CEO Newsletter #6 | Community Services, Continental Impact

By Florent Kaiser, CEO, Global Forest Generation
Co-founder, Acción Andina

Though our support for Community Services account for about 5% of Accion Andina’s budget, the requests from our conservation partners across the 26 sites tell a comprehensive story of communities coming together to build resilience and water security. Their requests range from meeting fundamental needs often missing in remote mountain areas —such as clean cooking stoves, food gardens, and literacy training—to supporting businesses that boost local economies.

To create opportunity at home, communities are seeking to bolster micro industries like agroforestry, alpaca farming, honey, eggs, and Andean berry production, and traditional leather or textile creation. They are also investing in ecotourism by restoring ancient terraced landscapes and improving trails, bridges, and rest stops to attract visitors. Young community members are becoming international guides, proudly introducing their communities and their nature to local and international guests.

Tellingly, one critical need unites them all: water. We see an increasing interest in support for reservoirs, dams, wells, canals and irrigation tubing. Meters and meters of tubing! This infrastructure, blending ancient water-harvesting knowledge with modern tools, is essential for drinking water, agriculture, livestock, erosion prevention, and groundwater recharge. Communities request fencing to protect potable water sources from livestock, while systems for capturing rainwater and glacial runoff are built or repaired by the residents to be shared by everyone in these small, rural and Indigenous communities.

Ultimately, these communal efforts are not about gardens, cattle, or dams; they are about securing a greener future. They provide a reliable water source to grow food, nurture native ecosystems, and build lasting resilience high up in the Andes. It’s a relatively small investment that can serve hundreds of people for generations to come.

What’s Happening and What’s Next?

• See our latest Quarterly Impact Report for the current season of Acción Andina, with metrics, stories from the field, community voices, and more. I welcome your thoughts on format and impact!
• Congratulations to my dear friend and global restoration leader Tim Christophersen , VP Climate Action at Salesforce, on the coming publication of his new book, Generation Restoration. The book, which will be out in October, includes a chapter on Acción Andina as one of the leading initiatives to empower local communities globally, along with many other examples of how we can heal the earth and our relationship with nature. Pre-order your copy here!
• I want to celebrate Edwin Duinkerken from Webpuccino for his continuous tree-planting support and for reaching out to provide such helpful advice to improve our websites and make donations more seamless. Thank you Edwin–you are making a  true difference!

Challenges We’re Facing

• Securing national media coverage in each of the six Andean countries—or internationally in the U.S. and beyond—is difficult. Water security is one of the region’s most urgent issues, yet remains underrepresented in public discourse. Greater effort is needed to build lasting government and corporate support across the Andes.
• Fencing is a highly effective way to protect both reforested and standing forests, but it comes with high costs. Frequent damage from cattle and wildfires makes regular inspections and repairs essential, often requiring long travel through rugged terrain—driving up fuel and vehicle maintenance expenses.
• Standardizing financial practices across six countries remains a key challenge for Acción Andina. The accounting and finance team is building expertise in national standards, but local NGO partners often struggle to adapt to changing reporting requirements, causing inconsistencies and delays.

How You Can Help Today

The annual budget for Community Services—including the economic and water projects mentioned above—is approximately US$ 225,000, or just under US$ 10,000 per community. This quarter alone, the funding supported ten water-related projects and thousands of meters of irrigation tubing, directly improving the lives of hundreds of people.

New York Climate Week in September: Message me on LinkedIn to let me know if you plan to attend and if there are any introductions you can make to help us raise funds and tell our story.

Video storytelling from the field: I would love to bring the Andes to your living room by providing video updates of our projects and partners. We are looking for US$ 2,500 for a video tool kit. Can you help?