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Adaptation, gender and the empowerment of women: an integrated approach

Marangara : focus groupe mixte

GIZ-ACCES

In Burundi, gender inequalities continue to restrict women's access to decision-making, resources and benefits (education, information, land ownership, time, jobs, credits, etc.) and the equitable distribution of tasks. Faced with this situation, women are becoming more vulnerable but are also excluded from efforts to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change.

The ACCES project carried out a gender analysis in its intervention zones. The evaluation of the status of gender mainstreaming in planning and implementation of adaptation measures, in information and early warning systems and in Community Development Community Plans (PCDCs) yielded several recommendations. One recommendation was the CCA model household approach. The goal is that couples are trained in replicating the techniques, skills and experiences gained through the project within their respective CCA households, taking into account that women are powerful change agents and development and in order to empower women.

Human resources trained on gender and knowledgeable of Burundian culture and traditions (eg gender focal points)
Gender analysis as a basis for mainstreaming gender, carried out at all levels and in all fields of intervention.
Capacity building of the members of the communal gender platforms and its integration in risk analysis and assessment as well as in the information and early warning systems.

Training and sensitization of model households (training of awareness-raising agents) is an essential prerequisite for changing mores and attitudes.
Showing by example is probably the most appropriate method for initiating a change in men's perception of the role and responsibilities of women at the household and community level in general.
Producing a booklet as a training guide for model households helps capitalize lessons learned and is a product that will serve as a vehicle for future scaling up.
Focus on qualitative and not just quantitative aspects in order to grasp the social and cultural mechanisms that impede the empowerment of women is key (not only the number of women involved in activities is important but the processes of change within the household or community).

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Rapport sur l’intégration de l’adaptation au Changement Climatique sensible au …

Strengthening village institutions

Meeting in one of the project villages

GIZ-CCARAI

Village level institutional mechanism is essential for the protection of indigenous community conserved areas. A key aspect of FES's interventions in the villages of Mandla was the constitution of the Natural Resource Management Committees or Prakratik Sansadhan Prabandhan Samitis (PSPS). The samitis, were elected by the Gram Sabhas (adult meetings) and had universal membership ensuring that every resident of the village, despite his/her social or economic standing had a say in the functioning of the Samiti. Advising the gram Sabha on natural resource management and spearheading the process of developing rules and regulations around commons is one of the duties of the committee along with planning for natural resources and land use.

The PSPS received training on decentralized governance, perspective building on commons and planning. Village institutions arrived at a set of rules on using natural resources. Primarily, these rules included boundary rules, protection rules for forests and usage rules to some extent. Basic focus has been on controlling lopping and logging of trees. At some places, they have also come up with rules regarding sharing of fish produced in village pond, etc. for forests and usage rules to some extent.

The Panchayati Raj Act, Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas, Joint Forest Management and the National Biodiversity Act provide a legal framework. Gram Sabha (a meeting of all adults in the Panchayat area) also provide an enabling framework for village level conservation institutions.

The issues of conservation and resource governance were discussed with men and women separately, building an understanding of degradation of natural resources within the PSPS and then in the Gram Sabha.

The strengthened village institutions actively manage and conserve over 500 hectares of forest in the project region by overseeing the sustainable use of natural resources. A comparison with a forest that is not managed by a community indicates that a community managed forest shows 60 per cent more regeneration, 37 per cent more plant density and a 40 per cent higher number of plant species.

Strengthening of village institutions leads to articulation of village’s priorities and ensures mainstreaming of resource management and conservation. Strong village institutions are able to plan for the landscape, addressing issues like forest fragmentation and treat entire forest fringes as one unit, irrespective of the pattern of ownership. An institution therefore is a better unit in order to improve adaptive capacities of the communities, as it can address the ‘issue’ for the entire community and not only for single families.

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Expert elicitation workshop

The actual expert elicitation assessment is carried out during a workshop or series of workshops, attended by appointed marine experts in the field of marine environmental or socio-economic sciences. The experts collaborate and discuss the status and trends on the different parameters for the marine assessment and come to a consensus score. The scores are recorded during the workshop and entered into the SOME website. Notes are taken by a rapporteur on the discussion and the details of relevant reports, papers or other documents are recorded . The interaction and discussions during the workshop should allow the editorial board to identify potential authors to participate in the subsequent report-writing phase of the process.

A minimum of 20 experts, with at least 5 for each key discipline areas (fisheries and biology, physical sciences and socioeconomics).

A minimum of 3 full workshop days.

Internet access

The workshop allows

Documentation and dissemination of results

Creating a rooftop farmers network

Involving children in rooftop farming activities

GIZ

A rooftop farmers network established with all participating community members/ households focused on creating a community of practice. As people are more likely to lose interest and get demotivated, creating a support system where beneficaries can exchange, share experiences, challenges, thoughts, and even dreams has proved to keep people motivated and also strengthen social ties between community members.

A platform for regular exchanges that mobilizes the rooftop farmers

Regular exchanges focusing on different topics to spark the farmer's interests
visits could be integrated in these exchanges
ongoing communication, especially during extreme weather events is cruicial. A whatsapp group was initiated to keep participants in close communication with Hub Enablers, and to also share photos of unusual plant conditions

Implementation

Monitoring

Documentation and dissemination of results

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Social-business model approach

Visit to rooftop farm

GIZ

The project established two Rooftop Farming Hubs, a community-based social business model locally embedded to support a rooftop farming ecosystem and grow a community of practice in the field of urban agriculture. This is based on the study of different markets, produce, farming techniques, marketing plans, as well as a co-financing arrangements between the community and the RTF Hubs in the two targeted areas. The aim is not just educating and training the local residents of the targeted areas about RTF, but also creating a platform through which the residents can collaborate, exchange experiences, network, form support and learn how to sustain and expand their income generating urban agriculture projects.

As a technical hub, beneficiaries are equipped with the necessary skills and tools to establish and maintain their rooftop farms sensitive to socio-economic conditions and provide on-going technical knowledge and assistance.

As a social hub, linkages between targeted beneficiaries are enhanced to exchange knowledge about RTF, consolidate learning experiences, as well as support positive interaction and community cohesion

As an economic hub, access to local markets is facilitated through a market plan that aims to market through awareness raising on organic urban farming.

Readiness of a local NGO or institution to host a RTF Hub as one of its core functions. The "Hub Enablers" have received extensive training on technical and practical rooftop farming skills, TOT, project management, marketing, feasibility, and awarness raising. They were then trained on the job through the recruitment of community beneficaries who joined the rooftop farmers network, the installation of their rooftop farms, support throughout the farming seasons, and support in market linkages.

Remote monitoring should be applied through the implementation process to help address any issues arising with the growth of plants.
Creating incentive activities for the beneficiaries would give an advantage to the success of the project to encourage higher interaction from the beneficiaries’ side;
Nets should be installed to protect the crops from external attacks from birds and flying insects;
More focus on trouble shooting problems during cultivation should be made during trainings.

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Upscaling of the model

AFC scaled up a model for communities to participate in protected area management developed with GIZ between 2013-2016 in the Hin Nam No NPA. AFC supported three civil society organizations to implement the model elsewhere, including through co-management training modules, national-level awareness raising, exchange visits to Hin Nam No, local capacity building and policy advocacy. There are now 21 officially approved village co-management agreements, covering 204,747 ha of village forests.

Previous experience of AFC in governance of protected areas enabled the development of the Hin Nam No model and the upscaling elsewhere. AFC is local based and works widespread in Laos which enabled the upscaling beyond the often short life span of a project.

Shared governance models take a long time to be developed and need continous support that often goes beyond the lifespan of a project. Therefore it is important for short-term projects to work from the start with local-based organisations to jointly develop models, implement them, and document the lessons learned. In this way the upscaling of so-called pilot projects of international organisations can be secured which is otherwise not possible within the lifespan of the project.

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National

Upscaling

Community-based implementation of EbA measures

Triangle of Cooperation (LCS = Local Subsidy Contract)

GIZ

Adaptation measures were implemented via a multi-stakeholder process involving communities, government institutions and the project. This innovative mechanism for demand-driven and integrated planning and implementation of field measures was termed ‘Triangle of Cooperation’ (see graphic). The BKP project funded adaptation measures through local subsidy contracts (LSC) with the community, which had to form a village organisation registered with the Social Welfare Department, and open a bank account. To receive support, the community had to enter into an agreement (memorandum of understanding, MoU) with the concerned government department to specify their roles and responsibilities. While the community was responsible for the implementation of the adaptation measures, the involved government department provided training and oversight.

• Strengthening village-based organisations for appropriate involvement of women considering local norms / traditions • Formalizing cooperation between the community and the supporting institution (government, NGO, development project) • Practical demonstrations • Monitoring and evaluation involving the local communities • Capacity building of the community to ensure the successful completion of activities as well as to carryout out follow up activities beyond the project’s support

For further promotion of biodiversity conservation to support local communities in climate change adaptation, the different tools introduced by the project, such as training, workshops, exposure visits to promising communities and institutions, use of print and electronic media etc., have to be used continuously, taking into account local culture and norms. In general, the government allocates only a meagre amount of funds for the green sector. In cases, the budget allocated is more for the staff salaries than for the field level activities. Sufficient budgetary allocations to the green sector for biodiversity friendly adaptation measures should therefore be guaranteed by the government, to replicate the best adaptation measures on a needs-basis. For sustainability the responsible government agencies should support the local communities in future activities

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Community-based mangrove management

Mangrove ecology training for community volunteers

NAREI

Community-based mangrove management seeks to address unsustainable human use of mangroves in Guyana by engaging with local communities living adjacent to mangrove areas and facilitating their participation in management and livelihood activities aimed at providing an alternative source of income for community members dependent on mangroves for their livelihoods. Communities were trained in alternative livelihoods such as beekeeping and provided with basic equipment to establish beekeeping in mangrove forested areas. Members were also trained in tourism and bird watching as another livelihood option as they conduct tours in the mangrove forest. Men and women are engaged at all levels of the restoration from planning to implementation and monitoring. Where seedling planting is used as an intervention and community seedling nurseries area established, families work together to collect seeds and grow health seedlings for planting. Volunteer groups, i.e. Village Mangrove Action Committees are established in restoration areas or vulnerable areas and their members trained in the importance of mangroves. These volunteers, 80% women, become the voice of the project in their villages by conducting awareness sessions in schools etc.

The willingness of community members living near or adjacent to mangrove forest or a potential restoration site to participate in restoration or protection activities is critical to success. The needs and aspirations of community members must be taken into consideration and initiatives that would enable them to earn a livelihood from sustainable management of the forest should be implemented. Education on the importance of the forest as coastal protection is also critical.

The participation of the local community in mangrove restoration and protection initiatives is one of the most important factors in the success and long-term sustainability of the program. Though there has been immense community participation at selected locations, one of the greatest challenges remains the commitment and participation of local communities. The Project is challenged to motivate residents at other intervention sites to participate in mangrove protection and awareness and to become involved in the monitoring of their coastal resources. The will to change old habits and action of dumping and illegal grazing still remains of great concern.

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Equitable inclusion of women in Marine Protected Area management

In co-governance of MPAs, defining who participates from the community will either limit or enable long-term success. Women and men have varying roles, priorities, needs and knowledge surrounding coastal resource management and will, therefore, contribute different ideas to and gain different benefits from MPA management. People of all genders, regardless of whether they derive direct income from fishing or not, should be equally included in capacity building and management opportunities for MPAs to fully capture community needs and priorities and foster widespread community support.

The existence of a community that intends to monitor and enforce fishing restrictions of an MPA is integral to success. Women and men in their varying roles can help to spread information about and enforce policies and will help reach a broader community. Additionally, support from donor organizations that value the inclusion of women and understand the local gender dynamics can help foster a shift of gender stereotypes and ensure women and men are included equally.

Some communities in the Philippines have had MPAs since the 1970's, and many of these were established with only male fishermen. This means that there are long-held stereotypes and local traditions that keep women from participating. In the case of Caticugan, these stereotypes created major barriers to women’s formal participation in MPA management, which limited their income and empowerment opportunities. Conversely, women in Maite and Bino-ongan were present and oftentimes led initiatives and management of MPAs, leading to new income-generating opportunities and effective preservation of ecosystem resources. As MPAs continue to be supported by global NGOs and paid for with overseas aid, evaluation frameworks used must integrate gender equality in order to fully assess the current gaps in women's participation. If a funding plan and evaluation framework does not include gender equality, then women whose lives will be impacted are less likely to support management.

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Using a flexible approach for defining conservation and production areas based on local knowledge

A distinctive characteristic of this reserve is that almost the whole of its territory is under either community, “ejidal”, or private ownership rather than federal control. CONANP had to take a different approach when working with communities on climate change adaptation issues; CONANP decided to work with an ecosystem-based perspective. This approach has required the flexible interpretation of federal regulations and institutions governing conservation and climate change mitigation policies. At the core of this flexibility has been the rejection of a strictly administrative polygon approach to define large conservation areas in which no productive activities can take place in the mangrove ecosystems. Open discussions and negotiations with the local communities have resulted in CONANP taking a flexible approach, which has used local knowledge to identify an ecosystem, and livelihood, relevant division of the mangroves into areas designated for pure conservation and for sustainable productive activities. Maintaining sustainable productive activities in the mangrove systems supports the long-term goal of changing community attitudes towards maintaining the mangrove systems as an integral component of community livelihoods.

1. Intensive dialogue & negotiation (before and after the establishment of the reserve) with local communities.

2. Listening and accepting the validity of local communities’ and field workers’ views when designing policies.

3. Willingness to change institutional regulations & approaches to accommodate diverse points of view and local knowledge.

4. A capacity to monitor the effectiveness of planned measures, and to be able to recognize when plans need to be changed with local community support.

1) It soon became clear that designating a conservation area solely based on an administratively pre-defined polygon was not going to come out as a successful conservation and management strategy, because the polygon: a) was not encompassing correctly the ecosystems and their connectivity; b) excluded the possibility of communities for generating a sense of belonging to the reserve, without which joint responsibility for its conservation cannot be possible.

2) Conservation and livelihoods are two sides of the same coin. In ecosystems in which communities live, you cannot have one without the other.

3) A balance between conservation and livelihoods was achieved through negotiation and open-mindedness on both sides: a smaller conservation area was accepted in return for stricter controls, and greater fisherman-led effort for maintaining a sustainable approach to productive activities in the rest of the reserve.

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