Cocoa pods on a cocoa tree (Theobroma cacao) in Ivory Coast. Author: Hanay (own work)
The Conservation & Development Lab (CDL) has received an Innovations in Sustainability Practice Award at the National Sustainability Society in Denver, Colorado on 17 August.
CDL has been recognised for its work to identify whether interventions to promote pro-environmental social norms can reduce deforestation while supporting cocoa and palm oil farmers' livelihoods in Côte d'Ivoire and Indonesia. The initiative has been spearheaded by Professor Rachael Garrett, with Dr Federico Cammelli and Dr Joss Lyons-White leading projects in Côte d'Ivoire and Indonesia, respectively.
CDL and its collaborators – including Musim Mas in Indonesia, ETG-Beyond Beans in Côte d'Ivoire, and eight academic institutions – developed policies to promote pro-environmental social norms among farmers. The initiative is shifting how companies work with farmers, and CDL is feeding findings into the UK's deforestation-free supply chain regulations.