The art of reforestation: insights for successful ecosystem restoration 

Reforestation plays a vital role in restoring ecosystems by rebuilding a diverse network of interacting species, including plants and animals. This article explores the most effective strategies for ecosystem restoration through reforestation. Drawing on insights from experienced practitioners from partners of the IUCN NL Land Acquisition Fund, it offers recommendations for successful reforestation for conservationists worldwide, structured in three stages. A key take-away is that patience and perseverance are essential in achieving long-term success. 

Reforestation project in Colombia. © Fundación Biodiversa 

This article is written by Land Acquisition Fund intern Sanne van der Meer, based on a study she conducted in 2024, and does not necessarily reflect the position of IUCN NL. 

What is reforestation? 

Reforestation refers to the process of replanting an area with trees. The UN-REDD programme defines reforestation as ‘the direct human-induced conversion of non-forested land to forested land through planting, seeding and/or the human-induced promotion of natural seed sources, on land that was forested but that has been converted to non-forested land.’^[1]UN-REDD Programme. Glossary: Reforestation. Replanting vegetation, however, does not necessarily mean that ecosystem functions will be restored.  

Roughly, reforestation involves three stages: preparation, knowing the local needs, and planting and monitoring. For each of these stages, necessary steps will be discussed, based on information from experience Land Acquisition Fund partners.   

‘Do not be afraid to try new things. Reforestation is a road full of trials and errors, and you will get there if you are not afraid to try new things.’ 

• Sona Kalantaryan, FPWC

First stage of reforestation: preparation   

Evidently, a good preparation is essential to decide on the most suitable restoration method. The first step is defining the main objective in mind: why do you want to reforest? There is a wide range of reforestation objectives, including reducing human-wildlife conflict, creating alternative livelihoods for local communities, restoring water sources, improving connectivity, and restoring biodiversity. Although ecosystem restoration often serves multiple of these objectives, it is important to define those that are most important. 

Know your surroundings

Since every landscape has its own context and past land use, it is important to adapt your strategy to the local situation. Most reforestation programmes spend time to study an area, for example through a forest assessment.  

Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets (FPWC) in Armenia, for example, hired a plant specialist for an inventory, which was very insightful. Another partner said that, looking back, they would have preferred to conduct more analyses to better understand what environment they are working in. Extensive research, however, is costly. A potential solution to reduce costs is working with universities. Involving local people can also greatly benefit the area’s assessment. They know the history of land use, the area to detail, and may already have tried techniques that worked, or did not work. 

Some reforestation programmes just start planting and observing what thrives and what requires additional care: a trial and error method. Each method holds its own value: conducting thorough research demands greater initial time and financial investment, but may yield more resilient outcomes upon planting. Trial and error requires less upfront investment and focuses more on learning through practical experience. If successful, it can deliver quicker results.  

No matter which approach is selected, getting to know the area to a certain extend is highly recommended. The questions below may be helpful studying the area, to subsequently decide on the main objective(s): 

• What native trees are in my area? 
• Which species are valuable in relation to my objectives? 
• Which species are fast-growing? 
• Is preparation of the soil necessary? What species can grow in degraded soil? 
• Is this area used to hold cattle? 
• How quickly do you aim to restore the area? 
• Are there specific objectives set by the funder? 
• What are the needs from the local community? 
• How can the local community participate in the project? 

‘Learn from other experiences, successes, and mistakes, especially from your region.’

• Fernando Arbelaez, Fundación Biodiversa   

Choose the best reforestation method

When selecting a reforestation method, consider the forest’s current stage. If a secondary forest is nearby, natural regeneration may need less active support. Stay focused on your goals, also when other organisations want to help, for example by donating (exotic) plant species. It is important to choose species wisely and stay focused on your own objectives, despite the well-meaning intentions of other organisations. For long-term success it is important to consider the needs of the local communities. More labour can create social benefits, but at the same time may increase costs (see also stage 2: know the local needs).  

Below we have outlined methods that are used by different Land Acquisition Fund partners: natural regeneration, active tree planting, and agroforestry. 

Natural regeneration

The most passive form of reforestation is natural regeneration, which usually occurs on its own and is the process of nature gradually recovering itself to the pre-disturbance state.^[2]UN-REDD Programme. Glossary: Natural Regeneration. The pace at which, and if, this occurs strongly depends on previous land use.^[3]I. Hordijk et al. (2024). Land use history and landscape forest cover determine tropical forest recovery. For natural regeneration to work, the place needs to be uncontrolled and undisturbed, and pioneer species need space to grow. Since this method does not needs a lot of resources, it is commonly applied in reforestation programmes. However, an essential aspect of natural regeneration is the presence of undisturbed forest.  

Assisted natural regeneration (ANR) combines active and passive restoration to create a more predictable and controllable process.{{WRI. (2022). The Benefits and Power of Assisted Natural Regeneration.}}} By removing barriers like aggressive pasture grass or introducing pioneer species, ANR accelerates the natural succession of degraded vegetation. Techniques include planting shade-providing species or fencing areas to exclude grazers, which speeds up natural regeneration. Successful examples include Parque Jaime Duque in Colombia and Armonía in Bolivia, where simply fencing areas in mountainous and savannah regions boosted native plant growth. ANR is often cost-effective, requiring only an initial investment to trigger nature’s self-recovery. 

Active tree planting

Active tree planting can be valuable when no forest exists or to accelerate natural regeneration. It involves collecting, growing, planting, and maintaining seeds, often from local species to preserve genetic diversity. Setting up a nursery and cultivating strong seedlings are crucial for higher survival rates, as seen in projects like FPWC in Armenia. Using a mix of pioneer and climax species can significantly speed up forest recovery. By planting both pioneer and climax species, it took Fundación Biodiversa Colombia only ten years (instead of 50 years) to recover a secondary forest to its climax state.  

While active tree planting requires significant time and financial investment, including setting up nurseries and maintaining trees, it offers benefits like faster regeneration and local job creation. Managing your own seedling production is important, because sometimes purchased plants do not meet the required quality or do not fit in the areas of your project. Try to have the nurseries close to the reforestation sites, so community members can work here and there are no extra transportation costs. It is also recommended to use the seeds and seedlings of trees already present in your area.  

Agroforestry

When your reforestation area is near or occupied by farmers, agroforestry can be a good option. This approach restores the land to resemble a natural forest while allowing farmers to earn income by planting and harvesting crops. Third Millenium Alliance (TMA) supports this by paying farmers for the first five years until enough trees provide shade for cacao to grow, which then becomes their income source. Farmers are responsible for maintaining the trees, with the risk of losing support if the trees die. 

‘It is hard to find the recipe, everything is so dependent on the area’  

• Fernando Arbelaez, Fundación Biodiversa  

Plan your budget 

Estimating costs can be challenging, as they depend on the area’s characteristics and context. Naturally, labour-intensive methods increase expenses for human resources. While it is easy to secure funding for the planting phase due to visible results, funding ongoing maintenance and monitoring is less appealing for many donors. But this is crucial for successful reforestation with long-term impact. It is therefore important to clearly explain the necessity of monitoring and maintenance in funding proposals. In addition, transparency in all expenses and a detailed cost breakdown is essential. 

Providing accurate information about the true costs of reforestation is important. Some companies advertise tree planting services that claim to offset CO2 for just a few dollars, but these prices are often misleading. Transparency and effectiveness can be ensured by developing a realistic budget that covers all aspects of tree growth, from seed collection and raising the seedlings in a nursery, planting, and maintenance to the point where the trees become self-sufficient. 

‘You cannot isolate tree planting from other things, the social aspect is very important. The most success stories are the ones with total tree planting with a strong community engagement.’ 

• Nicholas Locke, REGUA 

Stage 2: Know the local needs 

Community involvement is very important. Reforestation is not only about replanting and restoring an area, it is also about mobilising the community. Coming into a new area, it is important to know its history, which is known by the local people. Moreover, the long-term support of local communities is essential to make the project work. It is therefore important to invest time to get to know the people living in the area. For long-term involvement it is best to have tangible profits for them, and to really let them be a part of the project, so there is no need for them returning to their previous, possibly damaging agriculture and livestock practices. Below, partners share their experience in working with local communities.  

Robin le Bronton from Iracambi in Brazil: The area’s farmers lease part of their land to Iracambi for reforestation and restoration efforts. The NGO covers initial fencing, and monitoring. At the start, farmers may not directly benefit since reforested land cannot be used for agriculture. However, in the long term, reforestation contributes to restoration of water resources, which serves as a motivating factor as water resources in the area are depleted due to extensive agricultural practices, Le Bronton explained. 

Sona Kalantaryan from FPWC: In the Caucasus area, where FPWC is mainly restoring, there frequently were human-bear conflicts. Kalantaryan told us that FPWCs reforestation efforts not only restored the area, but also provided vital nutrition back into the ecosystem for the bears because native fruit bearing trees returned in the area, resulting in a reduction in bear-human conflicts. Showing the community how ecosystem restoration can benefit them, is a great way of convincing them to participate in your reforestation project.  

Ryan Lynch from TMA: TMA provides local farmers with the start-up capital to convert deforested land into regenerative forests. A regenerative forest is a forest managed to naturally restore and sustain itself, offering long-term benefits for climate, nature, and people. Each acre of reforested land boosts local income, produces food, restores biodiversity, and removes CO2 from the atmosphere.  When there are a lot of farmers in the area, you need to find a way to convince them why they should join the reforestation project, Lynch shared. With the agroforestry project TMA has set up, two goals are achieved: income for local communities and reforestation of one of the most threatened and fragmented ecosystems on the planet.  

Víctor Saravia from AESMO: AESMO empowers local communities by making them co-owners of the protected areas. Communities participate in all phases of reforestation, restoration, maintenance, protection, etc. They pass knowledge on to others, keeping knowledge within the communities and understanding the value of the nature around them. When the communities participate in patrols, they fall in love with the treasure they live in, which also belongs to them, which they are very proud of. This encourages them to protect areas themselves without the need to constantly compensate them for their work. They are also very motivated because of the improved access to water, according to Saravia. 

Quality surpasses quantity: it is preferable to nurture 10,000 high-quality seedlings with proper aftercare, ensuring high survival rates, rather than striving for higher numbers.’  

• Sona Kalantaryan, FPWC  

Stage 3: Planting, maintaining, and monitoring of trees

After selecting the appropriate reforestation method, defining the budget, and working on including local communities, the next step is establishing a planting and monitoring approach that ensures the steady growth of the trees. 

Planting 

For long-term impact, it is important to take the time and work with trees of good quality, rather than planting as many seedlings as quickly as possible. It is recommended to plant pioneer and fast-growing species first. They create shadow needed for trees that thrive in shadow spaces. Once a basic vegetation cover is established, you can move on to other species. Introducing climax species in an early stage of planting, can speed up the restoration of your area.  

Maintaining and monitoring trees

Most reforestation programmes aim to maintain and monitor for at least five years, but a longer period of time is preferable. As Nicholas Locke from REGUA put it: ‘the difference in successful restoration is made by how long you take care of the trees. If you raise a child for ten years and then leave them in the desert, they are not going to survive.’ 

Selecting the right maintenance and monitoring approach can be challenging, but initial choices are not irreversible. Decide on visit frequency and make a proper budget. Local people co-owning the land can contribute to maintaining and monitoring the forest. Partner organisations manage this in different ways. AESMO, for example, applies a unique model in which local communities co-own the land, creating an extra incentive to maintain and monitor the area together.  

TMA manages a different approach by paying local people to reforest their area. The Ecuadorian NGO provides the seedlings, but the local communities are responsible for their care. If they fail to maintain the trees, they will not receive any more trees. This once again underscores the importance of having good relationships with the local communities as they can be of great importance for the success of your reforestation project.  

Other common monitoring tools include: 

• Patrolling to check tree growth and identify needed improvements. 
• Using drones to monitor growth and species diversity. 
• Setting trap cameras to observe how restoration affects fauna. 

Even though technology can be an asset, it is not necessary in case of a tight budget; manual monitoring is a viable option, though labour-intensive. A cost-effective option is offering internships to students researching and monitoring the reforestation project. There is no harm in experimenting with different methods to discover what works best for the area and budget. It is important to keep in mind that restoration and monitoring are ongoing learning processes. 

In conclusion: learn, plan, learn, adapt

Reforestation can be done in various ways, making it essential to choose a method that aligns best with the project’s goals as well as the local context and conditions. Before implementing your strategy, it is recommended to create a detailed budget that accounts for all potential expenses, ensuring transparency with donors. A key aspect of long-term restoration success is maintaining and monitoring of the newly planted trees properly. This approach to this will depend on the local context and available resources. To maximise success, learn about the area’s history and context, engage with local communities, and consult with experienced reforestation practitioners. 

About the Land Acquisition Fund

The main causes of biodiversity loss worldwide are the loss and degradation of habitat. This threatens many animal and plant species with extinction. For 25 years, the Land Acquisition Fund has been supporting NGOs around the world to purchase land or lease it for a longer period. This allows them to protect, connect, and restore nature at risk.