Community Forests International

Community Forests International (CFI) was created in 2006 when Mbarouk Mussa Omar, a community activist on Pemba Island, Zanzibar, befriended a Canadian tree-planter travelling in the region. Their vision to bring back the region’s forests and help communities adapt to climate change sparked an island-wide movement based on respect, trust and friendship that continues to this day. The success of these grassroots efforts inspired Community Forests International to open an office in New Brunswick in 2010 and continue our mission to support community-led climate solutions across the Maritimes.

Community Forests works in Canada and Zanzibar to protect and restore forests, help communities adapt to climate change, build economic prosperity, and champion social equality. Community Forests is committed more than ever to centering not only forests but also climate justice in our vision, mission, and actions — understanding that by acting with justice people will be the restorative force that the world needs.