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Forest Trends protects critical ecosystems through creative environmental finance, markets, supply chains, and other incentive mechanisms. We build diverse coalitions with governments, local and indigenous communities, and business to ensure that all stakeholders are engaged and benefit from conservation.
Welcome back to Meet the FT Team! This month, meet Gena Gammie, Director of Forest Trends' Global Water Initiative. Gena has been with Forest Trends for 14 years—starting the same year the Global Water Initiative was launched. Raised in Hawaiʻi and inspired by its deep sustainability ethic, she has worked in Peru, Brazil, Mexico, China, and the US, and with partners throughout Latin America, Europe, and Africa to scale investments in nature-based solutions (NbS) for water security (ex. restoring forests and managing landscapes to recharge aquifers, reduce sediment and flooding).![]()
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Gena’s leadership has helped Forest Trends to be at the forefront of this field. She has been part of the leadership of multiple innovative projects driving NbS investment, including the Natural Infrastructure for Water Security (NIWS) project in Peru. She played a key role in the project's strategy and implementation, contributing to developing a portfolio of valued at over $383 million in new NbS investments, national policy reforms, and the creation of new technical and financial tools now used widely.![]()
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Most recently, Gena co-authored Doubling Down on Nature: The State of Investment in NbS for Water Security, 2025—the most comprehensive global assessment of its kind (read more at: www.forest-trends.org/publications/doubling-down-on-nature/). Today, she leads Forest Trends’ efforts to replicate and adapt successful approaches to NbS for water across new geographies, and to tackle the systems-level barriers that limit scale. Through partnerships with utilities, governments, engineering firms, and local communities, her team is building the practical and institutional foundations needed to make NbS a durable part of 21st-century water management.
‼️JUST LAUNCHED‼️: The most comprehensive assessment of investment in nature for water security over the last decade. ![]()
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In our new report with The Nature Conservancy, Doubling Down on Nature: State of Investment in Nature-based Solutions for Water Security, 2025, we find broad and growing support for nature-based solutions for water around the world. ![]()
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Key findings: ![]()
🌊Global investments in nature-based solutions for water have doubled in the past decade, now reaching USD 49 billion. ![]()
🌊This investment is largely from China, the US, and the EU. However, we found that other geographies are rapidly increasing investments at a faster pace, with Africa leading in investment growth. ![]()
🌊Governments provided 97% of all funding, with national governments contributing USD 33.8 billion.![]()
🌊Although accounting for <1% of global investments in NbS for water, private sector investments are growing the fastest, increasing over 30x over the last decade. ![]()
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Read the full report here: bit.ly/NbSReport![]()
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#NatureBasedSolutions #NaturalInfrastructure #WaterSecurity #ClimateAction
Welcome back to Meet the FT team! This month, meet Jasmine Garcia, Director of Operations at Forest Trends.![]()
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In her role, Jasmine leads the strategic and tactical execution of Forest Trends’ needs across HR, IT, Legal, Risk Management, and Compliance. Through her leadership, Jasmine enables our team to scale our impact efficiently and collaboratively.![]()
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Prior to joining Forest Trends, Jasmine directed operations for the global United Way network, spanning over 40 countries and territories. Her efforts allowed teams to dedicate more time to programmatic work and less to administration. During her time as the Director of the Centreville Labor Resource Center, she advocated for fair wages for day laborers, provided skills training, and created a membership program. Jasmine holds a BA from Santa Clara University and an MPA from Bowling Green State University. ![]()
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Fun fact about Jasmine: She is a returned Peace Corps Volunteer who served for two years in Panama as a Sustainable Agriculture Extension Agent. After her service, she spent 10 months traveling by bus from Colombia to Paraguay—volunteering on farms through WWOOF, surveying remote farmers about their experiences with fair trade, and immersing herself in diverse cultures along the way.
WEBINAR: Investing in nature is essential for a safe and secure water supply. As interest grows around nature-based solutions (NbS), does it translate into more investment? ![]()
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We invite you to join us and The Nature Conservancy on June 10th at 9 AM ET to answer this question! We’ll dive into the global state of investments in nature for water, pinpoint opportunities for future growth, and formally launch our upcoming report, Doubling Down on Nature: The State of Investment in Nature-based Solutions for Water Security, 2025. ![]()
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Register here: bit.ly/FT-TNC-webinar ![]()
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#NatureBasedSolutions #NaturalInfrastructure #WaterSecurity #ClimateAction
Welcome back to Meet the FT team! This month, meet Ryan Boshart, Operations Manager at Forest Trends. ![]()
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In his role, Ryan is responsible for administrative, HR, and executive support tasks at Forest Trends. ![]()
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Ryan has a background in education advocacy, project management, and program operations. Prior to joining Forest Trends, Ryan worked for Music Will (formerly Little Kids Rock), a music education non-profit dedicated to providing student-centered music education programming in US public schools. He holds a Bachelors of Music Education from SUNY Fredonia in New York. ![]()
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Fun fact about Ryan: As a lifelong musician and educator, Ryan teaches and performs jazz, rock, pop, and classical music within the Washington DC metro area.
Welcome back to Meet the FT team! This month, meet Alex Procton, Senior Manager of Data Solutions and Insights for our Ecosystem Marketplace Initiative (EM).![]()
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Alex leads data operations for EM, including data analysis for original research and publications and the development of the Global Carbon Markets Hub.![]()
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Alex has a background in biology and an interest in regenerative agriculture, and he previously worked as a commodities data analyst studying wheat, corn, soybeans, and livestock. In his free time, he enjoys rock climbing, cycling, and visiting art galleries and museums. Alex has a BA in Biology from Dartmouth College and an MA in Conservation Biology from Columbia University in the City of New York.![]()
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Fun fact about Alex: For his master’s thesis, Alex analyzed the social networks of a population of blue monkeys in Kenya to characterize group cohesion in the face of between-group competition.
Welcome back to Meet the FT team! This month, meet Debora Batista, Project and Finance Manager for our Communities and Territorial Governance Initiative (CTGI).![]()
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As part of her role, Debora leads CTGI's financial and operational matters, manages the initiative's staff so that all of the program's deliverables are met, and handles donor relationships and other partners. ![]()
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Debora has over 10 years of professional experience managing projects at NGOs, including previous work on deforestation and conversion-free finance as a senior analyst at WWF-Brazil. She has a post-graduate degree in social innovation from Amani Institute and a master’s degree in sustainability management from Fundação Getúlio Vargas Business School. Debora speaks Portuguese, English, and Spanish.![]()
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Fun fact about Debora: Debora learned how to speak English by herself at age 12 by watching the TV show "Friends."
Welcome to our new series, Meet the FT Team! Tune in every month to get to know a member of our staff and learn about their work.![]()
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This month, meet our Senior Communications Associate, Verena Manolis!![]()
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In her role, Verena works with the Communications team and our program initiatives to conceptualize and lead communications and donor outreach projects, relay the impact of Forest Trends’ work through compelling and accessible stories and visuals, and support cross-team collaboration.![]()
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Verena holds a BA in Political Science, and she has a passion for advocacy and social change with environmental solutions at the forefront. In her spare time, Verena enjoys getting in miles with DC-based run clubs while marathon training, relaxing with a good book, and testing out new recipes for vegan baked goods.![]()
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Fun fact about Verena: I used to be a competitive Irish Dancer!
#EncuentrosPorElAgua🌿💧 Hoy, representantes de 16 EPS de Perú, de organismos gubernamentales y ONG se reunieron en el "Encuentro Merese Hídricos de EPS del Sur", organizado por Anepssa Perú y OTASS, en conjunto con la EPS Moquegua S.A., y con el apoyo del proyecto NIWS, una iniciativa conjunta de USAID, el Gobierno de Canadá y Forest Trends.![]()
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✔️ El evento tuvo como objetivo analizar los avances y desafíos en la implementación de los Merese en el sur del país y buscar alternativas de solución con buenas prácticas. ![]()
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✔️ Fernando León, director adjunto de inversiones de NIWS, participó como ponente en el evento y durante su presentación destacó el reconocimiento, por parte del sector saneamiento en Perú, de que las fuentes de agua y la infraestructura natural son el primer eslabón de la cadena de valor de saneamiento.![]()
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✔️ Indicó que dentro del apoyo de asistencia técnica que NIWS brinda a las EPS, apuesta por apoyar la participación efectiva de las mujeres en la gestión del agua. “¿Quiénes son las que mejor administran los recursos familiares, la alimentación, donde el agua es un elemento muy importante? La mujer conoce de mejor manera cómo administrar ese recurso escaso y a su vez son quienes se ven más afectadas por la escasez hídrica”![]()
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✔️ León instó a pensar en una visión común “para que en los próximos cinco años todas las EPS ejecuten el 100 % de sus fondos Merese, donde tengan las capacidades para ejecutarlos y los ecosistemas comiencen a restaurarse, repoblarse y reacomodarse para que sigan brindando el servicio hídrico".![]()
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✔️ “Se ha logrado un avance significativo de estos mecanismos, 46 EPS en el Perú tienen fondos Merese, se está privilegiando la regulación hídrica. En algunos casos los fondos disponibles no se están ejecutando a la velocidad que se quisiera y ahí hace falta más trabajo, más orientación y en ese sentido cuentan con nuestro apoyo. Y hay que involucrar a la población, a las comunidades, porque son quienes viven allí y son las que pueden asegurar la sostenibilidad de las inversiones del fondo Merese”.![]()
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#InfraestructuraNatural #SeguridadHídrica![]()
USAID Peru Embajada de Canadá en Perú y en Bolivia CONDESAN Sociedad Peruana de Derecho Ambiental - SPDA Imperial College London
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