Implementation | PANORAMA

Experimenting new methods, ideas, and approaches in limited area

It is crucial to experiment with new management ideas in a controlled manner, to ensure that adaptation measures will work as expected, and replicate them. In the context of integrated water demand management, and with the objective of adapting to climate change by supporting local producers to shift from alfafa production to that of nopal for human consumption and cattle fodder purposes, CONANP has set up a six hectare experimental site to a) find out how well such an adaptation might work out in practice for the producers (and their cattle), and b) to use the site as a demonstration of how a successful adaptation to this production strategy can work for other producers in the PA. If the experimental area is successful, it will be easier to spread this adaptation measures among other producers and areas of the PA. The experimental site can provide reliable scientific guidance and the data needed to support adaptation decisions, in times when lack of knowledge and change aversion can prevent the implementation of this type of adaptation measures.

a) Local producers who are willing to be forerunners and modify their practices in an experimental trial;

b) Willingness of the PA’s staff to invest (time, money and effort) on innovative, but potentially unsuccessful, experimentation;

c) Technical understanding of materials needed to create the growing tunnels under which the nopal grows;

d) Monitoring and evaluation to assess the experiment, and to be able to make technical adaptations where necessary.

a) High quality technical support to producers is essential in order to reduce the slope of the learning curve for the local producers;

b) Many lessons have been learned with respect to the technical aspects related to the use of materials for tunnels. Special mobile growing tunnels have now been developed to respond to changes in weather conditions related to temperature and winds, and to allow producers to move or remove the tunnels when necessary;

c) Communicating the results of the experiment is very important to promote producers’ buy-in. A critical mass of convinced producers is needed to open up commercially viable markets for new products (i.e. nopal for cattle fodder & human consumption);

d) Calculating risks and forming strategic alliances (producers, government and non-state actors) are crucial factors for a successful implementation.

Implementation

Local

Integrated Water Demand Management

Water demand reduction has occurred through: a) identifying and removing invasive, water-guzzling tree and reed species (such as carrizo, pinabete, and the pino salado); b) removal of some irrigation channels; and c) the setting up of a monitoring system for water quantity and quality in the Protected Area. A further major contribution is represented by the efforts to encourage the adaptation of agricultural and cattle-raising practices, centered around migrating from alfafa production to nopal. The nopal needs a tenth of the water that alfafa requires to grow, and can be used for human consumption, and as a substitute for cattle fodder.

a) Knowledge and data on water use by different components of the socio-ecological system in the protected area;

b) monitoring systems;

c) awareness-raising about the importance of preserving the ecosystem for maintaining community benefits;

d) economic and human resources to be able to carry out the labor-intensive rehabilitation work;

e) innovation-friendly local producers who are willing to be the first ones to modify their practices.

a) The restoration of the wetlands has been and continues to be a race against time. Restoration efforts seeming to be always one step behind the socio-economic pressures that are causing the continued water extraction.

b) The challenges of restoring water levels in the wetlands are not only economic and physical, but also social and psychological in nature. Much work also has to be focused on convincing producers to adapt practices in the face of lack of knowledge and change aversion.

c) Without accurate scientific guidance and data on water consumption, it is not possible to carry out effective integrated water demand management.

d) It is very important that all governmental actors working in and around the PA work together and synergistically.

e) Future work should focus on developing an alliance of government actors to reduce the socio-economic pressures on water extraction in the reserve

Implementation

Local

Climate-change adapted plants - Olive ssp.

Farmer exposure visit to olive orchard

GIZ

The promotion of drought-resistant and climate change-adapted plants, such as olive trees, contributes to increasing the resilience of the local communities. The area in Swat is suitable for olive growing: wild olives grow here in cemeteries, which are biodiversity hotspots thanks to their protection over centuries. Olive trees can be planted on marginal lands; they bear fruit after 4-5 years of plantation and generate income by providing the source product for olive oil. Pakistan is highly dependent on the import of edible oils. The establishment of small processing plants for the production of olive oil can contribute considerably to the supply of edible oils. The project provided 3000 high-quality olive tree seedlings to farmers in Swat, organized training on grafting and budding, and arranged an exposure visit for olive farmers to an olive-producing community for direct exchange with successful olive farmers.

• Exposure visits were important to inform future olive farmers on the importance of olive products through value addition by displaying various olive by-products (dried leaves and olive seed powder for medical treatments). • Support of the Agricultural Research Institute (ARI) Mingora was crucial to further improve the olive value chain in Swat through different trainings of the farmers. • The farmers should have access to markets for the products; otherwise they get discouraged.

• For promotion of biodiversity conservation to support local communities in climate change adaptation, different tools 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. • The species should be selected according to the local climate and consumer preferences but importantly the species should not be exotic to distort the local biodiversity or increase species uniformity.

Implementation

Local

Integrating climate information into local planning

Ecological Drawing exercise - Impacts of climate change on livelihoods

GIZ

Villager presents results of ecological drawing exercise

GIZ

Seasonal (based on seasons defined by the communities according to predominant livelihood strategies with the help of an ecological calendar) and annual temperature and precipitation projections for the near future were developed for specific sites, namely Bash Kaiyndy/ Naryn District in Kyrgyzstan and two villages in the Bartang Valley of the Tajikistan Pamir region. Two time slices were developed to represent 30-year averages - 2020s (2011-2040) and 2050s (2041-2070) - and change factors were calculated relative to 1980-2005 modeled base periods. Presenting the projections as a range most accurately represents possible future climate conditions for decision-makers and planners applying a risk-based approach to climate change adaptation and resiliency. To consider inherent uncertainties in climate models, scenarios for future vulnerabilities are discussed and selected together with the community. Derived from the scenarios, climate change related threats complete the picture of the situation analysis, and future vulnerabilities can be prioritized through rating of conventional and climate change related threats.

Kyrgyz villages have weather station data to support baseline information. Future absolute values could be estimated.
Ecological calendar exercise conducted with local communities to define distribution of seasons according to predominant livelihood strategies
Strong exchange between climate scientist and local implementing partners and community
Strong facilitation skills when communicating future scenarios to the community

Building the bridge between science and local development by integrating local perception into the projection modelling and through participatory scenario planning with the community has been very successful.
When introducing the idea of climate change during workshops, there might be a danger to present climate change as the cause of all environmental problems. Careful explanation and definition of climate change is essential.
Adapting climate projections for the specific audience (e.g. government officials, local villagers) is crucial.
Pre-workshops / discussions with various informants familiar with the project area and local villagers yielded useful information and a more complete picture of the ecological and economic context of the assessment.
Workshops are generally not a productive forum for technical debates about the validity of climate projections and statistics. It is helpful to focus on communicating climate impacts and hazards, rather than technicalities.

Implementation

Monitoring

Documentation and dissemination of results

Local

Subnational

National

Participatory Vulnerability Assessments as a basis for EbA planning

Ecological Drawing to map the village

Shaun Martin

This stage of the process aims at assessing information on conventional (non-climatic) vulnerabilities of people and ecosystems. Surveys in four villages in Kyrgyzstan’s Naryn province and Tajikistan’s West-Pamiri Bartang Valley addressed the following issues:

• Ecosystem services used by the local population and their spatial and temporal distribution

• Availability of ecosystem services, ecosystem health and function, and perceived changes

• Vulnerability of livelihoods and the link to the status and availability of ecosystem services

• Perception of climate change and its effects on the availability of ecosystem services

• Assessment of legal / institutional / administrative/ technical and information deficits relevant for EbA in the area

The field work started with village workshops to introduce the project, identify key stakeholders as well as interests and needs of village residents. Information was collected by means of interview with residents and key informants, group discussions, field surveys (village walks, mapping, sampling) and participatory resource mapping. To assess overall vulnerability, the availability of ecosystem services and their contribution to local livelihoods is comparatively ranked.

• Detailed scoping (Step 1) before the assessment: choosing the community, (pre)identifying livelihood strategies, ecosystem services and the respective ecosystems

• Participatory approach involving villagers and key informants

• Conducting village workshops in a simple language (beyond project terminology)

• A stand-alone VA conducted by external experts should be avoided. Most of the information necessary for further planning cannot be retrieved from reports only.

• The developed EbA method comprises a full-fledged vulnerability assessment: Step 1-4 (scoping and identification of conventional threats), Step 5 (climate perspective), Step 6 (threat prioritization) and Step 7 (summarize situation).

• Identifying vulnerabilities of people is rather straightforward. However, identifying the vulnerabilities of relevant ecosystems and making sure that nature itself is able to adapt poses a challenge due to lack of data and time constraints.

• Social disparities make climate vulnerability a socially driven vulnerability of livelihood. An unequal access to water will increase the social vulnerability of livelihood. An EbA strategy will have to address a socially compensating access to the resource.

• Scoping: an extension of the project zone in order to cover the complete life cycle (e.g. summer pasture) of the target population is important.

Implementation

Local

Adoption of innovative technology

In order to sustain their productive activities in the face of climate change and economic uncertainties, oyster farmers quickly adopted an innovative technology: new platforms for oysters’ growth. The characteristics of these platforms are that: a) they are more durable than the traditional ones, increasing the lifetime from 3 years to up to 25; b) they replace the use of local mangrove trees by synthetic materials; c) since they move up and down with the tide and water levels, they are more resistant to hydrological events.

CONANP set up a forum for exchange of innovative ideas between oyster producers;
evidence that the new platforms work in the field;
the capacity for local producers to associate and gather the required resources to pay for the new type of platforms;
awareness of climate change impacts.

The major lesson learnt was that working with the existing cooperatives can produce a powerful ally for conservation; in this case, it made possible the adoption of new techniques and regulations in the existing productive activities. It also made clear that it is possible to produce enough economic revenues for all members of the cooperative and, at the same time, preserve the surrounding natural resources. The oyster cooperative has been spreading a collective vision for sustainable management and use of natural resources in the Camichin area, a task that CONANP would not be able to perform by itself due to lack of staff and budget.

Implementation

Local

Integrating payment programmes into a larger strategy to promote sustainable livelihoods and long-term ecosystem conservation

Fishing in Marismas Nacionales, Nayarit

Ana Elisa Peña Del Valle Isla

Mangrove rehabilitation activities require significant investments of time and effort by local communities. Affording these investments might not be feasible for local communities who are usually involved in traditional activities to guarantee their livelihoods. By trying to understand the local dynamics, CONANP could coordinate its intervention: it was able to time its federally funded programme of payments for the fishermen in a manner that was compatible with local productive activities. CONANP designed a payment schedule that would pay local workers for their labour in mangrove rehabilitation and was also complementary to current traditional activities. This analysis prevented time overlaps, and any conflict or negative side-effect that could be derived from the payments scheme. In this case, the rehabilitation work and payments were set for the end of the shrimp fishing season, with the result that the local communities did not have to unnecessarily divide their time between various activities. This enabled local community members to maintain their income during the shrimp fishing season and earn an additional income from mangrove rehabilitation off-season.

a) Economic and human resources to be able to employ local people to carry out rehabilitation works;

b) use of local knowledge and fieldworkers’ expertise to understand working rhythms;

c) flexibility to adapt payment schemes according to local productive activities.

Payment schemes for environmental rehabilitation activities can be more successful when they take into account:

a) the fact that the ability to maintain a regular income source throughout the year is an important adaptive capacity for local communities;

b) that time is limited for local communities, and there will be more community engagement if rehabilitation activities do not collide with principle productive activities;

c) that such payment systems may not be sustainable in the long term (government budgets can fall; policies can change), so they should be subordinated to activities that generate a drive within the community for maintaining the ecosystems as a normal part of preserving their livelihoods.

Implementation

Local

Using natural processes in mangrove rehabilitation

Mangrove channels in Marismas Nacionales, Nayarit

Ana Elisa Peña Del Valle Isla

When the goals of mangrove rehabilitation are subordinated to those of climate change mitigation and the creation of carbon sinks, a project can easily fall into the trap of equating effective rehabilitation with simple reforestation. It is important to consider that clear and well-maintained channels allow hydrological flows between salt and freshwater sources in a mangrove. This enables the ecosystem to find a natural balance that favours biodiversity. It also allows the movement of fish to and from the ecosystem in tune with the water flows, and facilitate the natural expansion of the mangroves via greater seed dispersal. Improving hydrological flows may include the removal of mangrove trees in key places, or the absence of them in others. In Marismas Nacionales, the rehabilitation project went through a steep learning curve that included waste of time and resources, resulting from a traditional approach of reforestation, involving raising, planting and caring for seedlings. After 2-3 years, the policy was changed to one of creating and maintaining channels and flows between the lagoons in the reserve, and thus encouraging a natural system's rehabilitation.

a) A committed local community workforce who is convinced of the benefits of rehabilitating the mangroves, and does not do it just for the payment;

b) highly trained fieldworkers, with scientific knowledge, who can guide the effective rehabilitation of mangroves, and quickly modify their approach if needed;

c) a sustainable, intelligently targeted public programme of payments for local communities;

d) understanding the pressures and root causes of the mangrove system’s problems.

a) Without good technical, scientific guidance it is not possible to rehabilitate mangrove ecosystems in a manner that is sustainable, or sustainable for local livelihoods.

b) When goals of mangrove rehabilitation are subordinated to those of climate change mitigation (carbon sink creation), it can be easy to confuse good rehabilitation with simply increasing the number of trees.

c) Creating and maintaining channels within the mangrove system in order to facilitate natural flows between salt and freshwater sources is a key component for reducing salinization problems, as well as for maintaining mangrove's health.

d) Problems for mangrove systems can be exacerbated by climate events such as tropical storms that destroy parts of the mangroves. However, chronic problems can be caused by upstream activities, such as a reduction in river flows due to water over-extraction for agricultural purposes. This increases the salinity problems of the mangrove systems.

Implementation

Monitoring

Local

Institutional agreements and participatory decision-making based on MARISCO method

MARISCO workshop

Nadia Manasfi

Planning and implementing EbA requires a holistic approach and strong inter-institutional coordination and cooperation. The multi-pronged approach adopted in Tungurahua encourages the participation of policy-makers, the private sector, farmers, civil society and universities, among others. The establishment of a cross-institutional platform enables frequent meetings for exchange and follow-up, while addressing concerns of all stakeholders. Tailor-made capacity development contributes to a shared understanding of the main problems and options for action. Participatory assessments (such as the MARISCO methodology) have allowed stakeholders to better understand how climate and non-climate risks can reinforce each other and how to deal with the resulting complexity. Complementary to the participatory assessments, technical assessments, hydrological models and a hydro-meteorological monitoring system provide decision-makers with hard facts on which to base policy. The results are clear and holistic strategies, theories of change and a monitoring system accepted by the majority.

*Political willingness to enable cross-institutional cooperation. *Willingness of key stakeholders to cooperate. *A shared understanding of the problem and its underlying causes. *Reliable empirical database to underpin participatory decision-making.

*Potential resistance to climate change actions can be reduced by inviting different stakeholders to participate in capacity development measures. *Building ownership and empowering communities by involving them in every step of the process (from identifying the problem to proposing solutions and implementing them) is an important success factor for the process.

Provincial Government of Tungurahua

Ecological Mangrove Restoration

Devonshire Castle mangrove restoration

NAREI

There are two approaches that have been used for mangrove ecosystem restoration worldwide. The artificial regeneration or planting approach that has been used extensively and the other approach that has been used more recently is the natural regeneration or the Ecological Mangrove Restoration (EMR) approach (http://www.mangroverestoration.com/pdfs/CBEMR-Infosheet-URLs.pdf). Guyana has adopted EMR principles to design and implement its mangrove restoration program. EMR principles purports five critical steps that are necessary to achieve successful mangrove restoration, the sixth step (seedling planting) is only recommended as a last option. Following the guiding principles of EMR, seedling planting was only used to increase recovery time of a site that met the necessary criteria, particularly elevation, to support mangrove restoration. At sites that did not meet restoration criteria, the project implemented sediment traps to aid accretion and planted Spartina grass to support soil consolidation.

Baseline information on the proposed restoration sites must be captured to determine the suitability of the site and guide selection of the most appropriate intervention. Baseline information collected should include physical (elevation, soil conditions, etc.), biological (presence of natural recruitment) and social factors (livestock grazing, harvesting, etc.). Suitable elevation is critical to successful restoration and one of the key criteria in determining the most suitable intervention.

The restoration of Guyana’s coastal mangroves is possible if planned properly with the collection of detailed baseline data on potential restoration sites. Thorough site analysis should be conducted prior to any intervention and baseline data, such as wave energy, shoreline elevation, anthropogenic activities and hydrology should be collected and analysed before any intervention is undertaken. Implementation of the EMR principles increases success rates significantly and has the potential to reduce restoration cost. Monitoring data under the GMRP indicates that when conducted on accreting sites of the right mud elevation, and soil consolidation, restoration of a protective belt of mangrove forest can be established rapidly.