Site: Forests of central cordillera of Costa Rica, including major forest protected areas
Type of Partnership: Indirect support for the protected area (e.g., through income generation for adjacent communities)
Website(s): http://www.fundecor.org/index.php?module=ContentExpress&func=display&ceid=38&meid=-1
Contact Name:
Phone: 290-8818; 766-6147
Email: info@fundecor.org
Address: 5581150, La Uruca, San José
Description: FUNDECOR was established in 1990 to continue the the USAID-funded Foresta Project for forest management planning and forest landscape restoration. Working closely with the Ministry of Environment and National Parks Service of Costa Rica, and supported by interest from a trust fund provided by government and USAID, FUNDECOR's goals include providing sufficient buffer zone for the protected areas of the central range and restoring forest landscapes between core protected areas to create biological corridors.

A major part of FUNDECOR's approach is the recognition of the rights and tenure of small land owners, and the development of profitable and sustainable market alternatives in whch they can participate. FUNDECOR empowers forest owners to make their own decisions about their uses of the forest as an asset for their future social and economic development and assists them to take advantage of emerging global markets for sustainably produced forest products to increase their income. The integration of the informal forest practices of small-holders in the Costa Rican forests into the economic mainstream was made possible through partnerships facilitated by FUNDECOR with the international community for watershed protection for hydroelectrical production and production of wood products under global sustainability standards such as the Green Seal certification of the Forest Stewardship Council. FUNDECOR also laid the groundwork for the world's first joint implementation project for the international trade of emissions reductions (carbon sinks). It designed and organized the Costa Rican Office for Joint Implementation through which the Costa Rican Government sold $2.000.000. dollar in carbon offsets to the Government of Norway, which has demonstrated the viability of a global market for environmental services.
FUNDECOR assists landowners to participate in markets through a cooperative approach for the sale of ecosystem services such as watershed production and carbon sinks, for auctions of sustainably harvested wood products to maximize returns to landownders, and through bridging financing that enable forest owners to retain ownership and control of their land. It also assists with property rights issues such as land ownership registration. Recently, FUNDECOR has explored other income generation strategies for its partners, such as ecotourism on privately owned lands.