Together with partners around the world, Forest Trends pioneers innovative finance for conservation, promoting healthy forests, sustainable agriculture, clean water, robust climate action, biodiverse landscapes, and strong communities.
Our programs and initiatives publish timely research, bring together diverse actors, and apply these approaches to make a difference on the ground, often blazing trails for bold and far-reaching policies in the process.
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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 Oly Bracho, Chief Financial Officer at Forest Trends. Oly brings 25+ years of global finance and operations leadership to our team. ![]()
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Since joining in 2019, Oly has transformed our finance function, introducing our first global Finance and Procurement policies manual, launching a cloud-based accounting system, and creating tools that give clearer insight into our financial health. ![]()
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Before Forest Trends, Oly served as Vice President of Finance and Operations at Women for Women International and Rare, leading financial and operational teams across multiple countries. She also held leadership roles at Conservation International, The Nature Conservancy, and World Wildlife Fund, consistently building strong systems to support effective fieldwork and institutional sustainability. She holds a master’s in international management and a BA in Economics from the University of Maryland. ![]()
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Fun fact about Oly: Oly grew up in San Cristóbal, in the beautiful Venezuelan Andes, where she fell in love with nature. Every weekend was an adventure, whether it was jumping in rivers, horseback riding, or hiking up mountains. When she’s not deep in spreadsheets or working to improve financial systems and processes, you’ll likely find her spending time with her family or cheering on one of her boys at a regatta!
𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁: 𝗙𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 ![]()
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This year, Forest Trends celebrates 25 years of turning bold ideas into measurable impact. What began as a radical belief that we could re-engineer markets to help protect nature has grown into a global movement aligning finance, policy, and community action. ![]()
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Our 2025 Impact Report, Field Guide to the Future, looks at where we’ve been, what we’ve built, and where the next 25 years must take us. It highlights the partnerships, data, and local leadership that are redefining how we value and sustain the natural world. ![]()
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We invite you to explore these stories of change—and join us in building the next generation of solutions for people and planet. ![]()
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Read the full report and make a gift today: www.forest-trends.org/publications/forest-trends-impact-report-2025
O objetivo do REDD+ Jurisdicional (JREDD+) é alinhar os esforços de conservação florestal às políticas públicas e ao planejamento em larga escala do uso da terra. Essa abordagem possibilita combater o desmatamento e a degradação florestal de forma mais abrangente e coordenada, ao mesmo tempo em que promove o desenvolvimento sustentável e reduz as emissões de carbono. ![]()
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O JREDD+ está comprometido com as salvaguardas sociais e ambientais, incluindo os direitos dos Povos Indígenas e Populações e Comunidades Locais (PIPCTs), a proteção da biodiversidade e a repartição justa de benefícios. Apesar de seu grande potencial, o JREDD+ enfrenta diversos desafios para uma implementação eficaz e equitativa. Entre eles estão a complexidade de alinhar políticas públicas entre diferentes níveis de governo; a dificuldade das jurisdições em garantir engajamento e processos de diálogo significativos com as comunidades; a necessidade de desenvolver sistemas robustos de Mensuração, Monitoramento, Relato e Verificação (MRV) que sejam confiáveis, transparentes e acessíveis; assim como o desafio de assegurar financiamento de longo prazo. ![]()
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Na terceira edição da série Entendendo o Financiamento Climático, exploramos os fundamentos, mecanismos e desafios do JREDD+. Este folheto tem como objetivo apoiar PIPCTs, assim como demais atores, na compreensão dos riscos e oportunidades de uma abordagem jurisdicional, permitindo decisões mais informadas sobre a participação efetiva em programas de proteção florestal e redução de emissões de carbono em larga escala. ![]()
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👉 Saiba mais no link da nossa biografia!![]()
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Also available in English.![]()
También disponible en español.
Welcome back to Meet the FT Team! This month, meet Mia Smith, Program Manager of our Global Water Initiative. Mia is a registered Civil Engineer with over a decade of experience in water engineering and nature-based solutions (NbS) in watersheds across Latin America and California. She recently served as lead author and project manager for the most comprehensive global report tracking investments in NbS for water (bit.ly/4mE2hPj)—covering over 1,000 initiatives across 140 countries. She has also led monitoring and evaluation for a $52 million USAID-funded project scaling natural infrastructure investments in Peru, and coordinated stakeholder engagement to explore green financing mechanisms in Baja California Sur, Mexico.![]()
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As an engineer, Mia brings a strong technical foundation in water resources and treatment, which she now applies to NbS for climate and water resilience. She began her career designing advanced water treatment plants —from supplying clean water for major cities in Southern California to treating industrial wastewater in Peru. She holds a Master’s in Environmental Engineering from MIT and is fluent in English, Spanish, and Japanese. She was raised in Honolulu, Hawaii and is currently based in Mexico City.![]()
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A fun fact about Mia: She deeply values community-driven approaches to conservation. Outside of Forest Trends, she founded CIELO, a nonprofit supporting Indigenous-led environmental restoration in Guatemala, and co-founded a regenerative agroforestry farm on the coast of Ecuador.
A implementação efetiva do REDD+ requer regras claras, políticas públicas bem estruturadas e etapas coordenadas que envolvam diferentes atores. Acima de tudo, o sucesso depende da participação significativa dos Povos Indígenas, Populações e Comunidades Tradicionais e (PIPCTs), os verdadeiros guardiões das florestas. ![]()
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Criamos a série de cartilhas Compreendendo o Financiamento Climático com o objetivo de fortalecer os PIPCTs com o conhecimento necessário para se engajarem de forma efetiva no financiamento climático. ![]()
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No segundo volume, Mercados de Carbono e REDD+, explicamos de forma simples os fundamentos do mecanismo REDD+, seus principais elementos, os desafios de sua implementação e as oportunidades que oferece aos PIPCTs que vivem e cuidam das florestas. O folheto também apresenta exemplos práticos e analisa a relação entre REDD+, os mercados de carbono e os direitos dos povos da floresta.![]()
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👉 Explore a série aqui: forest-trends.org/publications/entendendo-o-financiamento-climatico/
🌳NEW REPORT 🌳: Despite managing half the world’s land and protecting 80% of its biodiversity, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPs & LCs) receive only a fraction of global climate and conservation finance directly. ![]()
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Our new report, State of Climate and Conservation Finance for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities 2025, reveals how billions of dollars in pledges are failing to reach the ground—and what must change. ![]()
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Key findings: ![]()
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-Less than 5% of multilateral climate finance reaches IPs & LCs directly ![]()
-Carbon markets rarely require revenue-sharing or transparent reporting ![]()
-Systemic barriers exclude communities from accessing funds ![]()
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But there is a way forward. The report lays out solutions rooted in trust, tenure, and transparency, to ensure that climate finance flows directly, fairly, and effectively to the communities who safeguard our planet’s forests. ![]()
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Read the full report here: bit.ly/487QQLz![]()
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#ClimateFinance #IndigenousRights #ConservationFinance
Welcome back to FT Meet the Team! This month, meet Beto Borges, Director of our Communities and Territorial Governance Initiative. In this role, he leads efforts to strengthen Indigenous territorial governance and scale access to climate and conservation finance. His work supports the development of community-based value chains, forest restoration strategies, and nature-based solutions that center the rights and leadership of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPs & LCs). He played a key role in the creation of the world’s first Indigenous-led REDD+ project with the Suruí people, and contributed to the design of Brazil’s first jurisdictional REDD+ program in partnership with the government of Acre. His work has helped establish mechanisms for payment for ecosystem services and secure carbon rights for Indigenous peoples. ![]()
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Beto holds a BS in Conservation and Resource Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, an MBA in Strategic Leadership from Dominican University of California, and an AA in Industrial Chemistry from Escola Técnica Oswaldo Cruz in São Paulo. A fluent speaker of Portuguese, English, and Spanish, Beto has shared his expertise as a guest lecturer at Stanford, Yale, UC Berkeley, and FGV São Paulo. Today, Beto is expanding his impact by mentoring future leaders and deepening his involvement in higher education through the Harvard Bok Teaching Certificate. His goal is to continue weaving together academic knowledge, strategic leadership, and the wisdom of traditional communities to foster a more just and sustainable world. ![]()
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A fun fact about Beto: The second time he saw and experienced snow was while climbing Mt. Denali to the summit, becoming the second Brazilian ever to summit the highest mountain in North America. This experience was so profound that he decided to dedicate his life to nature conservation.
Welcome back to Meet the FT team! This month, meet Eszter Bodnar, Senior Communications Manager. In her role, Eszter focuses on Forest Trends’ social media presence, publication pipelines, brand stewardship, data and information visualizations, as well as leads our partnership with the USDA Forest Service on developing innovative models for cross-sectoral collaboration on large-scale restoration of national forests.![]()
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Eszter brings a unique combination of expertise, and over 15 years of experience, in strategic communications, graphic design, environmental science, and public policy. She was trained as a graphic designer in her native Budapest, Hungary, and holds a second degree in environmental biology from University College London (UCL). Eszter has worked with Forest Trends for over 12 years prior to joining as staff. She also held positions with Climate Focus and World Forest ID, and supported over two dozen environmental organizations as a communications and design consultant, including the World Bank, The Nature Conservancy, WRI, WWF, and VERRA, among others.![]()
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When Eszter is not working or parenting her three young children, you can find her running the beautiful trails around her home in Boulder, Colorado.
Meet the Forest Trends' Interns! We are thrilled to have Meredith Foster, Isabelle Reinecke, and Victoria Quinn join our team this summer. ![]()
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A little bit about each of them: ![]()
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🔵 Victoria is a rising senior at George Mason University. This summer, she has served as the Forest Trends Operations Intern. She is interested in pursuing environmental law, specializing in conservation efforts. ![]()
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🔵 Meredith is a rising junior at Georgetown University. This summer, she is interning for the Global Water Initiative at Forest Trends. She is interested in climate policy, U.S.-China relations, and environmental economics.![]()
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🔵 Isabelle is a rising freshman at Barnard College. She is currently interning for the Communications Team, in addition to being a part of the Forest Trends Fellows program. She is passionate about using strategic communications to empower others to take action against climate change.
📸REMINDER 📸 : There are only 𝟱 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 left to submit photos to our 2025 Photo Contest, "Why Conserve? Celebrating Nature and Inspiring Action"! ![]()
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Enter today for a chance to win cash prizes and/or have your photos featured in a future Forest Trends publication, such as our 2025 Impact Report!![]()
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Link to learn more and submit your photos: lnkd.in/gKqEzvnr
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