The Ffi Belize Initiative: Unlocking The Secrets Of Belize's Tropical Forests

FFI, or Flora and Fauna International, is a Cambridge-based conservation charity founded in 1903. The charity's main aim is to conserve threatened species and ecosystems worldwide. FFI has close ties to the British royal family, with Prince William as a patron. In March 2022, Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge were forced to cancel a trip to the Belizean village of Indian Creek due to protests by locals. The village is in a land dispute with FFI, which claims ownership of 12,000 acres of land that the villagers consider to be communal.

FFI is an acronym for Fauna & Flora International

FFI stands for Fauna & Flora International, a charity working to "conserve threatened species and ecosystems worldwide". The organisation has been working in Belize since 1997, when it began its efforts to protect the Maya Golden Landscape in the Toledo District of southern Belize.

Fauna & Flora International's work in Belize began when the organisation recognised the ecological importance of a 6,000-hectare area of broadleaf forest in the country's south, which was under threat of conversion to citrus plantations and shrimp farms. The area forms a biological corridor connecting the forest-clad Maya Mountains with the Belizean coast and is home to a diverse array of plant and animal species.

Fauna & Flora International has also been working with the Ya'axché Conservation Trust, a grassroots organisation, to protect and sustainably manage key timber species in the Maya Golden Landscape. This includes efforts to combat illegal logging and protect threatened tree species. The partnership has resulted in the protection and conservation of areas such as the Golden Stream Corridor Preserve and the Boden Creek Ecological Preserve, which are important for biodiversity and the livelihoods of local communities.

The organisation has faced some challenges in Belize, including a land dispute with the indigenous Q'eqchi Maya community in Indian Creek. The dispute centres around colonial-era territorial settlements that are still contested by indigenous groups. Protests by local residents forced the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to cancel a planned visit to the village during a royal tour of the Caribbean in 2022. Despite this challenge, Fauna & Flora International remains committed to its conservation goals in Belize and continues to work towards protecting the country's rich biodiversity.

Prince William is a patron of FFI

Prince William has had a long-standing commitment to wildlife conservation and support for communities protecting their natural environment for future generations. In October 2020, he was given the patronage of FFI by his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, who had been its royal patron for almost seven decades. The charity has had close royal links since its creation, with the first royal to back the charity being Edward VIII, whose patronage began in 1928.

In line with his commitment to wildlife conservation, Prince William has also taken up the patronage of the British Trust for Ornithology, which aims to help local communities protect local bird species and their natural habitats. In addition, he has been a leader in the movement to protect wildlife from illegal trading through his involvement in United for Wildlife, a partnership between seven conservation organisations.

Prince William's role as a patron of FFI came under scrutiny during his and the Duchess of Cambridge's Caribbean tour in March 2022. The royal couple was forced to cancel a trip to the Belizean village of Indian Creek due to protests by local residents. The village is in a land dispute with FFI, which owns 12,000 acres of land in the area that is contested by the indigenous Q'eqchi Maya community. The residents of Indian Creek held signs that read, "Prince William as long as you are helping FFI taking our lands, you are not welcome".

FFI's work in Belize includes the Golden Stream Corridor Preserve

FFI, or Fauna & Flora International, is a Cambridge-based conservation charity that has been working in Belize for 25 years. One of its projects in the country includes the Golden Stream Corridor Preserve.

The Golden Stream Corridor Preserve is a nature reserve in southern Belize, owned and managed by the Ya'axche' Conservation Trust. It is approximately 15,000 acres (61 km2) and is located near the Nim Li Punit archaeological site. The preserve is home to a unique diversity of habitat types and ecosystems, including both forest and marine ecosystems. The forest ecosystem includes a pristine forest of mahogany and Santa Maria trees, as well as a riverine forest. The marine ecosystem includes an estuarine environment that is home to many marine organisms.

The Golden Stream Corridor Preserve is also an invaluable wildlife corridor, connecting the highland forests of the Maya Mountains with the Caribbean Sea. It is considered a biological corridor due to its diverse flora and fauna and is home to 270 birds, 19 amphibian, 20 fish, 59 mammals, and 57 reptiles. Many threatened and endangered wildlife species inhabit this area, including the jaguar, puma, ocelot, Baird's tapir, Central American spider monkey, keel-billed toucan, and the West Indian manatee.

FFI has been working with the Golden Stream Corridor Preserve NGO (GSCP NGO), a grass-roots Mayan organisation based in the Toledo District of Belize. In 1999, FFI helped GSCP NGO by purchasing 9,544 acres for US$1.2 million, which was the most valuable parcel of land in the watershed. This purchase was the first phase of FFI's initiative to complete the connection between existing land owned by GSCP NGO and the sea through further land purchases or alternative partnership/management agreements. FFI has also funded biodiversity surveys, provided technical and financial assistance, and has an ongoing long-term commitment to the project and area.

FFI's land dispute with the indigenous Q'eqchi Maya community

FFI, or Fauna & Flora International, is a Cambridge-based conservation charity that has been working in southern Belize for 25 years. The organisation's main aim is to "conserve threatened species and ecosystems worldwide". However, FFI has been criticised for its involvement in a land dispute with the indigenous Qeqchi Maya community in Belize.

The dispute centres around FFI's ownership of 12,000 acres of land in the village of Indian Creek, which the organisation claims is private property and not for communal use by the residents of the village. The Qeqchi Maya community, on the other hand, argues that the land was taken from them during the colonisation of Belize and that they have a right to communal use of the land.

The dispute came to a head in March 2022 when Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge were forced to cancel a planned visit to Indian Creek due to protests by the local residents. The royal couple's association with FFI, as well as their links to colonialism, were cited as reasons for the opposition to their visit. Protesters held signs reading "Prince William as long as you are helping FFI taking our lands, you are not welcome" and "Colonial legacy of theft continues with Prince and FFI".

The land dispute between FFI and the Qeqchi Maya community is part of a larger struggle by the Maya people to defend their territories and self-determined futures. The Maya have traditionally held lands in common and derive individual rights of use from the community through a collective process. However, their communal land tenure system has been constantly threatened by state-sponsored development and environmental conservation projects.

In April 2015, the Maya people achieved a major victory when the Caribbean Court of Justice, Belize's highest appellate court, ruled that the Maya Indigenous People of southern Belize have rights to the lands they have customarily used and occupied. The court affirmed that these traditional land rights are equivalent to the Western concepts of private property and land ownership found in the Belize Constitution. Despite this ruling, the Maya people continue to face state-sanctioned land grabs and attacks on their customary governance system.

FFI's purchase of land at Boden Creek

FFI, or Fauna & Flora International, is a Cambridge-based conservation charity founded in 1903. It is the world's oldest conservation group, created by British aristocrats based in the colonies of the Commonwealth. The charity's main aim is to "conserve threatened species and ecosystems worldwide".

FFI has been involved in a land dispute with residents of the Toledo district in Belize. The dispute led to protests by local residents that forced the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to cancel a trip to the Akte'il Ha cacao farm in Indian Creek, an indigenous Maya village in southern Belize. The royal couple's helicopter was scheduled to land on a local football pitch, which caused issues with residents who claimed they had not been consulted. The residents of Indian Creek were also in a dispute with FFI over communal land rights. Protesters held signs that read: "Prince William as long as you are helping FFI taking our lands, you are not welcome".

In December 2021, FFI purchased land at Boden Creek from private owners. The land purchase was made to benefit the area's ecological integrity, resident communities, and Belize as a whole. FFI stated that the land had attracted considerable commercial interest from third parties, specifically for conversion to agriculture, namely banana planting. The ecological integrity of Boden Creek and the Golden Stream Corridor was under threat of being bought up for agriculture, so FFI stepped in to secure its future.

Boden Creek is a vital expanse of virtually untouched rainforest in Belize, home to jaguars, monkeys, ocelots, and hundreds of other species. The forest has regenerated spectacularly and is home to an extraordinary range of species, including large mammals such as the jaguar, puma, ocelot, and endangered black howler monkey. No less than 51 of Belize's 78 species of bat occur in Boden Creek, and at least 247 bird species have been recorded, of which 18 are considered "of conservation concern". The avifauna includes 62 migrant bird species, most of them Neotropical migrants that travel between North America and Belize.

FFI has pledged to maintain an open and continuous dialogue with the local community and support the livelihoods, educational opportunities, and customary rights of the people that live in the area. They are also establishing a dialogue with key stakeholders about the future ownership and management of the land, working with and supporting the indigenous community while respecting traditional Mayan rights.

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