Search form

You are here

Home » Events

Integrating native species into forest and landscape restoration in the Congo Nile Divide

Details

Field Course (Karongi Province and Rutsiro Province, Rwanda)
July 7-10, 2025
WCS-ELTI
Contact:
gbachmann@wcs.org
The conserved Gishwati forest, Gishwati-Mukura National Park, is surrounded by a human-dominated mosaic of pasture, agricultural field, monoculture tea, and woodlots, separated from the conserved Virunga landscape in the background.
Gracie Bachmann

Note: Yale School of the Environment (YSE) was formerly known as the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies (F&ES). News articles and events posted prior to July 1, 2020, refer to the School's name at that time.

Summary

This field course is a hands-on, immersive learning opportunity for practitioners of forest landscape restoration, forestry, and agriculture to develop knowledge and skills for restoring tree cover, with emphasis on native species, to the Congo Nile Divide landscape. Through a series of four modules, participants will deepen their understanding of forest ecology, ecosystem services, and the social-economic constraints that can constrain landscape restoration initiatives. They will also explore a range of restoration interventions, focusing on a series of suitable indigenous tree species. Participants will employ simple site assessments to compare biodiversity and ecological health indicators for mature forests and managed sites like timber plantations, livestock pastures, and smallholder farms. They will explore a range of restoration interventions applicable to the Congo Nile Divide landscape and explore how the site’s management objectives and the social and ecological conditions determine the type of intervention and species needs. By visiting a variety of restoration sites and engaging with stakeholders, participants will learn about the challenges and solutions posed by reforestation, agroforestry, and other forms of restoration, and how to account for community and farmer preferences and livelihoods. They will then conduct their own site diagnostic and design a mock intervention. The course culminates with participants designing a native species reforestation intervention for their context, with the support of the course facilitation team.

This course is designed for individuals who:

  • have experience or a background in forestry, agriculture, natural resource management, community livelihoods related to the aforementioned, or similar fields.
  • are responsible for designing and/or implementing forest landscape restoration interventions (e.g., native species agroforestry, riparian buffers, silvopasture, remnant forest restoration, and reforestation, among other interventions).
  • are involved in community engagement related to on-farm native species restoration and natural area restoration.

*Enrollment in this course is by invitation only.

Content

Monday, July 7 - Thursday, 10: Field Course Modules

Module 1: Afromontane forest ecology and native species
Module 2: Ecological and social consequences of deforestation and degradation
Module 3: Native species restoration strategies
Module 4: Capstone