Mangrove forests – spanning the tropical coastlines of Asia, Africa and Latin America – play a vital ecological role and are among the planet’s most powerful natural allies in the fight against climate change. These blue carbon ecosystems store vast amounts of carbon, shield coastal communities from storms and erosion, and sustain biodiversity and livelihoods. Yet they are rapidly disappearing due to deforestation, contamination, urban development, and overexploitation.
Through UNDP’s Climate Promise, countries like Kenya, Viet Nam, and Colombia are taking community-driven action to restore mangroves and build resilience. From youth-led planting campaigns in Kenya’s coastal region of Kilifi, cutting-edge carbon stock assessments along Viet Nam’s coast, to Afro-Colombian women reviving traditional harvesting practices in Tumaco in southwest Colombia, these efforts show how local leadership is restoring coastal ecosystems while laying the groundwork for more resilient, low-carbon futures.
From the roots up: Restoring mangroves, livelihoods on Kenya’s coastline
Along Kenya’s Indian Ocean coastline, a vital mangrove ecosystem is being restored through the efforts of Community-Based Environmental Conservation (COBEC, a grassroots organization founded in 2009 in Kilifi County. Mida Creek, a coastal lagoon and mangrove habitat located near the town of Watamu – about 100 kilometers north of Mombasa – is one of Africa’s most ecologically significant mangrove habitats. Supported by the UNDP’s Climate Promise and global climate finance, COBEC is actively restoring these mangrove forests while simultaneously supporting local livelihoods and strengthening community resilience. The creek has suffered from overharvesting, destructive fishing, urbanization, and unchecked tourism. These pressures have eroded biodiversity and livelihoods in a region reliant on fishing and small-scale agriculture. COBEC’s work seeks to reverse this degradation by linking environmental restoration with community empowerment.
The organization has planted over 12,000 mangrove seedlings, revitalizing breeding grounds for marine life and boosting carbon sequestration. These efforts are community-driven, with large-scale participation during global observance days like World Environment Day. Youth engagement has played a crucial role – with over 200 young people trained as Community Climate Resilience Ambassadors, forming the grassroots “Youth for Climate Action” movement.
“I once thought climate change was too big for a young person from my community to tackle. Now, I’m leading local action – mobilizing peers, raising awareness, and guiding youth in planting mangrove seedlings – thanks to the training and support I received,” said Madaraka Katana, Climate Resilience Ambassador from the Debaso Youth Group in Kilifi, Kenya.
Inclusivity is at the heart of COBEC’s approach. Women and people with disabilities received training in mangrove restoration and now lead local projects through newly formed groups, promoting environmental care while creating economic opportunities.
“Before, we saw mangroves only as firewood. But through COBEC and UNDP’s support, we now see them as life. We’ve learned to protect what protects us,” said Imelda Amina Kenga, a community member involved with COBEC in Kilifi
“As women, we’ve restored the environment, found our voices, and begun earning income – from selling seedlings to running small businesses like my clothing shop. It hasn’t been easy, especially convincing others to change, but we are proof that conservation and community can grow together,” she added.
COBEC has also expanded its impact through digital advocacy, reaching over 7,000 people via its “Adopt-A-Mangrove” campaign . It helped form the Mida Mangroves Working Group – an alliance of 51 local stakeholders focused on policy and coordination.
In schools, 1,800 students across 24 institutions have been engaged in environmental education, supported by tree planting and eco-clubs. These classrooms are now hubs of sustainability and future leadership. COBEC’s work aligns with Kenya’s national climate goals and global frameworks such as the Paris Agreement and UN Sustainable Development Goals. Through nature-based, inclusive action, the organization is proving that local solutions can drive global change – restoring not just ecosystems, but community hope and resilience.
Viet Nam’s mangroves: A climate solution rooted in restoration
Across Viet Nam’s 3,200-kilometre coastline, mangrove forests are emerging as a vital line of defense in the country’s climate response. Though they cover just 1 percent of the national forest area , these unique coastal ecosystems provide crucial services – protecting shorelines from storms, supporting biodiversity, and storing vast amounts of carbon. As part of UNDP’s global Climate Promise, Viet Nam’s mangrove restoration and carbon stock assessment project – funded by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) – marks a significant step forward in using nature-based solutions to meet national climate goals.
Led by the Research Institute of Forest Ecology and Environment (RIFEE), the project assessed biomass and carbon stocks across mangroves in 28 coastal provinces. It also built a comprehensive mangrove carbon database, supporting more informed climate planning and blue carbon finance opportunities. The findings reveal that Viet Nam’s mangroves store nearly 88 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent, with the highest concentrations in the southwest and southeast regions, particularly in Ca Mau, Ho Chi Minh City, and Quang Ninh provinces.
“These mangrove forests may be small in area, but they provide essential ecosystem services – from coastal protection to carbon sequestration,” said Trieu Van Luc, Deputy Director General of the Viet Nam Forestry Administration. He emphasized both the vulnerability of Viet Nam to climate change and the government’s commitment through national strategies, legal frameworks, and restoration programmes.
Viet Nam’s mangroves are biologically diverse, comprising of 36 true mangrove species across the northern, central, and southern regions. The project’s measurements showed an average of 588 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent per hectare, with above-ground biomass accounting for the majority of carbon stocks. These findings have been integrated into the National Coastal Forest Database System , helping improve monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV), guide investment, and inform coastal forest management policies.
Viet Nam’s efforts are part of a broader UNDP Climate Promise effort across countries – where protecting and restoring blue carbon ecosystems like mangroves is not only a climate mitigation strategy but also a pathway to resilience and thriving coastal communities. As Viet Nam moves toward its net zero by 2050 goal, these forests will remain a cornerstone of that ambition.
Restoring land, reviving lives in Tumaco: Afro-Colombian women take lead in protecting Colombia’s mangroves
In Tumaco, on Colombia’s Pacific coast, the Asociación Raíces del Manglar is leading a grassroots movement for ecological restoration and cultural preservation, driven by a group of Afro-Colombian women, many of whom are “concheras” - traditional shellfish harvesters who rely on the mangroves for their livelihoods. Drawing on ancestral knowledge, the women of the association collect piangua (Anadara tuberculosa), a mollusk that thrives among mangrove roots, while also cultivating a vibrant cultural and spiritual relationship with the ecosystem. To protect the mangroves from deforestation, pollution, and other human pressures, the association mobilizes youth, elders, and the broader community across estuarine areas such as El Raizal, Los Enamorados, and Lo Mágico – all of which are coastal zones located in the Pacific region of Colombia, known for their rich biodiversity.
“We make sure that everything around us stays clean and that the mangroves are not cut down,” says Adriana Castillo, a member of the association. “As an Afro-descendant community, we are raising awareness – especially among youth and women – to continue and expand this work. We want a better future and improved well-being for all.”
Supported by UNDP under its Climate Promise initiative, Raíces del Manglar (english: “Mangrove roots”) launched the project “Conserving the Mangrove from the Perspective of the Women of Tumaco”. This partnership has yielded significant results: three mangrove nurseries were established, each with the capacity to grow over 3,000 seedlings. In total, the women restored 15 hectares of degraded mangrove forest by planting more than 20,000 propagules in key estuarine zones critical to piangua production. They also produced and shared a community-based Environmental Management Plan for El Raizal estuary, drawing from their local knowledge and lived experiences.
The collaboration with UNDP also included capacity-building for 30 women in areas such as gender equity, leadership, and community enterprise management, reinforcing their roles as environmental leaders and agents of social change. In addition, they founded the Mangrove Guardians Network, working alongside regional environmental institutions like CORPONARIÑO, the municipal government, and Colombia’s Navy to ensure lasting protection of this vital ecosystem.
The women of the association have also launched a community-run restaurant that celebrates Afro-Colombian culinary traditions while supporting local livelihoods and mangrove conservation. Featuring dishes like piangua ceviche, fish nuggets and encocado (seafood in coconut milk), the restaurant promotes sustainable seafood and ancestral knowledge. It also provides economic opportunities for the “concheras”, the women shellfish harvesters, by linking sustainable livelihoods with environmental protection and the preservation of Afro-Colombian cultural traditions
“Today, we need to protect the mangroves and speak with those who neglect them and the natural world,” said Gelen Daniela Carabalí, another member of Raíces del Manglar. “In our association, we bring together women with deep knowledge – shellfish harvesters, artisans, experts in medicinal gardens, and local gastronomy. We’ve learned from the traditions of our ancestors how to care for the mangroves.”
For the women of Raíces del Manglar, being a “conchera” is far more than a livelihood – it is an identity rooted in resilience, resistance, and care for their territory. Through their efforts, they are helping regenerate one of Colombia’s richest coastal ecosystems while fostering economic stability and cultural pride in the face of climate and environmental threats.
