Replication

Another important aspect of the intervention was the ability of replication and site-specificity. These features made the interventions important for all such areas where there is a need of conservation of certain habitats and species.

The models are scalable and replicable.

The fact that the model is site-specific means there's no competition when replicated.   

Attitude of the Stakeholders

The energetic zeal and passion of the mentors and the local youth at every phase, from step one of planning to the last one of execution, could be treated as important feature in success of the interventions. The stakeholders learned about the scope of other attributes of tourism at Abu Hills. This triggered the interest of stakeholders to get involved with the tourism sector in anyway. Thus, nature tourism was popularized. 

The motivation and inspirational leadership of the executing persons/ agencies.

The role and responsibility undertaken by the implementing agency or the people need to have the positive attitude with strong commitment. 

Community Ownership

Due respect was given to the indigenous customs and traditions of the target (deprived) section of the community. This action transformed the local community to take the ownership which fostered community participation resulting into the success of the interventions.

The target community felt closeness with the interventions.

The community participates only through the level of the ownership which needs involvement of the eco-traditions and customs followed by the community.

Strategic Planning

The most important feature of the intervention was the set-target and well defined objectives. Based on the principle of win-win at the end of all the sides, the strategies were planned and executed. Another important feature included the flexible and customized approach of the strategy.

Micro and macro planning with flexibility.

Even though the flexibility was kept in the strategic plans but the mandatory actions needed to be executed within time-frame for future analysis.

Youth engagement

Youth centric approach 

Leadership and capacity building of community members and school learners. 

Engaging the youths is vital for sustainable development and build back better 

Self-help

The project used locally available personnel and resources hence ensuring sustainability. 

Strong local leadership from the community and primary school was the most important enabling factor. 

Future belongs to the organised.

Promote the implementation of benefit-sharing policy

On September 24, 2021, with the consent of the People's Government of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the Measures for the Administration of Access to Biological Genetic Resources and Related Traditional Knowledge and Benefit Sharing (for Trial Implementation) was promulgated and implemented by the Department of Ecology and Environment of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, which becomes the first provincial regulation on access to biological genetic resources and related traditional knowledge and benefit-sharing in China.

Access to biological genetic resources and related traditional knowledge and benefit-sharing in Guangxi have been standardized and legalized.

The consent of governmental bodies and local communities are necessary to ensure success.

One Health Proactive Approach

WAB-Net takes a One Health approach in conducting collaborative research and training programs in West Asia, bringing regional expertise that are otherwise siloed in sectors of human, animal, and environmental health. Samples taken from bats across the region are screened for known and novel coronaviruses; human behaviors that could present a spillover risk are identified. WAB-Net serves as the unifying point of virology, bat ecology, and public health initiatives in the region. By coordinating conversations between experts in diverse fields of study, opportunities for novel research questions, more comprehensive agendas, and better-informed policy recommendations are created and implemented.

EcoHealth Alliance, with experts on global One Health research and policy, serves as WAB-Net’s facilitators and instills a One Health lens on all of its work. Previous experience with bringing together experts from diverse fields and finding commonalities across topics enables them to effectively carry out multi-disciplinary endeavors in a politically volatile region.

As demonstrated by the COVID-19 global crisis, mitigation efforts after a spillover event occurs often are more costly to both public health and the global economies. A proactive approach to pandemic prevention is made possible through WAB-Net’s work of monitoring both potentially zoonotic viruses in bat populations and human behavior. WAB-Net’s focus on both research objectives and training efforts enhances biosafety throughout all steps of the research process. The collaborative nature of the One Health approach creates more comprehensive and effective recommendations for public health, conservation efforts, and disease management.

Team determination

Our work involves self-motivation and self-financing. TEG team determination to support the conservation of biodiversity and empowerment of youth living adjacent to nature reserves includes organizing online exhibitions and online behaviour change campaigns. With or without external support, TEG staff have volunteerly engaged with donors, government officials, and communities in designing the program, fundraising, and implementing it.

TEG founders and Alumni internal support in skills development trainings, in conducting baseline surveys and reflections on issues relating to conservation, in connecting with stakeholders, and financing of some of the activities.  

As a youth organization we have been growing by first willing to invest in ourselves, in our credibility and capability before attaching donors and partners. TEG Team and TEG alumni’s determination was our only asset to do that.

Economic drivers

Reptile farming is well positioned to capitalize on emerging markets. Until recently, reptiles have been somewhat overlooked and undervalued due to colonial legacies and euro-centric agri-food tendencies towards warm-blooded livestock. Reptile products are mostly valued in the Global South where the impacts of climate change are predicted to be acute and the drivers for transformational change are dynamic. Dovetailing a novel agri-food sustainability concept with traditional cultural and culinary values in tropical regions offers unique economic opportunities. That said, future growth will depend on good farming practices and close supervision by veterinary and other authorities. Research on envionmental impacts and broader health implications (e.g., feeding unprocessed animal waste protein to reptile livestock) is essential. 

The reptile industry holds substantial growth potential. Established local and international markets exist for meat, skins, pets, and various body parts used in the pharmaceutical industry (e.g. squalene oil). Farmers are typically linked to multiple revenue streams and financial risks are spread across multiple geographies. These economic opportunities are complimented by the ability to scale management inputs and outputs in accordance with adaptive physiologies in order to buffer farmers against the impacts of economic and environmental shocks.

Many reptile production models are expanding via vertical and horizontal integration (i.e., emergence of corporate factory farms). Development approaches that focus purely on economic profitability may compromise the viability of small-scale production models and threaten key animal welfare, environmental, and social sustainability credentials. The loss of democratic food systems presents a risk to regional food security and food sovereignty.