Implementation | PANORAMA

Elaborate a Zoning Proposal and Restoration Plan.

The objective of this building block is to provide the technical teams with the technical parameters to identify the sites where restoration should be carried out and the selection of effective actions for ecosystem recovery.

Zoning requires: 1) identification of areas for natural and assisted recovery, 2) areas for reforestation with native and endemic plants, and, 3) areas with potential for environmentally friendly productive activities.

The proposal for restoration actions includes: 1) the selection of activities to be implemented for each zoned area, 2) the estimation of resources needed to implement the restoration activities, 3) the distribution of responsibilities according to the competencies and resources available to the interested parties, and 4) the time required to implement actions taking into account the scope and resources available.

The quality of the previous diagnoses, the experience of the technical staff that accompanies these processes and the active participation of the stakeholders, facilitates decision making and the most cost-effective selection of restoration activities at the intervention sites.

The ecosystem functions to be restored, as well as the ecological and social context, determine the type of activities to be chosen and the geographic area to be intervened:

Where opportunities exist to enhance biodiversity at the landscape level, activities should concentrate on sites located in or around protected areas or other forests of high conservation value.
Where degradation has led to ecosystem functioning failures, activities should be concentrated along riparian strips, steep slopes, etc.
Where opportunities exist to improve human well-being and, in particular, to support income-generating activities, priority areas should be appropriate sites for the production of high-value species.

concerted management

As part of the implementation of the new management plan, a scientific committee will meet regularly to discuss the development of the site and the state of conservation of the natural environment. The effectiveness of concerted, shared governance and management has been demonstrated on the site.

The Scientific Committee brings together experts who have worked on the site, as well as the relevant government and local authorities. It is thus representative of local, institutional and scientific players (also in the context of the site's classification as an APPB (Arrêté Préfectoral de Protection de Biotope).

The effectiveness of concerted, shared governance and management has been demonstrated. As a result, the site is currently involved in :

- work carried out by the Conseil départemental's own management team of 7 agents specialized in work on natural areas;

- work carried out by companies specializing in the management of natural environments, within the framework of public contracts with technical specifications adapted to work in sensitive natural areas (mowing equipment adapted to fragile soils in particular);

- monitoring of the work carried out and its effectiveness, through regular studies carried out by specialized firms, as well as sharing of information at meetings of the Natura 2000 "Basse Vallée du Loing" steering committee and the scientific committee for the Episy marsh.

Implementation

Monitoring

Local

landscape diagnosis and perception

Current management principles (such as late mowing for export) are considered favourable and should be maintained. In order to preserve the mosaic of habitats and landscapes of the low-alkaline peat bog (northern sector), management actions should be considered to contain the cladia that is advancing on typical low-alkaline mire habitats. Localized sprigging could limit the expansion of the Marisque. In addition, management practices need to be correlated and refined with the ecology and location of the heritage species present.

In order to provide a regular diagnosis of the state of health of the site's environments and landscapes, a number of measures are implemented:

regular inventories of vegetation and flora by the Department's service providers to assess the effectiveness of management measures implemented
implementation of a new management plan as of 2023, based on an adapted reference framework, to target the best management measures
creation of a scientific council in 2023, which will meet regularly to discuss the site's evolution

Ecological studies carried out on the site in 2022 and 2023 determined that the ratio of mowing to grazing areas (considering the northern and southern parts of the site) was balanced and conducive to habitat conservation and the maintenance of vegetation diversity. In view of this favorable result, the current split between mowing and grazing is maintained.

With regard to the grazed southern sector, and considering that the overall grazing pressure reflects a punctual trend towards progressive closure (grazing refusals, woody rejections), it was deemed worthwhile to undertake the following actions in the short term:

selective clearing of undergrowth and crushing of overgrown areas, with export of cuttings;
introduce rotational grazing and consider enclosing certain areas.

Lastly, we need to monitor the evolution of the woody cover to justify whether or not it is appropriate to carry out one-off interventions, which can be costly and time-consuming.

Implementation

Monitoring

Local

Uptake and integration of policy recommendations

Ultimately, greater policy commitments and FLR regulatory frameworks are achieved through the uptake and integration of the policy recommendations identified through the policy reviews and participatory restoration assessments. Guided by its reports like the framework document on FLR strategy analyzing FLR-related policies, TRI Cameroon successfully developed the Harmonized Action Plan, integrating recommended restoration activities such as supporting the creation of green infrastructure, promoting agroforestry, and implementing financing mechanisms for degraded landscape initiatives, and laying the groundwork for future, more specific FLR policies. The development of policies like the Harmonized Action Plan also took into consideration some of the information and data found in the assessments, which will be further utilized in the on-the-ground implementation. Additionally, the legal decision and use of the Agroforestry Notebook brings an outlined direction of action and marks the uptake of a policy that gives individuals the right to establish and own NTFP plantations, boosting their involvement in restoration activities. As more NTFP plantations get registered in the notebook, the integration of policy recommendations directly contributes to an improved FLR regulatory framework.

TRI Cameroon had the necessary resources to contribute to the development of the Harmonized Action Plan and legal decision, which established provisions and actions that integrated the recommendations developed throughout the project. TRI also benefited from the political will of MINEPDED and MINFOF to elaborate and validate the policies.

Working to integrate the policy recommendations developed through assessments, review, and analysis, TRI Cameroon learned both the opportunities as well as restrictions around the development and implementation of policy tools. While the Harmonized Action Plan extracts vital recommendations from the Framework document on FLR strategy, the guideline document was brought about due to a lack of resources. Originally intended to pave the way for a national FLR strategy in Cameroon, TRI was unable to finance the development of a more comprehensive national strategy. Inversely, the success of the legal decision and Agroforestry notebook show how the uptake of recommendations contributes to a strengthened regulatory system promoting people’s involvement in restoration activities. By working to remove administrative barriers, hundreds of NTFP farmers can be registered and contribute to the country’s FLR goals.

Implementation

National

Harmonized Action Plan

Reviewing policies and plans supporting the restoration of degraded lands

Through the review and analysis of policies and plans that support or hinder forest restoration, TRI Cameroon was able to extract beneficial actions and suggestions to be included in policy tools and raise awareness around FLR policies, especially amongst government officials, where understanding around FLR is not universal. This includes supporting MINEPDED in the elaboration of the framework of the National Strategy for Landscape Restoration in Cameroon in 2021, which provided the main axis on which the country can rely on to implement FLR and was meant to pave the way for a national FLR strategy. TRI has also contributed to the development of policy and scientific notes, which provide specific information on a given aspect of restoration and are used to provide more detailed recommendations on specific topics to government officials as a way to prepare the base for more elaborated policy tools. In 2020, a political note on multi-partner and intersectoral collaboration in FLR as well as a scientific note on the paradigm shift to FLR, were elaborated and published. These notes are also able to be used within the context of the implementation of policy tools, as their specificity can provide greater detail on how to successfully implement FLR strategy recommendations.

Working with the Ministry of Environment, Nature Protection and Sustainable Development (MINEPDED), TRI Cameroon was able to contribute to the elaboration and publication of policy documents such as the framework of the National Strategy for Landscape Restoration in Cameroon. With TRI’s assistance, MINEPDED took part in the writing of the strategy and Harmonized Action Plan as well as in their endorsements.

Reviewing polices and plans affecting the restoration of degraded lands provided many lessons useful to the development of policy tools, including an understanding of which actions support or hurt restoration as well as how to better support the implementation of restoration activities. While the framework of the National Strategy Landscape Restoration in Cameroon provided suggestions on the activities that needed to be included in the policy tools, the Harmonized Action Plan acts as an extract and guideline document of the strategy. Meanwhile, the policy and scientific notes provide lessons on information sharing and awareness raising amongst government officials. By looking at specific issues and topics, the notes can be used to improve the understanding of FLR policy amongst officials and to lay the groundwork for future, more targeted policies that facilitate the implementation of greater FLR plans.

Identifying high-priority restoration opportunities and interventions through participatory ROAM processes

Through participatory Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology (ROAM) processes, TRI was able to outline restoration potential by identifying high-priority restoration opportunities, noting feasible restoration intervention types, and assessing finance and investment options. Activities identified included promoting the production of ecological charcoal, developing a plant production sector, and constructing water points in restoration sites. TRI conducted these ROAM assessments in three pilot sub-national landscapes, Waza, Mbalmayo, and Douala-Edea, where local and national stakeholders have been engaged. Pre-validation workshops occurred in each landscape with representatives of government ministries, local council representatives, local community representatives, and community chiefs, while a final report explaining the findings of the assessments was finalized in October, 2021 through a national validation workshop that included representatives from government ministries, international organizations, as well as local representatives and chiefs. Once finalized, a leaflet with the main findings was shared with stakeholders to quickly disseminate information and ensure those who do not have access to the internet can understand the ROAM assessments.

An inclusive and participatory assessment process allowed for findings and recommendations to appropriately consider and represent all of the present and relevant stakeholders. Comprehensive stakeholder consultation meetings included traditional chiefs, heads of community development institutions, local council representatives, women and youth associations, and individual innovators. They covered the needs of restoration, best uses of local knowledge, existing experience gaps, and ongoing restoration activities.

Overall, the participatory ROAM processes provided information on FLR opportunities and options. Through the assessments, TRI Cameroon learned what the priority restoration areas are, which restoration intervention types should be prioritized, what the costs and benefits of the different restoration types are, what the finance and investment options for restoration are, as well as what strategies exist for addressing major policy and institutional bottlenecks in the three pilot landscapes. These findings also presented lessons to be learned around how FLR actions could be modified in implementation on the field and provided real from-the-field data that could be considered in the elaboration of policy tools. Additionally, as one of the first activities undertaken by TRI Cameroon, the ROAM assessments were part of the learning by doing process and provided insight in how the participatory process could be better done in other landscapes.

Implementation

Local

Implementation of Good Silvopastoral Practices

The objective of this building block is to provide livestock producers with the technical parameters to implement an optimal silvopastoral system, according to the characteristics of their productive unit and at the same time contributing to restore the ecosystem services of the site.

Good agricultural practices were implemented in three areas: 1) the animal and its management, which includes feeding, health and animal welfare; 2) environment and production, which includes soil, water and forage, as well as waste, manure and effluent management; and, 3) infrastructure for production, with facilities, equipment and tools for cleanliness and product safety.

To make producers aware of the benefits that the introduction of good silvopastoral practices can bring to their productive unit.
Train livestock producers with relevant and current content, accompanied by high quality professionals, with experience and demonstrable results.
Complement the training with technical tours, where the results of implemented measures can be observed, as well as testimonies of people who have benefited from the changes made.

It requires a high level of commitment from livestock producers, both in terms of technical preparation (participation in training and field tours), as well as in the improvement of the systems, compliance with plans and discipline in the continuity of actions while achieving the expected results.
To achieve a commitment of the participants, the training process must be relevant and pedagogically stimulating; this requires a good planning of the process, focused mainly on the duration, as well as on the quality of the training process.
All training material should be mediated and practice-oriented, so that the farmer can put it into practice without much difficulty.

Acoustic monitoring and analyses

Jaguar Spectrogram

Tech4Nature Mexico

The acoustic component of the project holds special significance, as it played a pivotal role in the automatic detection of over 138 species, with 95 of them being integrated into our pattern matching algorithms. This forms a robust foundation for the continuous monitoring of the region over the upcoming years, allowing us to observe how various environmental factors influence species presence

Our success in species detection was made possible through the data collected from the devices and the strategic partnerships we established, particularly with Rainforest Connection. Additionally, local experts played a crucial role in validating species presence.

The integrated passive acoustic monitoring combined with AI techniques allowed for the identification of 95 species. There is a positive correlation between species richness and low-canopy forest cover. Furthermore, the soundscape analyses revealed variations tied to different seasons and habitat types. However, the pilot encountered the challenge of limited training data for rare species. To mitigate this, we conducted multiple rounds of sensor deployment across various seasons.

Implementation

Documentation and dissemination of results

Local

Arbimon dashboard

International Symposium

The symposium was guided by Foreign Affairs Office of Hainan Province, Department of Natural Resources and Planning of Hainan Province, Department of Ecology and Environment of Hainan Province, Forestry Department of Hainan Province; and supported by the big data lab of Research Institute for Eco-civilization, CASS, the research think tank of Research Institute for Eco-civilization, CASS, Institute of Zoology Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute for Carbon Neutrality, Tsinghua University, Advanced Interdisciplinary Institute of Environment and Ecology, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., Hainan University, Hainan Normal University, Federation of Hainan Academicians, the Sanya Research Base of the Internation Centre for Bamboo and Rattan.

The two-day symposium focused on the theme of “conservation of the flagship species of tropical rainforests-gibbons” “conservation of tropical rainforests’biodiversity, and was held in a combination of online and offline activities.

On the occasion of the third anniversary of the establishment of the Hainan Institute of National Park and the 8th international gibbon day (24th October, 2022), the Forestry Department of Hainan Province, Wuzhishan municipai government, Hainan green island tropical rainforest public welfare foundation, and Hainan Institute of National Park co-sponsored the “2022 tropical rainforest international conservation symposium” themed “protecting tropical rainforest·realizing ecological values”, which was supported by Eco Foundation Global (EFG).

The Conference reached the following concrete results:

Signing of the GGN Charter (Global Gibbon Conservation Network Charter).
l Announcement of the establishment of the first GGN Secretariat at the Hainan Institute of National Park, and the global launch of the GGN Logo.
This is the first of China’s first five national parks, the first domestic conservation research organisations initiated the establishment of international organisations for the protection of cherished species protection, which is of historical significance.
Publish the Global Gibbon Network the declaration of conservation in the form of GGN joining hands with IUCN SSA, with the gibbon as the representative.
Introducing the List of Priority Species for Conservation in Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park with the case of KBAs, and officially releasing the List of Priority Species for Conservation in Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park.

Implementation

Local

Sound pattern analysis

Fic 2

HINP

Fic 1

HINP

The manual screening of 532 Hainan gibbon acoustic sample has been completed, including those obtained during tracking and observation of gibbons using a portable recorder and those obtained using an automated recorder. During the screening process, three recording qualities were initially categorized, namely hight, medium, and low. 44 high-quality recordings from seven individual callers were obtained. The seven individual callers were GAM1、GBM1、GBSA、GCM1、GCM2、GDM1、GEM1, where the letter after “G” represents the family group number and the letter after “M/S” represents the individual number of adult male/subadult male individual number. Only about 40.9% of the recordings were made manually. The raw files of all automated recordings were provided by the team of professor Wang Jichao, and the related data were backed up at Hainan Institute of National Park.

Mel-frequency cepstrum coefficients (MFCCs) is a method of extracting frequency envelope features by cepstrum after weakening the high-frenquency information on the basis of human hearing[1], which has a wide range of applications in the field of human and bioacoustics. In this study, MFCCs and the first-order and second-order differences (△、△2) are used to achieve automated feature extraction.

5 signature notes of the male Hainan gibbon have been identified (Fig.1), including boom note, aa note, pre-modulated note, modulated-R0 note, and modulated-R1 note.

According to the acoustic niche hypothesis, the calls of different species are differentiated in the time and frequency domains (see Fig. 2), so extracting features in a specific frequency range can greatly reduce the influence of noise, and the smaller the frequency range delineated, the more likely it is that more noise will be excluded. In addition, when the structure of each minimum recognition units (MRUs) is the same, the difficulty of recognition is greatly reduced.

In view of the above situation, in this phase of the research, we tried (1) applying pre only and (2) using pre + n×mR0 as MRU, respectively, and comparing the classification results so as to determine the most appropriate feature extraction in the subsequent work. In the case of voice annotation, all the above steps can be implemented automatically by R language code.

Implementation

Local