Thailand’s forests are facing increasing pressure from agricultural expansion and climate variability, creating challenges for local communities and conservation efforts.
Supatchaya “Ann” Techachoochert is working to close that gap. A nature-based solutions expert at the Mae Fah Luang Foundation, she drives projects that align environmental protection with community benefits.
Take the Carbon Credit from Community Forests for Sustainability project: by tying forest protection outcomes to carbon credits, “We ensure that communities are fairly compensated for conservation, with pricing that is not tied directly to volatile market rates,” Ann explains.
We spoke to Ann about aligning conservation with livelihoods, building trust with communities, and what it will take to make forest protection sustainable at scale.
Could you briefly describe your role at the Mae Fah Luang Foundation and what you do there?
I’m a nature-based solutions expert for the Foundation. I work across many projects, including carbon credit projects and biodiversity. I also provide capacity-building, training, and also serve as a consultant to private companies.
What is the core mission behind your work?
My personal mission is to help make the world a better place.
I grew up in central Bangkok. I was a very good student, but my perspective changed when I attended an environmental youth camp. It made me realize how little I knew about nature and sparked my interest in protecting it, which eventually led me to pursue a PhD in biology.
During my research, I spent time in the forest but would return to city life and still crave things like buffets and bubble tea. That contrast made me realize the environmental problem wasn’t in the forest – it was in our consumption habits.
In 2017, I co-founded a “Refill Station”, a bulk store inside Better Moon Guesthouse & Café with my friends Chanin Srisuman and Papawee Pongthanavaranon. The business idea was partly inspired by a Ted talk with Lauren Singer.
She showed a tiny jar containing all the waste she had generated in a year. Even my shampoo bottle was bigger than that jar! I started looking into her lifestyle. She bought things from a refill store in the U.S., but there was nothing similar in our region then. We wanted to create an alternative for people who wanted to live with less waste.
Over time, however, the idea gained traction. There were more than 20 refill stations across Thailand and neighboring countries such as Lao PDR, Cambodia, and Singapore. After COVID, plastic movement has received less attention.
In 2019, I joined the Mae Fah Luang Foundation as an environmental manager. In this role, I work across the Foundation’s projects and business units to improve environmental practices – including alternative packaging, waste management, recycling, energy use, solar adoption, and wastewater treatment, often in collaboration with local communities.
One of the biggest projects I work on is the Carbon Credit from Community Forests for Sustainability initiative, aimed at empowering local villagers to safeguard forests while generating income through carbon credits.
Through this work, we found that crops like corn and rice are major drivers of deforestation in northern Thailand. Yet farmers often earn very limited income from traditional crops. Even though that may seem like a small amount from a city perspective, it’s not sustainable to rely on donations to bridge that gap.
We wanted to create a system where protecting forests could provide equal or better income for local communities. That is where carbon credits come in. We ensure that communities are fairly compensated for conservation, with pricing that is not tied directly to volatile market rates.
We began with pilot projects in northern Thailand, then expanded to the northeast and south. Today, we focus on areas where forests are most at risk and where we can build strong partnerships with local communities.
For these projects, how do you get buy-in from the community?
Meeting them for the first time is the most challenging part. We have to explain what’s this carbon credit all about. In the very first phase, we have an intent process to select the village that we’re working with. And then we visit them very often, learn from them – how their forest looks, what is the management that protects the forest, and also help co-design the program with the community, to make sure that the community benefits from the program from day one. That’s why we get the buy-in from the communities.
The second and third year are much easier, because we have the models already and there is word of mouth – “They really work with us, they stay with us,” that kind of thing. We have multiple teams visiting the community very often – these ground teams work in the areas, live with the local community. So building trust is part of the process.
If you were to explain the project to potential investors, what particular success stories can you point out?
Many in the private sector might have heard that carbon credits are sometimes questioned in terms of credibility, but our project is different. Unlike many other projects, we ensure that about like 50-60% goes directly to the local villagers.
The proceeds are divided into two separate funds. One is the Forest Protection Fund that can be spent on forest protection – creating water systems, buying firefighting equipment, creating trails in the communities. Secondly, there is the Community Development Fund, which they can use to create either small businesses or support communities in many ways. With this one, we want them to grow their initial income.
(Editor’s note: the Project has raised US$180,097 for the Community Development Fund and US$396,189 for the Forest Protection Fund.)
One business supported by the Community Development Fund is an initiative creating dry leaf plates – villagers collect dry leaves from the forest, which can be fuel for wildfires, and create biodegradable plates. These plates can be sold to cafés; now they even sell some to Thai Airways. This creates jobs in the community. But the benefits are not just about the money.
We talked to an uncle who collects the leaves, and for every ten leaves he gets one baht. Every day he makes approximately 20 baht, less than a dollar. I asked him, “Uncle, why do you keep doing this?” And he said, “If I’m not collecting, the ladies in my village will have no job to do. I usually stay home, and also have nothing to do. By walking in the forest every day makes me healthier.”
I feel like, we always measure the impact by how much money we spend, or how much the villagers make. But the uncle’s story shows me that it’s also about the cohesion of the villagers—how our project creates belonging in the community, how it makes natural resources more useful, or gives people like our uncle a little bit more meaning in his life.
You mentioned working with the government on biodiversity – how has that collaboration been so far?
Mae Fah Luang Foundation works closely with the Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning (ONEP) and the Biodiversity-Based Economy Development Office (BEDO).
The first is in charge of strategy to help implement targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and resilience-building. The second works on a more local basis, pursuing initiatives like biodiversity credits and disclosure. We work closely with both to co-develop Thailand’s Biodiversity Credit Standard.
Biodiversity credits are a complex and evolving topic. If we do it very comprehensively, it’s very cost-intensive and no one is going to be on board. If we do it too simply, it’s cost-effective, but there may be gaps that we might overlook. So we are doing a little bit of trial and error in our area.
In my role for the Foundation, I apply the framework from the Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) to our work in the Doi Tung Development Project – growing coffee and macadamia, making handicrafts. The workers are counted, the soil that we plant is counted. And in terms of the government, we are sharing the lessons from what we have done; this work helps the government to adopt a method of biodiversity credit that might apply to Thailand in the future.
In the longer term, we hope our conservation work can help Thailand meet the 30×30 conservation goals – the global target to protect 30% of terrestrial areas and 30% of marine areas by 2030.
How is Thailand doing in terms of that particular target overall?
Thailand continues to make progress toward the target, with ongoing efforts to expand conservation areas. The areas currently counted are mostly protected areas, and they don’t reach 30%. However, if we include forest and other green areas (including timber plantation), the total would exceed 30%. The gap between roughly 20% and 30% consists of green areas that aren’t formally protected.
To close this gap, we’re encouraging community forests to be recognized as OECMs – Other Effective Conservation Measures. These are areas that may not be legally designated as protected but are still effectively conserved, either by local communities or other stakeholders.
For example, this could include private sector efforts, such as hotels protecting nearby beaches, or areas managed by the military along borders where green spaces are maintained. By promoting OECMs, especially among community forests, we aim to bring more areas into the national conservation target.
What is the long-term goal of the Doi Tung Development Project? Is there a specific target or timeline?
The project is open-ended. Doi Tung is our flagship project, and the development is very dynamic. We usually focus on area-based development – education, healthcare, livelihoods, and job creation – rather than setting fixed targets. We aim for outcomes such as zero waste to landfill and net-zero emissions, though these are already very challenging.
Another key priority is climate adaptation. We want Doi Tung to become more resilient by introducing early warning systems, improving awareness of climate risks, and mapping landslide-prone areas so communities can relocate when necessary. These are our main plans for now, although we do not have a fixed timeline, and implementation requires significant funding.
What are some of the biggest challenges you face in Doi Tung?
One of the biggest challenges is the changing state of nature, particularly due to climate change. Doi Tung is not a very high mountain. The communities here used to grow opium, but the Foundation shifted communities toward alternative cash crops such as coffee and macadamia.
In the past three years, the climate has become increasingly chaotic. During summer, PM2.5 pollution reduces tourism. Between summer and the rainy season, severe storms bring down trees, forcing people to clear the roads. And in the rainy season, heavy rainfall causes flooding in surrounding areas, while on the mountain we face landslides and soil erosion. Crops are damaged, and waterways become blocked by mud and debris.
In winter, it is freezing cold, and it impacts both people and livestock. While communities have traditionally been resilient, the frequency and intensity of these events are increasing, forcing faster adaptation. Some people may even need to leave their homes for the city.
These challenges also affect businesses. Flooding and landslides damage crops and reduce income. Water systems are disrupted, affecting supply. As a result, it is becoming clear that we can no longer rely on existing systems to face this issue.
Is tourism part of the Doi Tung project?
Yes, Doi Tung is a well-known tourist spot in Chiang Rai. The Royal Villa of the Princess Mother is here; visitors come, especially in winter, to enjoy the beautiful gardens. Yeah. However, PM2.5 pollution has reduced tourist arrivals.
We are also starting to assess water usage in the tourism sector. Some mountain communities have outdoor jacuzzis where visitors can take a dip while enjoying the mountain views.
But water is a limited resource in these areas. That’s the next challenge: we are working to quantify water use so we can better manage our impact and help communities understand the trade-offs. If tourism continues in its current form without shifting toward ecotourism, resources may not be sufficient in the long term.
Are there any upcoming projects in the next three to five years?
As I mentioned before, we’re registering local communities as part of OECMs. This involves working closely with villages to help them understand how they can contribute to national conservation targets and what measures are required.
So that’s very tricky, we need time to build understanding and communicate this effectively.
We also plan to conduct biodiversity surveys, including the use of camera traps and bioacoustics to monitor wildlife. In collaboration with universities in southern Thailand, we are studying fish populations to compare protected areas with community-managed areas and assess their environmental impact.
At this stage, we are introducing technology to local communities while also building baseline data. One of the key gaps in biodiversity work in the region is the lack of standardized data, so establishing benchmarks is an important step.
Outside your work with the foundation, you’re also a writer and science communicator – are there stories about Thailand you think deserve more attention in the media?
I think people lack understanding of nature is very crucial. People love short explanations. Their attention span for reading is getting shorter and shorter. Video clips are getting shorter and shorter, just a few seconds. So it’s very important for a mass audience to understand the complexity of nature, because there is no single bullet point to help solve these problems.
Aluminum isn’t always better than plastic. Reforestation is not always good, with other side effects we don’t understand yet. Without true understanding, we might create significant harm to nature unintentionally, even when we intend to do good.
You were named one of the Rockefeller Foundation’s 12 changemakers. Has that recognition helped your work?
I would say not very much recognition at the local level, because they may not be familiar with the Rockefeller Foundation or what being a “changemaker” means.
However, with fellowship program, I do learn a lot to improve my project and scaling the impact. Meanwhile, with international partners, it helps raise the profile of our work. It allows us to point to the recognition as a mark of credibility.
It has also been valuable in terms of partnerships. The Rockefeller Foundation connects us to a strong network of organizations, including foundations, technology partners, and local groups working on similar initiatives. This creates opportunities to learn, collaborate, and complement each other’s efforts.
Supatchaya’s work highlights how community-driven approaches can help align environmental protection with sustainable livelihoods, offering practical insights for climate action in the region.
