Community Forestry in North-Eastern Namibia (CFNEN)

Awareness Creation and Environmental Education

Awareness about the role and importance of environmental issues is considered being a core factor in the sustainable development and management of Namibias natural resources.
Loss of biodiversity and its goods and services, desertification/land degradation, as well as the general negative impacts caused by over-utilisation of natural resources are expected to put especially poor people at greater risk and to reduce their livelihood options over the longer term. It is understood that most development objectives important to Namibia can only be achieved if environment-related issues such as environmental health, sustainable natural resources utilisation, and other environmental concerns are mainstreamed into development policies such as Namibia’s Vision 2030.
Taking its part in this national wide noble challenge, CFNEN facilitates awareness creation and education in environmental affairs in various ways, e.g.:

Awareness creation through Radio Campaigns:

Radio through its countrywide coverage and presence, is the media of first choice reaching a maximum number of people.
Mainly in the local language services of NBC (Namibian Broadcasting Cooperation) in Kavango and Caprivi regions CFNEN is running a weekly radio programme on environmental issues. In live interviews, panel discussions, feature stories and drama plays the public receives environmentally relevant information on a regular basis.
A selection of topics covered:

Deforestation
Wild fires/bush fires
Tree planting
Sustainable utilisation of forest resources
Home gardening / tree nurseries
Bee keeping / Guinea fowl farming
and many more

Contributions to Environmental Education in schools

"The most promising way of preserving our environment for future generations is to involve them in those endeavours."

On request CFNEN/DoF personnel serve as resource persons/experts/lecturers for teachers training or for classroom teaching in environmental subjects
Joint tree planting actions at school compounds
Assistance and guidance in establishing school tree nurseries
Performance of school events like "Environmental Quiz"
"Drawing Competition" etc. including awarding with environment related prizes, etc.