The conservation planning principles and steps developed by the CPSG over 40 years guided a successful One Plan Approach to conservation of the Bellinger River Snapping Turtle following the 2015 mass mortality event. By approaching the challenge through a systems-based One Health lens, (encompassing interactions between animal, human, and environmental health), a plan that captured and developed mitigating strategies for the broad range of threats facing the turtles was developed. The inclusion of diverse and relevant stakeholders from the beginning of the process ensured the plan was based on the most current knowledge and widely accepted and implemented.

- Early detection of wildlife morbidity and mortality events facilitates a timely and appropriate response to disease threats; the inability to detect and identify the causes of mortality events is a major limitation in the protection of wildlife, livestock, and public health.

- Employing an already proven open-source and cell-phone-based technology through the Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool (SMART) platform used by rangers in close to 1,000 biodiverse sites across the world,  leverages an unprecedented network of globally distributed boots-on-the-ground and eyes-in-the-field that can act as sentinels for unusual events in remote areas. 

A foundational understanding of the links between wildlife/ environmental health and human and domestic animal health and well-being ensures better interest and buy-in for One Health competency training such as wildlife surveillance. Stakeholder-specific trainings (e.g. Event detection and reporting for forest rangers; Necropsy and pathology for laboratory staff/ veterinarians; Sample collection and handling for rangers & confiscation teams; Technology for network coordinator and rangers), multi-lingual training packages, with core competencies and evaluation tools enable broader reach and buy-in for capacity building and maintenance and continued expansion of the surveillance network national, regionally and globally.

Convening regular multi-sectoral meetings for open discourse on the challenges and opportunities to monitoring and management of disease at the wildlife-human-livestock interface, and improving communications and trust between and across sectors, is critical in the joint development of functional, long-term wildlife surveillance networks for One Health intelligence, and adoption of associated policies. This takes considerable time and a sustained effort, often, unfortunately, outside of the normal funding cycles of donor agencies.

IMET highlighted the problems faced by the PA management team – e.g. the lack of employees. There are just three people employed to manage 14 protected areas which is beyond human capacity and really emphasised need to employ more people. 93% of the total operating budget for RNT was provided by the NGOs, and only 5.6% was provided by the government.  Understanding these input aspects allows the planning of a sustainable approach to management through the implementation of eco-tourism which could provide a stable and constant income in the long-term. 

We realised that there are no baseline data for the two PAs and so we do not know if pressures such as tourism or climate change are having a negative impact on the PAs as there is nothing to compare future values to. In order for the PAs to be sustainably managed, an understanding of the resources, features and ecosystems present is needed to see if any changes are occurring.  

The process also highlighted the importance of the roles of the NGOs and their contribution in terms of financial, personnel and material resources. 

• When originally we believed that some data did not exist, during the process and by gathering incdividuals we were able to fill a lot of the knowledge gaps.
• All participants would be able to repeat the process without the guidance of a trainer in the future. Bertille provided the tools and guidance to allow all participants to gain the knowledge and decision-making abilities to replicate this process in the future. In theory this would allow any one of the participants to conduct the analysis on the same reserves in the future or on one of the other 47 PAs present within Cabo Verde. The skills and knowledge has been transferred to all 18 participants through this evaluation process. 

Enhancing local understanding of the importance of wildlife health for human and livestock health and developing local capacity to conduct effective wildlife surveillance is critical to achieving sustained One Health benefits

If communities don't see effective response or communication with them on findings, they are unlikely to continue to participate in surveillance efforts. Taking the time to build efficient, sustainable multi-sectoral networks with key stakeholders is essential

In order for participatory surveillance networks with remote communities to be successful, long-term investment is needed, often longer than the duration of short funding streams from foreign entities. Repeat visits and support over many years and consistent, effective communication and rapid result sharing with the communities are essential  

Open lines of communication between relevant government sectors and between government and communities as well as and their understanding of the disease epidemiology is essential to implement effective disease control strategies that address the concerns of all stakeholders involved.