Our link with the rainforest people of the Papua New Guinea's Hunstein Range is a key inspiration for the work we do at Green Light Trust. See 'Our story' for how this link came about and Green Light/Hunstein Range History for a brief summary of our activities over the years.
The people
We set up our link with the remote Bahinemo and Berinemo peoples as a partnership to exchange environmental knowledge of both our worlds and to encourage our communities to act in a sustainable way.
In Papua New Guinea, the focus has been on the protection of the forest and the dangers of industrial exploitation. In the UK, the Hunstein Range people have helped us understand how and why we should protect our own woodlands, and why we should plant more.
The last cultural exchange visit was in 2010 when five Hunstein Rangers came to the Uk to teach us how to build a Hauswin (traditional rainforest Wind House). The visit coincided with major events back home in their villages and catapulted our energies into a new direction. See 'Hunstein Range film trailer'.
The Current Issue
This is Carbon Trading. Plans are afoot for a major REDD+ project (Reducing Emission through Deforestation and Degradation) that will include the Hunstein Range forest. In theory, Green Light welcomes and supports this REDD initiative and we have contributed to the Project Design Document.
Over our 23 years of partnership with the Hunstein Range People, we have witnessed many waves of anticipated 'development' with expectations raised sky high, only to be dashed, again and again, to nothing.
Today, the carbon wave is paramount, and our aim is to ensure that we, and they, fully understand the implications of the project, and, if it goes ahead, that they receive due benefits. See: Rainforest Management Alliance website for details.
Since Green Light Trust is not a carbon specialist, we are grateful to our partners for their guidance and advice. These include: IIED, Parhelion, The Carbon Neutral Company , Cool Earth, Heart of Borneo and Wildlife Works.