Although there was a managing agency, the governance structure needed broader formal input, especially for a decision making mechanism. 

So a management committee, including the management authority, a water authority, local government, community representatives and regional government was initiated. 

The management committee has a chair, who has the responsibility to convene regular contact and meetings, and also special meetings to address issues or make decisions on management as the requirement emerges. 

For the first ten years after protected area designation, the management authority was in place but operating without a management plan. They did not have the internal capacity or knowledge to develop a plan that addressed the requirements for management of a protected landscape. 

The management plan was developed to provide the objectives, activities and indicators for measuring the outcomes. The plan included a ten year program of activities, with opportunity for a review and amendments after five years. 

Camera trapping allows non-invasive surveys of wildlife throughout the protected area, providing new insights into hotspots of rare and threatened species, while also providing information on which locations contained the most species targeted by hunters. Systematic camera traps were set in either fine-grid (smaller areas with 1-2 km spacing in between stations), or course-grid (full protected area coverage with ~2.5 km spacing between stations) designs, with stations that contain 2 or more cameras spaced about 20 m from one another. Cameras trapping systems were left in the field for ~3 months for each sample session to meet the closure assumption; fine grid designs for two locations were repeated 2 years apart, the course grid is intended to be reproduced in 2023 (5 years apart). Systematic cameras were set and microhabitat data were collected at each station site following protocols from Abrams et al (2018). 

References

Abrams, J. F., Axtner, J., Bhagwat, T., Mohamed, A., Nguyen, A., Niedballa, J., ... & Wilting, A. (2018). Studying terrestrial mammals in tropical rainforests. A user guide for camera-trapping and environmental DNA. Berlin, Germany: Leibniz-IZW.

Our anti-poaching teams have improved the workflow of detecting and pre-emptively stopping offenders who illegally enter the protected forest areas by deploying PoacherCams -- automated detection systems that operate via camera traps and artificial intelligence classification of humans, animals, and vehicles (Figure 3). PoacherCams are strategically placed at entry points into protected forests adjacent to local villages and access trails. When the cameras detect a human entering the park at PoacherCam installation sites, the site manager will receive a notification on their Smartphone of the threat and location. The manager will then deploy a mobile unit (forest rangers) to survey the area or document the entry and exit activity of the offender over time and make an arrest. Our system also has a dashboard for record-keeping purposes and note taking which forestry law-enforcement can refer to later when issuing penalties and following up with their issuance with commune-level law enforcement. Through extensive patrolling efforts, we have identified numerous central access points from local villages into the protected forests and set PoacherCams to monitor them and take action where needed.

The Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool (SMART) is a both a software and a framework that allows forest rangers and anti-poaching patrols to collect geospatial data on their smart phones (via the SMART mobile app), which acts as an advanced handheld GPS. When traps, illegal encampments, animals, or violators are located, the patrol will make a record using the app’s customized “data model” (a customization of the application that creates specific drop-down lists, and decision trees). The SVW data model is based on Vietnamese forestry law, so when any technical gaps are identified in the data model in terms of arrest procedures, non-standard violations, or priority species listed in legislative decrees, it can directly inform and improve policy.

Once data has been collected by patrols on their smart phones, the patrol data (paths walked, km travelled, time spent on patrol, and data recorded) will upload automatically to SMART desktop. This is where managers can evaluate poaching hotspots to apply pressure, and also allows them to monitor the effectiveness of the patrols themselves. With each new data input, data managers are able to adapt to the situation and adjust their team and patrolling regimens accordingly.

Anti-poaching (AP) teams are hired and funded under Save Vietnam's Wildlife, and approved by protected area managers where they sign a joint contract between the two. They undergo approximately one month of training in Vietnamese forestry law, species identification, self-defense, field training, first aid, and using SMART. 

AP patrols stay with forest rangers for 15-20 days of patrolling at various ranger stations each month, and an assigned Data Manager typically processes, cleans, analyzes and reports SMART data for all patrols to the park director and SVW coordinators. At the beginning of each month, a SMART report is generated by the data manager; based on the intelligence from this report, a patrol plan will be discussed with the ranger and anti-poaching members, and then submitted to the protected area director for approval; mobile units are on standby and led by forest rangers to rapidly respond to any emergencies, locations outside of planned patrol areas, or situations accessible by road.

Rangers were trained to use SMART mobile through vertical knowledge transfer in the field, and by the end of 2020, 100% of the forest rangers (73 people) were all effectively using SMART, increasing patrol data coverage across the entire protected area (Figure 1).

Save Vietnam’s Wildlife aims to ensure that our rescue centre serves as a role model for other centres within Vietnam in wildlife rescue management and welfare standards. We lead the way for other organisations across Vietnam and overseas in pangolin rehabilitation by demonstrating the highest animal care standards and providing other facilities with technical advice and training. We have used the development of SVW and our improved outreach capabilities to directly work with other rescue centres in Vietnam. SVW has provided expertise, staff training, and logistical and financial support to help improve animal welfare standards and the capacity of the keepers in several government rescue centres in Vietnam. We have also employed dedicated animal keepers and veterinary staff and improved animal husbandry practices and quarantine procedures.

We co-established a rescue and breeding centre with Cuc Phuong National Park called the “Carnivore & Pangolin Conservation Program” inside the Cuc Phuong NP. The main purpose of the centre is to cooperate with authorities to successfully rescue wildlife confiscated from the illegal wildlife trade and release them back to the wild. The animals then go through a 30-day quarantine. If they meet health standards, they are then released into safe protected areas, while animals who did not have the ability to survive in the wild, would be kept in the education centre to inspire visitors to contribute to the species conservation.

Behavioural change is one of our main building blocks to benefit wildlife conservation. This project component aims to change the behaviour of wildlife consumers by identifying key behaviours and using them to reduce demand for wildlife products. Findings of background research on awareness and attitudes of government officials and citizens around Pu Mat National Park towards wild meat consumption and sales were used to develop appropriate behaviour change interventions, drawing attention to the impact of wild meat consumption on health and the negative social perceptions of consuming wild meat. Following implementation of our work, the impact of our messages on avoidance behaviour and attitudes toward wild meat consumption was measured.

Working with local communities in the buffer zones of Pu Mat National Park is one of SVW’s main focuses, in order to raise awareness, reduce their impacts on forest resources, and inspire them to protect wildlife. We utilise diverse approaches to implement different programs, from holding community engagement workshops and training, placing large billboards around the buffer zones and using self-sustained education outreach tools to encourage local people to take informed actions to protect wildlife.