At Mr. Sikhoun Ouiphone’s home in Phonvixay Village, a 15 x 18 metre family nursery is helping forests recover, while also supporting livelihoods. On his own land, beside the house where his family lives and works, Mr. Sikhoun has raised thousands of native tree seedlings for planting in forest areas near Xe Pian National Park in southern Laos.

For Mr. Sikhoun, a 56-year-old farmer, it all started with one simple decision. Back in early 2024, when a WWF-Laos project team came to his village and asked if anyone would volunteer to manage a tree nursery, no one raised a hand at first.
 

Phonvixay, home to around 100 households, is located within Xe Pian National Park in Khong district, Champasak province. For families here, forests are closely connected to daily life. They provide natural resources and help sustain local livelihoods. 

Because of its location in and around the national park, Phonvixay was selected as one of the villages supported through the Forest Restoration for Resilience and Development (FORRED) project.  

With support from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland through WWF-Finland, the project was implemented from 2024 to 2025 in nine villages – including Phonvixay – in and around Xe Pian and Dong Hua Sao national parks in southern Laos. These two national parks are among WWF-Laos’ conservation priority sites because of their rich biodiversity, important habitats, and ecological value – from the wetlands and forest landscapes of Xe Pian to the Bolaven Plateau and watershed areas of Dong Hua Sao – as well as their importance to local livelihoods. 

The project was implemented in partnership with Laos’ Department of Forestry, the Provincial Agriculture and Environment Offices and local authorities, to help forests recover while also improving livelihoods and strengthening resilience for the future. 

In Phonvixay, around 40 households benefited directly from the project, while nearly the whole village benefited indirectly. 

The nursery was set up on Mr. Sikhoun’s own land, becoming part of his family’s daily life. He saw it as an opportunity. He also understood the bigger picture: trees were disappearing, climate change was making life more difficult. Caring for forests can help build a better future for the village.

The work required patience and consistency. Together with his wife and five other family members, he cared for the seedlings every day – watering them, keeping them under shade, and making sure they were strong enough to survive. It took around six to seven months for the seedlings to grow big enough for planting.

More than five native tree species were raised in the nursery. Later, the seedlings were planted in forest recovery areas identified by the community and local authorities, with support from the FORRED project. 

The nursery work became a shared effort for the whole family. 

The nursery work also brought practical benefits to the household, helping support family meals and school costs for children. Asked how she felt about the experience, Mr. Sikhoun’s wife answered simply: 

“Happy” 

That single word says a lot. It reflects the quiet pride of seeing hard work lead to something meaningful.

What makes Phonvixay’s story especially inspiring is that the village’s nursery production during the first phase of the project came from one family-run nursery.

During Phase I (2024–2025), Phonvixay produced and planted more than 11,000 native tree seedlings. These helped restore around 80 hectares through reforestation, including 27 hectares planted with seedlings from Mr. Sikhoun’s nursery, while nearly 700 hectares were supported through assisted natural regeneration.

Across the same two years, the FORRED project supported the planting of more than 120,000 native and fruit trees in and around Xe Pian and Dong Hua Sao National Parks, helping restore nearly 5,000 hectares of degraded forest through both replanting and natural recovery.

Behind these numbers is something simple but powerful: the commitment of one household can contribute to change far beyond its garden fence.

For Mr. Sikhoun, the nursery brought more than seedlings. It also created an opportunity for his family to improve their daily lives. 

With support from the project, he received native tree seeds, training, technical guidance, fencing materials, and other in-kind support during the nursery process. By purchasing seedlings from his nursery, the project also helped him earn around 88,800,000 LAK (about USD 4,200) in less than a year. This made nursery work an important additional source of income for his family, helping him buy a tractor in cash, without taking out a loan, using mainly the income earned from the nursery.

That tractor is now helping him in several ways – with farming, gardening work, and transport between his home and the nearby town, a trip that takes around one hour.

It is a visible reminder that when communities are supported to care for forests, the benefits can extend well beyond the restoration site. Forest recovery is not only about bringing trees back. It is also about creating opportunities, strengthening livelihoods, and helping families move forward with confidence.

The story of Mr. Sikhoun and Phonvixay Village’s forest recovery does not end here. 

As Phase I of the FORRED project came to an end in 2025, it laid important groundwork across nine villages in and around Xe Pian and Dong Hua Sao National Parks, covering four districts in two provinces.

Now, Phase II (2026–2029) is set to build on those achievements. The new phase will continue to support the current nine villages while expanding to six additional villages, still focusing on the two national parks and the communities that depend on them.

For Phonvixay, this matters because it helps carry forward what has already begun and expand restoration work to more areas in need.

This forest restoration work is part of WWF-Laos’ forest programme and its five-year strategy, while also contributing to the national goal of achieving 70% forest cover and connecting local action in Laos to broader global forest restoration efforts. 
 
Mr. Sikhoun’s story is a reminder that forest recovery starts with people. Sometimes, it begins with one person stepping forward when no one else does. From one nursery at one family home came thousands of seedlings, stronger livelihoods, and new hope for the future.