Last December, DAF conducted a wider meeting with Taobuids from different communities in order to present the initial draft of the Taobuid CCP in Mts Iglit-Baco Natural Park. The presence of Punong Tribo Fausto Novelozo and Hector Aragones, Protected Area Superintendent was crucial in discussing the purpose and frame of this initiative. Indeed, section 13 of the Expanded National Integrated Protected Areas System (ENIPAS) Act of 2018 affirms that ancestral domains and customary rights shall be accorded due recognition. Rule 13.3 of ENIPAS states that the PAMO shall assist the indigenous peoples in the identification, mapping, and documentation of the areas to be included in the CCP. DAF is helping PAMO in this aspect. The first draft of the CCP was based on almost three years of research on the traditional land use and natural resource governance of the Taobuid. The meeting served as a process of validating the information contained in the draft. The goal of the CCP is to propose and formalize a mechanism that would avoid or solve conflicting situations between PAMO and Taobuid due to misunderstanding, miscommunication, and lack of information on each other’s activities and initiatives; the central element being to agree on the management of an area enabling a larger distribution of the tamaraw compared to the present without depriving IPs of their rights and livelihood resources. The Taobuid CCP will have two versions: one aimed at people and organizations who can read written documents and a popular one that would serve as a tool for information and education internally among the Taobuid. This activity was supported by the Re:wild, Darwin Initiative, and UK Aid
