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Reforestation, Agroforestry, and Natural Regeneration - Petén, Guatemala
In Guatemala’s Petén region, this project is restoring degraded pasture and cropland through native timber plantations combined with Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR). By integrating commercial forest species with biodiversity restoration, the project creates long-term carbon sinks while generating sustainable income for smallholder farmers. Designed with and for local communities, it transforms vulnerable agricultural land into resilient forest ecosystems that deliver measurable climate, biodiversity, and livelihood benefits under the Plan Vivo Standard.
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Project information
Restoring Guatemala’s forests with smallholder farmers
The project operates in the Petén Department of northern Guatemala, one of Mesoamerica’s most biodiverse yet highly threatened tropical forest regions. Petén accounts for the majority of Guatemala’s forest loss, primarily driven by agricultural expansion, cattle ranching, and slash-and-burn practices. Over recent decades, significant areas of primary forest have been converted into degraded pasture and low-productivity cropland. The project addresses these drivers by transitioning degraded land into forest plantations using native species such as Cedrela odorata (Cedar) and Swietenia macrophylla (Mahogany), combined with Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR).
This approach restores ecological function, improves soil fertility, and reconnects fragmented forest patches while maintaining economic viability for landholders. By 2024, the program reached over 418 hectares across multiple municipalities, involving more than 200 smallholder participants. In addition to carbon sequestration, the project builds community governance structures, and promotes climate-resilient livelihoods in an area where over half the population lives below the poverty line.
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Intervention
Improved Land Management
Location
Guatemala
Standard
Plan Vivo
Sustainable Goals
Project performance
The Earthly rating
The Earthly rating is the industry-first holistic project assessment. Earthly researchers analyse 106 data points, aggregating information across the three vital pillars of carbon, biodiversity and people. Projects in Earthly's marketplace all exceed a minimum score of 5/10.
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Carbon
~2,606
tCO₂e verified carbon reduction across 418.9 hectares to date
Biodiversity
2
vulnerable timber species reintroduced at scale
Social
200+
smallholder farmers engaged across 46 rural communities
Project impact
Local impact
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Animated map showing the project’s location in Petén, Guatemala, and the yearly expansion of participating farmers from 2020 to 2025.
Project area: through time
The project operates in nine municipalities within the Petén Department, a region covering nearly one-third of Guatemala’s national territory. Petén is home to the Maya Biosphere Reserve, the largest continuous tropical forest block in Mesoamerica, making it a globally significant area for biodiversity conservation and climate mitigation.
Despite its ecological importance, the region has experienced substantial deforestation driven primarily by agricultural expansion and livestock production. The landscape is characterised by fragmented forest patches, a tropical lowland climate, and high ecological restoration potential. By gradually increasing farmer participation over time, the project contributes to restoring connectivity, improving land management, and reducing pressure on remaining forest areas.
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Positive for people
The project is designed not only as a carbon project, but as a long-term rural development strategy for communities in Petén, where poverty levels remain high and economic opportunities are limited. Participants receive structured training in forest management, fire prevention, pest control, and Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR) practices. This technical support builds local capacity to manage forests in a way which enables farmers to diversify their income sources beyond subsistence agriculture and cattle ranching, reducing economic vulnerability and dependence on practices that degrade land.
The project formalises transparent benefit-sharing agreements under the Plan Vivo Standard, with carbon payments already distributed to early participant cohorts. These payments provide an additional income stream that supports household stability and reinvestment in sustainable land management. At the same time, the program generates local employment through nursery operations, field monitoring, and technical roles, employing permanent staff and seasonal workers drawn from the surrounding communities.
Governance structures such as community committees promote inclusive participation, including women and members of Indigenous groups. Training sessions, consultation meetings, and agreement signings are conducted through participatory processes that prioritise informed consent and transparency. By combining carbon finance, technical capacity building, and community governance, project strengthens economic resilience while aligning long-term forest restoration with the aspirations of rural families. The result is a model where climate action directly supports social stability and sustainable development at the local level.
Good for earth
The project addresses some of the most pressing environmental challenges in Guatemala’s Petén region, where deforestation driven by cattle ranching, slash-and-burn agriculture, and land degradation has fragmented one of Mesoamerica’s most important tropical forest landscapes. By converting degraded pasture and low-productivity farmland into native forest systems, the project directly reduces pressure on surrounding natural forests while restoring ecological function on previously cleared land.
At the core of the intervention is the establishment of native timber plantations using species such as Cedrela odorata (Cedar) and Swietenia macrophylla (Mahogany), both historically overexploited and vulnerable in the region. These plantations are designed not as monocultures, but as long-term restoration systems that integrate Assisted Natural Regeneration. Through Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR), farmers allow and manage naturally regenerating species within plantation areas, increasing structural diversity, improving habitat complexity, and accelerating ecological succession.
Improved tree cover enhances soil stability, reduces erosion, increases water infiltration, and strengthens local microclimates. Communities also implement fire prevention measures and organic pest management, increasing plantation resilience in the face of climate variability. By 2024, more than 400 hectares had been restored under the program, generating measurable carbon sequestration whilst beginning to rebuild biodiversity and ecosystem services. Over time, these restored landscapes are expected to contribute to improved habitat connectivity within the broader Maya Biosphere landscape, demonstrating how climate finance can support durable, nature-positive land-use transformation.
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