This visit, which was an opportunity for ERAIFT, WWF and INERA to interact with this panel of financial partners (EU, FAO, AFD, Embassies of Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Great Britain, Canadian representation) began with a descent into the middle of the primary forest - an ecological route which allowed us to admire magnificent (and imposing century-old) specimens of "Kalungi" (Entandrophragma utile) and emblematic species (including Prioria basalmifera) thus offering the delegation an overview of the floristic richness of the Luki Biosphere Reserve (RB Luki). The visit continued with a tour around the assets and challenges specific to this ecological site steeped in history; then continued with a presentation of ecotourism potential, followed by free exchanges with GIBEC around research activities within the reserve (RB Luki being able to position itself in Central Africa among the leading sites in research – action in particular on the crucial themes of preserving Biodiversity and/or the effects of climate change).

ERAIFT thanks its partners (the Sweden Kingdom, the EU and AGRINATURA) for the resources made available for this strategic activity, and the co-organizers (WWF and INERA) for fruitful collaboration.

On Wednesday, September 27, 2023, ERAIFT took part in the 78^th edition of the green table organized by GIZ at the "Cercle français" of Kinshasa, on the theme "Environmental Education: State of play in the DRC". This edition moderated by the Media ENVIRONEWS, has known the participation of the Ministry of Primary, Secondary and Technical Education, the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), NGOs including Espace Bilembo (a cultural and educational space), HPP-Congo, BDA-DRC, civil society organizations, private sector representatives…

The session consisted of four presentations including: -"State of Environmental Education in the DRC: Some findings in 2023" - "Implementation of the Environmental Education Program in the East of the DRC: Lessons learned" - "S.O.S Planet Congo: Environmental and Cultural Education Project" - "Okapi Conservation Project: Environmental Education Programme around the RFO: Evaluation, lessons learned and recommendations".

At the end of the exchanges, some recommendations were made to the Ministry in charge of Education, currently working on the implementation of updated environmental education programs in Congo.

ERAIFT thanks GIZ for having been associated to this discussion in line with its aspirations, including education/ awareness for the protection of tropical ecosystems. And also expresses its gratitude to the European Union and AGRINATURA for the means made available.

Invited by Dr Ishwaran, ERAIFT took part in the Deep Time Digital Earth Workshop in Windhoek, Namibia, on September 25. ERAIFT, in partnership with the University of Lubumbashi, is considering joining this global network, which is very useful in the context of the energy transition and the key position of the DRC in this transition".

ERAIFT sincerely thanks Dr Ishwaran and the DDE network for the invitation.

The College of African Wildlife Management (CAWM) hosted colleagues from the South African Wildlife College (SAWC) and ERAIFT in Mweka, Tanzania, from September 18 to 24. This cooperation between the 3 institutions is funded by GIZ SADC and aims to develop joint courses for the 3 institutions based on their experiences and the strengths of their curricula.

The week was very fruitful, and enabled the joint prospects for course formulation to be worked out. Representatives of CAWM and SAWC will be hosted by ERAIFT in the DRC in November 2023.

Note that as part of the EU-funded project "Capacity building of biodiversity practitioners, scientists and policy makers for the sustainable management of protected areas and forest ecosystems in Africa", implemented by AGRINATURA and ERAIFT, 8 ERAIFT students completed their Master's degree at SAWC in June 2023, and 7 new students will leave ERAIFT for SAWC in October 2023.

ERAIFT thanks CAWM for its warm and efficient welcome, SAWC for its logistical support and GIZ SADC for financing this South-South cooperation.

From September 18 to 20, 2023, ERAIFT took part in the regional forum co-organized in Kinshasa by the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MEDD) and the Center for Sustainable Management of Tropical Forests (CAGDFT) with the support of Tenure Facility (TF) – forum on Nature Conservation and Land Rights of Local Communities (LC) and Indigenous Peoples (IP) in the Congo Basin. More than a hundred participants and delegates from various sub-regional structures (religious denominations, local communities and indigenous peoples, technical and financial partners, parliamentarians, universities and research institutions, sectoral administrations, customary power, civil society organizations, Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation or “ICCN”, NGOs and media) participated to this forum.

At the end of the incentive presentations on different themes (free prior consent or “CLIP”, participatory mapping, complaint mechanisms, etc.), supported by testimonies from CL/PA, exchanges and open discussions led by different panellists (from Gabon, Cameroon, Congo-Brazzaville , DRC, Sweden), a certain number of concrete recommendations were identified, namely: the urgency of securing customary land rights with a view to aligning with the global biodiversity framework of Kunming-Montreal and, the need of measures from the governments of the Congo Basin countries to promote a rights-based conservation model (and strategies) through the 30 x 30 roadmap for Nature conservation. The forum closed after a pooling of work in workshops which agreed on the need for an exchange framework (or task force) for (i) sharing successful experiences at the sub-region level, (ii) monitoring and advocacy for the legal protection of the rights of CL/IPs, and (iii) catalyze reflection on other mechanisms (for example community forestry and other effective conservation measures or “AMECs”) which directly empower CLs and PA in contributing to global biodiversity targets.

ERAIFT thanks its partners (EU and AGRINATURA) for providing the means to take part in this workshop, and the co-organizers (the MEDD, the CAGDFT and the TF) for having associated it with this unprecedented multi-stakeholder meeting on a sub-regional scale.

ERAIFT participated online on the 21^st September 2023 in a meeting organized by ICOS (Integrated Carbon Observation System), a European infrastructure dedicated to the understanding of the carbon cycle and greenhouse gases impact on climate change, at the European Parliament (Brussels) - a meeting on « Nature-based solutions to increase carbon sinks on land ». This event, hosted by MEP Elsi Katainen, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament Intergroup on "Climate Change, Biodiversity and Sustainable Development"; has witness the participation of more than 200 participants worldwide. The event aims at raising awareness of the scientific opportunities and challenges behind a reliable evaluation of nature-based carbon removals. The combined roles of observation data, models and inventories were highlighted through scientific presentations including: - “Carbon action 2018-2023 : Learning food production, soil and environment – Across the soil and sky”; - “How to make nature-based solutions for carbon removal on land a success for climate, environment and farmers”; - “Towards a Unified Estimation (MRV) System for Land Carbon and Greenhouse Gas Fluxes: The Importance of Integrating Field and Satellite Measurements with Modeling”. These themes were the subject of exchanges enriched by experts among which – the Head of Unit ‘Low Carbon Solutions: Land Economy & Carbon Removals’, DG CLIMA, European Commission; - the Policy Officer, DG AGRI, European Commission; - the Head of Climate & Energy, WWF; - and the Director of Regulatory Affairs, Coillte, EUSTAFOR Member.

ERAIFT thanks ICOS-HO for the invitation to this event of great international importance. And also expresses its gratitude to the European Union and AGRINATURA for the resources made available to participate.