National Forest Program (PRONAFOR), the Institutional Strategic Plan (PEI) and the Forest Policy in order to reduce the advance of the agricultural frontier on ecologically sensitive areas, reducing pressure on productive agroforestry spaces that limit the development of a true local and regional forestry.

Education and strengthening of human capital was another of the most important pillars of CATIE’s work. The institution graduated five Honduran professionals, three women and two men. These graduates provided significant contributions to the country with their research on topics such as soil quality, socioecological sustainability of reforestation, sustainable forage on livestock farms and functional diversity of lianas.

Currently six Hondurans (four men and two women) are pursuing international master’s degrees in agroforestry and sustainable agriculture, forest management and conservation and conservation practice; in 2015, they will return to this country as agents of change to promote sustainable and holistic development in the region. The office also supported seven Hondurans (four women and three men) who are to begin Graduate School in 2015.

As for training, through the different CATIE projects in Honduras, more than 3,000 persons participated in capacity building. These trainings were in multiple areas, including community forestry, installation of nurseries, forests, value chains, climate change adaptation and mitigation, furniture finishing, cooperativism, inclusive businesses, enterprise strengthening, associative rural businesses, food and nutritional security, equity, agroecological management of home gardens and farms, watershed management plans and territorial planning. Several of these trainings were given in Farmer Field Schools (FFSs).

In the realm of research, results of projects such as REGATTA and CASCADA were presented and discussions were generated with key actors on options for adaptation to climate change in the agricultural sector in Honduras and the research needs related to this.

During 2014, 10 projects were developed in Honduras, focusing on topics such as climate change, economic development and management of the forest sector, municipal capacity building with an emphasis on territorial planning, territorial management, food and nutritional security, equity, quality and application of sanitary and phytosanitary measures, watershed management and value chains for forest services.

For the goal of establishing CSTs, work was carried out with platforms to identify opportunities and integrate the approach and, together with various institutions, coordinate and plan the strengthening of the country’s Territorial Information System (SINTET).

On the topic of climate change, an initiative to be implemented in Sico Paulaya was proposed, with the USAID Regional Climate Change Program for management and administration of carbon that has characteristics to support the development of the National REDD+ Strategy, which is under construction.

In the Pine-Oak project, work was on reduction of illegal logging, forest conservation and forest economy in the municipality of Campamento, Olancho. Eleven management plans have also been developed for the Ejidal Forest and the Honduran Pine-Oak Alliance, and the regional platform of Salama Model Forest were strengthened. A proposal was presented to include the Noroeste de Olancho Model Forest in the Honduran Network of Model Forests.

Through the Mesoamerican Agroenvironmental Program (MAP Norway), products were developed for knowledge management, among them a guide for home-garden management, a bird manual and a socio-organizational and enterprise assessment. In turn, gardens were established for vegetable production, fruit trees were delivered to diversify home gardens, the topic of climate change and water was incorporated in the Farmer Field School curriculum and five agroecological practices were presented in them.

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Annual Report 2014

Another of CATIE’s strengths in Honduras was establishment of strategic alliances with more than 14 national institutions.

Finally, looking to the future, the National Advisory Committee (CAN) proposed the need to focus on a sector research agenda, develop practical training packages and support the strengthening of the rural extension system as well as to influence key actors at the national level to use knowledge and information generated by CATIE in making their decisions.

Committed to sustainability in GuatemalaDuring 2014, CATIE Guatemala developed efforts for implementation of public policies and other instruments linked to integrated rural development, family agriculture, rural economy, agroecology, food and nutritional security, conservation of biodiversity and sustainable management of natural resources, achieving active participation in 16 policies, instruments and international agreements.

Special emphasis has been given to the National Integrated Rural Development Policy (PNDRI, Spanish acronym) and its operational instruments (Family Agriculture Program for Strengthening Rural Economy and National Rural Extension System), as well as the Agriculture, Livestock, Forest and Hydrobiology Policy, National Food Security Policy, Farm Policy, Zero-Hunger Pact, Protected Areas Policy and Forest Policy, among others.

In general terms and through training processes (formal and informal education), CATIE has contributed to strengthening processes of some 1,292 professionals, including technicians, extensionists, professors, researchers and university students on diverse topics related to rural development, rural extension, agrobiodiversity, gender and equity, agroecology, seed banks, community tourism, etc.

Using processes based on the Farmer Field School (FFS) methodology developed by different CATIE projects, local processes were strengthened with families (about 6,000) and more than 28,000 persons in 30 municipalities in four departments.

Higher education was also a fundamental pillar of CATIE’s work in Guatemala in 2014. Six Guatemalan professionals (three women and three men) enrolled in the CATIE Graduate School to complete their professional education in different master’s programs. In addition, three Guatemalan professionals graduated from the Master’s Program and seven theses and graduate papers based on work in Guatemala were completed by students from various countries. Through actions coordinated by CATIE’s office in Guatemala, recuperation of 67 hectares of degraded ecosystems was achieved through reforestation and soil conservation, along with the conservation of 890 hectares of natural forest in the Acatenango Volcano area.

Joint development actions with strategic partners brought significant contributions to processes of conservation in the Maya Biosphere Reserve and sustainable forest management, highlighted by creation of the Fund to Finance Community Forest Development and the study evaluating the state of conservation populations of broad-leafed mahogany and cedar and three secondary timber species in forest concessions in the Maya Biosphere Reserve, Peten, Guatemala.

The year 2014 marked the 25th anniversary of CATIE’s presence in Peten. Through that presence and the alliances formed with local partners, it has contributed to sustainable processes related to forest management and silvicultural systems, agroforestry and silvicultural systems, sustainable livestock, integrated watershed management and conservation of protected areas and archaeological sites, management of natural ecosystems, territorial planning and sustainable land management, forest concessions, industrial process and enterprise competitiveness. In the 25 years 13 projects have been executed, bringing 45 million quetzals (about USD 6 million). It is estimated the processes to build local capacity have attracted participation of more than 1,500 people, among them professionals, technicians, extensionists, families, producers, students, professors, governmental authorities, NGO personnel and others. A total of 25 scientific master’s theses have been developed (the first in 1993) by CATIE students, from Guatemala as well as Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay, Nicaragua and Honduras.

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All of the actions and achievements by CATIE in Guatemala are possible thanks to the commitment, confidence and solid and constant support of our donors, partners and strategic allies both at national and local levels. CATIE has established strategic alliances with more than 50 partners in the country, looking for interaction that facilitates and complements capacities, resources and interests in territories or relevant topics.

Finally, CATIE’s Climate Smart Territories approach has been implemented by strategic partners such as the Trifinio Plan Trinational Commission (CTPT, Spanish acronym) and the Trinational Community of Rio Lempa (CTRL), thus enabling scaling-out processes at different levels. These actions are complemented by support from other CATIE initiatives in different fields and in collaboration with different partners, which result in a strategic contribution to the country.

CATIE achievements and impacts in El SalvadorIn El Salvador, the CATIE National Office orients its actions toward national priorities, especially food and nutritional security; watershed management and sustainable natural resource management; and human resource training for professionals at state and private academic institutions and for territorial leaders, producers and local organizations tied to local development, creating links with municipal institutions in the areas where CATIE has projects and studies.

In food security, the Farmer Field Schools (FFSs) facilitate capacity building for dozens of families and hundreds of beneficiaries on topics such as woody species and fruit trees and in the use of sustainable input for production. Assessment has also been provided, along with lessons learned and good practices for management and commercialization, directed to organized groups that produce and supply basic grains to the market and with application to other groups selling basic grains in the country, especially small-producer organizations served through programs of the United Nations World Food Program (WFP).

In watershed management and sustainable natural resource management, work goes on at multiple levels and has achieved great impact. Watershed management as a planning strategy for intervention in the territories and restoration of ecosystems and landscapes has been developed in projects such as the management plans and implementation of soil and water conservation work focused on hydric recharge of microwatersheds located in the departments of Cuscatlán, Cabañas and San Vicente, as well as another intervention zone focused on watersheds and risk management in the watershed of the Las Cañas River, which supplies six municipalities in the department of San Salvador, partnering with World Geologists. Numerous activities with a focus onriskmanagementinvulnerablezones have been carried out.

Training of human resources at different scales. Families and small producers were trained in business, productive and gender topics. During 2014, we reached 1,833 men and women producers and community leaders with topics such as agriculture, agrosilvopasture, agroforestry, practices and soil and water conservation and environmental awareness about good management of natural resources. Some benefitted by training in community organization, accounting management for good management of the finances of water boards, and information about laws in force and development of ordinances to regulate activities that adversely affect natural resources in the communities.

It is also important to mention that 400 students attending schools in areas where we work were trained in subjects related to care and management of natural resources in their communities and knowledge at the family level.

Among collaborative agreements made through the National Office was the one signed with the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) to support actions related to aspects of agriculture and climate change. Close work with governmental institutions addressed incidence in programs such as the MAG Family Agriculture Plan and the Ecosystem and Landscape Restoration Program of the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN). CATIE has participated in various round tables organized by state institutions intended to improve the country’s response to productive, social and environmental problems, as well as participation in policies related to food and nutritional security for the people of El Salvador.

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MAP and Trifinio. Territorial activities are developed in Trifinio through the Mesoamerican Agroenvironmental Program (MAP), whose actions are directed toward reducing problems of food insecurity in municipalities listed as exhibiting conditions of poverty in the departments of Santa Ana and Chalatenango. Also promoted in this same area is the use of environmentally friendly production technologies, utilizing Farmer Field Schools as a method to extend agricultural technologies and linkages to markets—all of these activities had a gender focus. Under the Climate Smart Territories approach, MAP worked in gender and equity and on linking actions related to climate change and restoration of ecosystems and landscapes.

USAID Regional Climate Change Program (RCCP). In El Salvador, RCCP has MARN as the governmental counterpart and its focal point on climate change. Taking into account institutional priorities, MARN has asked for support to strengthen its REDD+ process, under the framework of the ministry’s Restoration and Landscapes Program.

The topics that the government has required as a foundation for constructing the restoration strategy to implement the National Ecosystem and Landscapes Restoration Program (PREP, Spanish acronym) are provided by the regional program through the IUCN partner, which supports in the technical instrumentation of PREP in these areas:

• Strengthening the governance platform

• Identification of priority areas and interventions for restoration

• Establishing the costs and benefits of restoration, including the potential for carbon sequestration and identification of investment and financing options

Under this same framework, the CATIE technical team is conducting a process of technical and institutional capacity building in MARN and the local environmental units to support mangrove management and restoration. The lines of work are oriented to developing carbon inventories at the ecosystem level in El Salvador’s mangroves in a process that includes the lower Gulf of Fonseca and an extensive sample in the bay.

Finally, with FAO and MAG, we worked to strengthen the National Agricultural Innovation System, with the general objective to promote more inclusive and efficient agricultural and food systems. Together with the World Food Program (WFP), we work in the areas of production and postharvest at the household level, strengthening organizations, enterprise management, storage, processing and commercialization/linkages to markets for basic grains, in addition to sharing experiences with government, partners and key actors, and WPA offices in 20 countries.

Nicaragua: a country that aims for climate intelligenceDuring 2014, the change in climate, especially drought, generated many challenges and effects in the agricultural sector of Nicaragua, affecting the lives of the poorest rural families. In this context, CATIE, through its programs and projects, prioritized actions in response to the present environmental variables and risks.

For this, the institution opted to work in alliances and collective action, which permitted a larger scope and scaling out of its experiences and lessons learned, which promotes the socioeconomic and environmental resilience found in Climate Smart Territories (CST).

CATIE’s main areas of action in Nicaragua in 2014 addressed topics such as ecosystem services, value chains, climate change, food insecurity, energy, soils and water and forestry. It is estimated that during the year the work of the Center positively affected the life of 40,000 Nicaraguans both directly and indirectly. For example, through capacity-building processes, workshops, exchanges, field trips and in-service training, more than 1,600 families improved competencies and skills, so that they can better manage their livelihoods. In this process, the application of the Farmer Field School methodology was enormously valuable.

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Another example comes from the multiple producers who benefitted from the use of half-orange ovens for making charcoal, a technology that was disseminated by the institution and meant an increase in income for each producer of about 1,350 cordobas per firing in comparison with producers without this technology.

To consolidate the work with the country’s strategic partners, collaborative agreements were signed with 18 organizations, with whom there was collaboration on co-management plans, definition of research lines and socio-organizational and enterprise capacity building. In addition, to generate products that contribute to the develop of the rural Nicaraguan sector, CATIE participated in different national platforms such as the National Table for Science and Technology and the Latin American Network for Rural Extension. Also, a work agenda was established with the National Production, Consumption and Trade System.

In external outreach in 2014, a total of six initiatives were executed, dealing with topics such as water for human consumption, climate change, food and nutritional security, sustainable coffee and cocoa, environmental livestock, forest certification, technology for the production of green charcoal, agroforestry systems, gender and sustainable production in home gardens.

In the area of education, CATIE continued to offer graduate studies, placing five professional Nicaraguans. Three young people graduated in 2014 at the master’s level: a woman and two men, who carried out research on the current state of production and commercialization of Eucalyptus camaldulensis, management conditions that contribute to the impact of coffee rust in the coffee-growing area, and the capacity and measures to tackle floods in the Estelí River sub-basin.

The institution also strengthened the competencies and capabilities of families, technical staff, researchers and extensionists in the public and private sector involved with science, technology and development of the rural sector. In Farmer Field Schools, work was with men and women linked to small and medium production, facilitating their learning on topics such as farm planning, establishment and management of nurseries, pest and disease management for vegetables, animal health for poultry, hygiene and food preparation, water harvesting, production of green charcoal and nursery management, among others.

Three local platforms were strengthened with partner organizations and the Territorial Business Training Schools (EFET, Spanish acronym), which developed 15 plans to promote the socio-organizational and enterprise level of various organizations. Some seven organizations now have strategic planning and operation tools, accounting systems and gender policies.

In the category of research, CATIE developed an important alliance with CGIAR, became linked to recognized international research centers and generated knowledge through scientific and field research, which allowed application of new practices for sustainable management of natural resources. Among the research lines developed in 2014 in Nicaragua, the following topics were emphasized: forest issues, cocoa, coffee, climate change, value chains for milk and value chains for beans.

A research agenda on CST was agreed upon at a local level (Matagalpa and Jinotega) and at the national level and 17 plots were established to analyze different management variables and propose strategies for silvicultural improvement for plantations in the western region.

Another significant task for CATIE in 2014 was to support the country’s National Plan for Human Development (PNDH) through implementation of thematic areas prioritized as strengths of the Center. Efforts were also promoted to foster institutional integration, giving special emphasis to supporting local and national knowledge management platforms and to four policies related to capacity building, science, education, rural development and cocoa.

As a manager of knowledge in the country, CATIE published some 433 materials with valuable technical and scientific information, which was placed at the disposition of governmental institutions, development organizations, researchers and students.

For 2015, CATIE will continue to attend to national priorities of the Nicaraguan rural sector; for this, work plans to strengthen actions in the rural sector in a coordinated and integrated manner have already been developed with the National Advisory Committee (CAN).

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Working for sustainable development in PanamaBased on the different demands and needs Panama has in agricultural and environmental matters, CATIE was able to support initiatives that helped promote the forestry sector, water resources, mitigation of climate change and rural development, among other relevant topics.

Following this line of work, actions focused on supporting development of activities that contribute to fulfillment of different national policies and plans.

A highlight was a regional study on territorial management carried out under the framework of an agreement signed with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. The study shows the need to unite different national policies and efforts for territorial planning and recommends that in this integrated effort, the different environmental variables that will be influenced by climate change should be considered.

In 2014 the Management Plan for the Río Chiriquí Viejo watershed was completed, requested by the National Environmental Authority. This plan is the first in the country to include studies on vulnerability and adaptation measures for climate variation and climate change. For the comprehensive study in the Chiriquí River watershed, 34 events were developed, including workshops and focal group meetings that involved more than 400 people, representing producers, institutions, local authorities and academicians, among others.

The National Office has continued its support of the National Commission for Rural Development in execution of the Central American Strategy for Rural Territorial Development (ECADERT) in Panama. In 2014, CATIE facilitated development of this commission’s 2015-2016 biannual work plan, which incorporates national priorities for that period.

In terms of assessment of ecosystem services, and at the request of the Mar Viva Foundation, a study was done to assess ecosystem services of the mangroves of David and the Humedal Golfo de Montijo. Inclusion of quantification of carbon capture in the study makes it the first of this kind in Panama and it will serve as a basis for establishment of future studies on mangroves and complement national carbon inventories. In addition, it intends to influence decision makers to establish policies for the protection and sustainable use of these ecosystems.

On the subject of forests, CATIE joined the Alliance for a Million Hectares, an initiative that seeks to reach the forest potential of the country, articulating new incentives, program and projects to protect Panama’s forests and biodiversity. It also planned activities in community forest management that the USAID Regional Climate Change Program will be executing in the Darien’s Emberá-Wounnan region.

To build local capacities, at the end of 2014, development of two diplomas were initiated involving placing indigenous youth from the Nägbe-Buglé region in the labor market, associativity and development of business plans and development projects, involving 45 young people (42% women) from 17 communities.

Also, the first workshop on development of the National Agriculture and Climate Change Plan was held. With 24 technicians and experts from international organizations participating, the workshop marked the routes and strategies to follow in 2015 to build an integrated plan linked to policies and plans related to climate change, which has priority status in Panama.

Finally, a project in the province of Veraguas was developed to integrate measures for mitigation of climate change and management of water resources. The project built 25 ecological stoves and installed an aqueduct in addition to providing training for their proper management.

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Strengthening institutional position in BoliviaCATIE has maintained an institutional position of joint work and strengthening local organizations through transfer of technology and skills. In line with this position, 16 institutional cooperation agreements have been signed, of which 10 are still in force and one is being negotiated with the ministry of Rural Development and Lands (MDRyT, Spanish acronym). Tangible collaborative actions with the College of Agronomy at the Universidad Mayor de San Andrés have progressed, based under a framework agreement for cooperation signed in 2014.

To date, the International Diploma in Biostatistics has graduated 30 professionals, with a direct impact on the quality of teaching and research in diverse academic, research and technical assistance organizations.

In order to consolidate a technical office in the country, efforts have been made to provide adequate physical conditions in terms of services and equipment. A committed technical team has been put together, even though now working as consultants, whose interventions project signs of a stronger organization with an institutional commitment to the country.

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Annual Report 2014

The Opportunity Management Unit (UGO, Spanish acronym) in 2014 continued participation in national and international bids and competitions announced by cooperating organizations in the countries of the Central American Region, the Caribbean and South America. This unit has an important purpose: To capture initiatives and resources to position CATIE in its member countries and to achieve incidence and technology transfer.

Of 29 expressions of interest, 14 were selected for a short list. The technical and economic proposals developed on the basis of the short list and invitations came to a total of 37, with 19 approved, for about USD 12 million. CATIE participated as leader and/or implementing partner in these consultancies/projects.

In addition to the joint work with the National Offices, a strong effort in 2014 has been strengthening of activities in countries where CATIE promotes business management, such as Haiti, Colombia, Peru and Paraguay. Steps are being taken toward a Liaison/Business Office in Peru, for which the process of official registration has begun.

CATIE scientific programs are involved in the implementation of consultancies and projects, through which the institutions related to agriculture, natural resources and the environment in the countries are being strengthened, both through knowledge and technology transfer and dissemination of information generated at CATIE, which are achieved through services of training, studies and plans, mainly in thematic areas. Among the most important areas are agroforestry, agricultural production, risk management, watershed management, hydric resources and climate change. Three of the consultancies/projects promote the Climate Smart Territories approach.

At the end of 2014, a process of technical support to the Secretary of Agriculture in Honduras was initiated to promote resource management in the Alliance for the Dry Corridor in Honduras, in which a climate change component is proposed in development of the Food and Nutritional Security Program.

The work continues

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Annual Report 2014

OCI: digital platforms

The Office of Communication and Incidence stepped up its efforts to strengthen the Digital Communication Platform. During the second half of 2014, work involved development of a search engine optimization (SEO) strategy. This strategy seeks to optimize the site in such a way that it is more easily identifiable to search engines through a broad range of resources that facilitate searches of Internet content.

The strategy has rendered very positive results. The CATIE page on Internet ranks:

• No. 3 three among the 60 universities evaluated in Costa Rica

• No. 180 of 3,796 universities evaluated in Latin America. 20% superior

• No. 2,486 of 12,000 universities evaluated in the world. 18% superior

This achievement is especially notable since it refers to general ranking; that is, without taking size or number of students into account.

Social networksOther work was with social networks, specifically Facebook y Twitter. In 2014, we came close to having 10,000 fans of CATIE. If we add the followers in Facebook for the Fair, this number is close to 23,000 fans.

OCI is also working hard to strengthen new skills in

• Live coverage of events

• Multimedia content

• More interactive materials (reports and newsletters)

The final result is a CATIE noticeably stronger in digital communication resources during 2014.

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Work at the division level has concentrated on offering efficient responses to the Center’s basic functions, from the basic work of campus maintenance and constant and aggressive review of administrative processes to effective management of financial resources and facilitating a constant investment rate to strengthen support through business operations, whose margins of contribution are important in maintaining the Center’s financial equilibrium.

Financial management continues to show significant improvements in the treasury that enable more expeditious and secure operations at headquarters and in the countries. This results in a growing recovery of indirect costs associated with the basic functions in each division and to the design and implementation of financial and accounting information systems that are increasingly simple, efficient and transparent, appropriate for each audience and decision maker at different hierarchical levels.

CATIE was able to present 65 financial reports in a timely manner to partners that financed projects executed in 2014. By the end of the year, 93 agreements for execution of projects in programs and National Offices had been signed, totaling USD 11.2 million. The Integrated Financial Information System (SIIF, Spanish acronym) is strengthened year by year in order to maintain the traceability of budget, accounting and financial information, critical to ensuring the Center’s transparency and management.

Programs and National Offices successfully executed 95% of the projects budget for 2014, for a total of USD 32.3 million. Total income from agreements rose by 31% in comparison with the previous year.

The institution continues to invest in maintaining productivity and infrastructure, entrepreneurship in biotechnology and the Commercial Farm. The Exchange and Lync information platforms were strengthened and the accounting and financial information systems related to control of transactions were improved. Necessary funding was obtained to launch a new institutional website, in line with the message, needs and image of the Center.

During the year, various corrective measures were implemented to modify and balance the budget in order to mitigate the failure of some countries to make quota payments, the reduction in the IICA quota and deterioration in accounts receivable to the countries—the highest in recent years—despite efforts and management by the Center’s senior administration. In comparison

Solid and efficient CATIE works daily to increase efficiency in its basic functions, strengthen productive capacity and effectively administer its administrative and operational processes.

Invest…evaluate…improve

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Annual Report 2014

Solid and efficient

with 2013, total income and disbursements in 2014 increased by 15.8% and 14.6% respectively, which enabled and generated a net surplus at the end of the year of USD 103,000, favored by good management and budget control.

Commercial activities (services and production) showed an increase in total income of 5.6% (USD 182,000) with respect to 2013, which represented support to the core budget of USD 695,000 and an increase of 55% (USD 247,000) over the previous year. The administration concentrated on reducing short-term overdrafts in the Agreements and Custody Fund. Nevertheless, balances at close of the period showed a slight increase of 5.7% (USD 78,000).

Constant monitoring of cash flow, bank account balances during 2014, allowed short-term investment of funds, currency trading that positively impacted 2014 income by USD 189,000 (26.1% above the plan initially envisioned).

In conclusion, the financial results increased the patrimonial value of CATIE (net assets) by 4.9% with respect to 2013 balances. Liquidity (unrestricted cash) at the end of the year closed at 17 days; nevertheless, this is one of the most significant challenges to resolve in coming years: raising sufficient financial reserve for adequate operation of the Center.

Management of human resources experienced substantial improvement in the processes of recruitment and hiring of personnel and salary reviews at headquarters and in the countries, with adjustments made according to the Center’s budget possibilities. Complementary improvements included development and implementation of an automated system for staff performance evaluations and relaunch of the institutional Intranet as a principal communication portal with staff for institutional work and events.

Productivity and returns of the Center’s agribusinesses are evolving as planned with the exception of coffee, which for the second consecutive year suffered from international prices and from diseases, a factor that directly affects the results of the activity. The operation has been completely reconfigured to mitigate the financial impact in the medium term, so that all plantations will

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Annual Report 2014

become agroforestry systems based on F1 hybrids, both systems reproduced by somatic embriogenesis and by rooted cuttings. This measure implies a reduction in the planted area but, for the characteristics of the system, an increase in production with lower scales of fixed costs.

Sugar cane contributed USD 144,000 to the Center’s assets. Expansion of the area continues, recuperating 32 hectares of abandoned coffee fields.

Dairy operations constitute the largest investment and aim to become one of the main sources for generating liquidity and profitability at CATIE’s Commercial Farm, working within a research and training platform for the region’s producers and technicians and integrated into the Livestock and Environmental Management Program (GAMMA). At the end of 2014, approximately 150 cows were being milked, with an inventory of 180 replacement animals, which are rapidly being incorporated to the inventory of cows in production. The accounting surplus of the dairy was 95,000, reaching a record level of production for the farm of 749,000 kilograms of milk. With these results comes simultaneous farm development of the replacements until the projected size of the herd is stabilized. Hand in hand with production and profitability are the environmental components. Production of electricity from biogas is a reality, operating for two consecutive milkings and resting for one. By the end of 2014, of the approximately 2,500 kWh that the dairy consumes per month, 800kWh were produced by biogas.

Rain Forest Alliance renewed the international certification of the dairy under the standard of sustainable agriculture, in addition to those obtained in previous years under the Ecological Blue Flag award, for which we are expecting our fourth star.

The hospitality area is one of the pillars that serves CATIE’s basic functions and is also one of the principal sources of income in the commercial area, with support to the core budget of USD 366,000—a remarkable performance that exceeded budget targets. The level of occupation in residences is greater than 97%; student housing, 76%; and CEE lodging, 38%. In this last area, we seek to increase occupation mainly through improvement in the programming of training events.

The Forest Seed Bank (BSF, Spanish acronym) continued a process of stabilization and growth beginning with improved sales and more commercial and collaborative agreements. This effort was recognized in the last external audit report on its operations. The bank had sales of USD 508.966 and distributed seeds to 267 clients in 13 countries, principally Ecuador, Costa Rica, Mexico and Colombia, in this order. Among clients, PROFAFOR in Ecuador stands out, with purchases of more than USD 210,000. Species sold the most are teak and gmelina, which represent 88% of the income.

The BSF worked hard in development of the coffee cloning program and incremental sales to ICAFE and private clients.

The Biotechnology Laboratory continued to improve processes and protocols and infrastructure. With the economic support of the USDA coffee project, two greenhouses were constructed and equipment renovated, along with distillers, air conditioning and filters for the laminar flow cabinets. Substantial improvement in reproduction time of F1 coffee was achieved thanks to the application of more efficient methods.

The Germplasm Banks are one of the principal genetic assets in the region. The Center invests in preventing genetic erosion and improving conservation protocols and documentation of the distinct collection in the field and in cold rooms. The financial support of the Global Crop Diversity Trust in this effort is strategic.

Finally, during 2014, renovation of the institutional transportation fleet was completed. Rates were also adjusted so that costs can be recovered properly and ensure financial sustainability, as well as to allow for maintenance and timely replacement in the short term.

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