RFD – RATCH carry out “Love the Forest and Community” program, phase 4 driving community forest sustainable development to maximum benefit for community, society and country

H.E. Mr. Varawut Silpa-archa, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment (second from right) honorably presided over the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signing ceremony to carry out the Love the Forest and Community program, phase 4 (2023-2027) in collaboration between Royal Forest Department and RATCH Group Public Company Limited. Mr. Surachai Achalaboon, Director-General of the Royal Forest Department (left) and Ms. Choosri Kietkajornkul, Chief Executive Officer of RATCH Group Public Company Limited (right) represented the signers in the ceremony. Meanwhile, Mr. Jatuporn Buruspat, Permanent Secretary of Natural Resources and Environment (second from left) also participated in the ceremony.

The “Love the Forest and Community” program is a community forest conservation project that has been operating since 2008 up to date under the MOU between the Royal Forest Department and RATCH Group Public Company Limited to carry out “Love the Forest and Community” program, phase 1 (2008-2012), phase 2 (2013-2017), and phase 3 (2018 -2022). The project’s performance was successful satisfactorily throughout the time. It can be seen from the increasing number of communities that request for community forest projects approval from the Royal Forest Department, consequently broaden community forest areas of the nation and spread the concept of community forest widely leading to raise awareness of forest conservation in order to become a source of water and food for the community, as well as strengthen the self-sufficient community. Moreover, it helps promote the potential of forests to ecosystem services and the community participation in forest management concept broadly.

For the MOU, phase 4 (2023-2027), both parties will collaborate to drive and develop community forest with the aim of creating a “sustainable forest for benefits to community” to optimize the value of community, society and the country. The project also aims to build awareness about the value of forests to community and society, according to the “Grow trees in people’s hearts” King's philosophy and sufficiency economy through the main activities: the “Love the Forest and Community” program awards that honor the community with a good forest management and sustainable consumption of forest resources, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing biodiversity through Thailand Voluntary Emission Reduction Program (T-VER) by Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organization (Public Organization) (TGO) in Forestry type, supporting community forest management to sustainable development, and raising awareness of forest resources conservation.