Proforest spotlights nature-based solutions for climate resilience, livelihoods on World Environment Day 2026

As global communities commemorate World Environment Day (WED) 2026, Proforest, a non-profit, international sustainability organisation, has issued an urgent call to reshape Africa’s development pathways by prioritising ecosystem restoration as a core driver of economic security.

In an exclusive interview on WED, Proforest’s Global and Africa Director, Abraham Baffoe, detailed how climate change is already eroding the foundations of farming communities across Africa and laid out the practical interventions his organisation is deploying to reverse the trend, particularly in Ghana.

He warned that worsening deforestation, severe biodiversity loss and unsustainable land-use practices are no longer isolated environmental threats; they are directly undermining rural incomes, national food security and agricultural supply chains across the African continent.

Mr. Baffoe dismissed the notion that climate change is a distant abstraction, pointing to the shifting rainfall patterns and rising temperatures now threatening agricultural productivity.

“Last year, it didn’t rain in most parts of Ghana around June and July, when it’s supposed to be raining. We are seeing prolonged dry spells when farmers’ productivity is negatively affected, which affects their income and livelihoods,” he said.

He stressed further that many farmers do not use the term “climate change”, but describe the same erratic weather and declining soil fertility that are already undermining cocoa and other commodity sectors.

To confront this reality, Proforest has embedded itself within production landscapes, working directly with farmers and communities to adopt agroforestry practices that integrate trees into crop systems.

In Ghana, the organisation supports cocoa farmers to increase tree cover on their farms, a move that simultaneously diversifies household income and restores environmental health.

“When you diversify your income, it makes you more resilient because you don’t depend on one source. It also helps to improve the environment and enables farmers to contribute to climate action,” Mr. Baffoe explained.

These interventions are designed to ensure that environmental restoration becomes an engine for economic stability rather than a burden, he emphasised.

Central to Proforest’s strategy is its landscape approach, a model that he described as a flagship worth replicating across the continent.

“Over the past 25 years, the organisation has learned that working with individual companies or single supply chains was insufficient to meet the scale of the environmental crisis. Now, Proforest facilitates collective governance platforms that bring together all actors within a defined geographic area -farmers, private sector buyers, government agencies and community leaders, to jointly diagnose challenges and coordinate interventions.

“You are dealing with all actors in the landscape. Together they agree on interventions needed, and collective action is taken,” he said.

This method, he noted, has yielded greater cohesion and visible success in restoring degraded areas and strengthening agricultural practices.

The interview also tackled the persistent tension between environmental protection and economic development.

Sustainable Growth Modelling

Mr. Baffoe argued that while a focus on the environment may appear to slow growth in the short term, it is indispensable for sustainable prosperity.

“Leaving one and focusing more on the other doesn’t work. Strengthening the environmental aspect while focusing on economic development helps you build a resilient and sustainable economic development model,” he said.

He urged governments and businesses to treat environmental protection not as an opportunity cost but as an advantage, a mindset shift Proforest advocates through policy engagement and technical partnerships with both the private sector and state institutions.

Inadequate Donor Funding

Addressing concerns about the longevity of donor-funded projects, he underscored Proforest’s emphasis on local ownership and self-sufficiency.

The organisation insists on internalising projects with beneficiaries from the start and works to establish diverse, locally generated funding streams rather than depending on a single external donor.

“It’s about how we make decisions and choices. If we believe restoring degraded areas and improving sustainable agriculture practices will drive economic development, then we should, as a nation, make choices that support sustainable land use,” he said.

This philosophy has underpinned a series of interventions where communities gradually assume responsibility for tree planting and landscape management, ensuring results outlast any project cycle.

Touching on the theme for this year’s WED, “Inspired by Nature. For Climate. For Our Future,” he emphasised that Proforest is leveraging the milestone to champion practical, landscape-level interventions that prove environmental sustainability and economic growth are not mutually exclusive goals, but deeply dependent variables.

Education and Sensitisation

The Proforest Global and Africa Director placed significant weight on education, particularly for the next generation.

He lamented that many young people are abandoning farming for illegal mining and other quick-income activities, failing to see a future on the land.

Proforest works to train farmers and youth to understand the long-term implications of their land-use decisions. “Once that education goes through, the young generation who want a successful life will do the best they can to protect the environment,” he said,

As the world observes World Environment Day, under the global theme, “Inspired by Nature. For Climate. For Our Future,” Proforest’s message is simple: climate change respects no borders, and addressing its impacts is a shared responsibility requiring immediate, coordinated action.

“The Day must remind us all that collective action to address the climate crisis is what we all need. It is time to act,” he concluded.

With its landscape-level programmes, agroforestry integration and relentless push for local ownership, Proforest is betting that Ghana and the broader continent can transform environmental vulnerability into a resilient, inclusive economic future.

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