The Community-Based Forest Management is the primary strategy of the Government in ensuring sustainable management of the country's forestland resources. Implementing CBFM is a collaborative effort of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the Local Government Units (LGUs), People's Organizations (PO), civil society group and the business community. CBFM recognizes the upland communities as key forestland resource managers.

As the lead agency, DENR is committed to guide upland communities and support their efforts in sound forest management. The DENR is in a continuing process of providing the enabling environment and support mechanisms to strengthen and capacitate the upland communities to better respond to varying upland situations.
Source

Who can join? - Filipino citizens residing inside or near forest lands, who are interested in managing these lands, may join CBFM.

How to join? - A group of at least 10 local residents, or an existing people's organization (PO) may apply. They should first meet and agree to join CBFM, then write an application letter to be sent to the nearest Community Environment and Natural Resources Officer (CENRO). The application should be endorsed individually or jointly by the legislative councils of the barangay, municipality and province, depending on the jurisdiction and coverage of the area.

How to get an endorsement? - To get a barangay endorsement, request a barangay council member to sponsor a resolution endorsing your CBFM application to the CENRO. For a municipal endorsement, you can request a municipal council member to sponsor a similar resolution. Similar steps apply when requesting for a provincial resolution.