Monitoring | PANORAMA

Action Planning, communicating, and support.

Action planning meeting

Francis Sakala

This building block assisted in developing actions to address the governance challenges, communication of information, training, and ensuring ongoing mentorship and coaching for the Community Resources Boards in the implementation of governance actions. The key issue of this stage was creating opportunities for having a shared vision and collective actions.

Good stakeholder participation, and support by the government and the traditional leadership. The participatory nature of the tool allows broader collective action planning and assessment.

It requires proper planning and identification of key governance issues to be analyzed and acted upon. Usually, you would want to focus on relevant governance issues such as gender equity, participation, and information sharing.

Information booklet Luano GMA

Project blog

The Agreement

The agreement for the use and management of hydrobiological resources and fishing activity in the Tumaradó marshes is an effort between the PNN Los Katíos (PNNLK) and the Tumaradó Community Council (CCT), formed in 2012, is coordinated by a local committee that is composed of 4 representatives, 2 from the CCT and 2 from the Park, and its purpose is to develop actions, competencies and responsibilities that promote conservation within the PA, mainly through fishing regulations that include the establishment of minimum catch sizes, permitted fishing gear and reserve zones.

Initially it was signed for 5 years, then the community stated that it should not have an expiration date; therefore, the agreement continues to be implemented.

-The community of Tumaradó built the agreement jointly with the PA.

-It reflects local feelings and knowledge for the implementation of the measures.

-Results have been seen over the years with respect to the measures set forth in the agreement, benefiting not only the environment but also the community.

Established coordination bodies: follow-up committees.

-Analysis of the information obtained as a result of monitoring.

-Socialization of the information with the community for management decision making.

-It is possible to conserve resources jointly between the community and PNN Los Katíos.

-Good relations and governance processes are maintained with the communities and the institution.

-Better biological and ecological knowledge of the fishery resources has been obtained.

Implementation

Monitoring

Documentation and dissemination of results

Local

Collaboration

Blue Parks relies heavily on collaborations with other conservation NGOs, communications and marketing professionals, government leaders, MPA managers, scientists, and local ocean champions. Growing the network of Blue Parks and amplifying the Blue Park standard for conservation effectiveness requires many partners.

Blue Parks has benefitted from the contributions of many partners. These collaborations have been made possible by a growing awareness that MPA coverage alone is not sufficient to safeguard biodiversity -- that we need to fully implement high quality MPAs in order to see conservation outcomes, and most MPAs are not yet well implemented.

These collaborations have also grown out of Marine Conservation Institute's long-standing history as a trusted partner among marine scientists, conservation organizations, and governments.

Nurturing collaborations across multiple sectors (government, NGO, academia) requires clear communication. We have found that regular, though not too frequent, outreach and communication with these partners keeps the collaborations active, and that these communications are most effective when they are designed for the audience, so we often send separate communications to partners in different sectors.

Documentation and dissemination of results

Sustainable management of forest resources

Training on bush fire controlling

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Bush fire danger index sign board

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Training in forest monitoring

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Logging of trees in natural forests for charcoal and fire-wood production is mostly unregulated and not monitored in Ghana. This leads to overexploitation and unsustainable forest management. The implementation of an inventory and monitoring system which based on communities’ needs is key to achieve sustainable forest management.

Community forest management plans were developed which integrate the sustainable management of the project restoration and energy wood plantation sites, but also the protection of selected zones like e.g. river buffers and general management of the forest resources. Regular uncontrolled bushfires destroy upcoming natural regeneration and planted tree seedlings. A bush fire management system was therefore integrated in the plans as well and supported by the training of fire volunteers in patrolling and suppression of uncontrolled fires

Communities and charcoal producers need to be well integrated in the development of a forest monitoring and management system. Beside that it needs to be supported by the local authorities to determine, for example the sustainable volume of wood which can be annually harvested and to select zones and tree species which should be protected from logging. For a functionable bush fire management it is key that especially farmers and herdsman are aware about the risks and damages uncontrolled fires can cause and how they can control them.

Success lies beyond the project

During the lifespan of the project, activities are usually going well. Everybody is happy. But this is normal because the system on which the project operates is injected with external expertise and resources: it is boosted.

The real efficicency of the intervention can only be measured after the end of the project.

Donors need to account for this monitoring aspect.

Measure the intervention success one, two or five uears after the end of the project.

Community processes can only emerge from individual commitment to shared interests.

An individual will only invest the required knowledge, time and energy if they perceive the process as resonating with their inner self.

The most difficult part is to provide room for this inner self to express itself in a meaningful way to build trust and agency in the transformation process and contribute to the collective objective.

Pathways to sustainable and healthy systems probably depend more on the respect of that inner self than on the level of information and capacity production.

Monitoring

Local

Fully transdisciplinary project

ProSuLi being a development project implemented by researchers, we wanted to test if a full transdisciplinary project could make sense for the benefit of TFCA.

No activities were imposed on final beneficiaries beside the participatory approach (that was flexible adapted ot each of the four sites' contexts).

The project’s hypothesis was that collective action supported by targeted capacity building and co-designed governance systems could result in a better appropriation of one’s livelihood and more sustainable use of natural resources for the benefit of the whole social-ecological system.

Strong multidisciplinary project team, many of us already knowing each others and with many social science colleagues.

Time for trust building between project members and local actors / final beneficiaires (usually a 3-years project would not have enough time for such trust building).

Resources for mulitple interventions/missions that cannot be listed at the beginning of the project as the apporach needs to adapt to the local context (e.g., power-relationships between local actors).

Such a transdisciplinary project challenges all stakeholders, including academic principles and dogmas, because it demands embracing more complexity and accepting complex courses of action that are not ‘simple solutions’.

The project team needs to be transparent and willing to learn any existing lessons from previous and ongoing development interventions and to source additional expertise along the way.

Implementation

Monitoring

Local

Elaborate follow-up activities early in the process

Participants during group exercise

GIZ

The effectiveness of training is increased if follow-up with participants is ensured. This allows the organisers to check on the feasibility of follow-on activities discussed during the training and can account for the follow-up needs[NM1] of the participants. Follow-up activities can range from webinars to on-site activities in the respective countries

[NM1]Needs: unclear. = if something has not been understood or if there are follow up questions, or resources needed or something of the sort?

If so: see suggestion for possible re-formulation.

To design appropriate follow-up activities, the content of the training needs to be defined (see Building Block 2). The diversity of activities also depends on the support structure in the countries. If partner (health or climate) projects are in place in the respective participating countries, this allows for greater diversity in follow-up activities that can be conducted.

Consideration to possible follow-up activities should be given already during the planning process;
It is advisable to launch a survey to ask for participants interest and preference;
The creation of a What’s App Group is a quick, easy and cost-effective way to stay in touch with participants and continuously share relevant documents and news with them.

Monitoring

Documentation and dissemination of results

PPT on the Regional Training presented to GIZ colleagues from Health and Social Protection Network

First out of three follow-up webinaire with participants on specific topic of interest from the training

Environmental DNA

Internationally, coral restoration and biodiversity are still lacking behind in terms of certification and uniform verification / measurement standards. To address this issue, we adopt eDNA - environmental DNA - to measure biodiversity, though in the long run, international standards would definitely increase our recognition and perceived reliability.

Our Chief Scientist and Co-founder Dr David Baker is also an Associate Professor of Ecology and Biodiversity at the University of Hong Kong, as well as a multi-disciplinary marine ecologist with a focus on coral reef species. He leads our scientific team to develop a robust methodolgy to measure and monitor the impacts of our restoration work using science-backed methodologies such as eDNA.

eDNA approaches require much less effort in terms of human resources and time. Water and sediment samples can be procured easily, and stored indefinitely. Data analysis does not require any special taxonomic expertise. It is therefore presumed that eDNA biodiversity monitoring will become the norm in the future, once good regional databases for biodiversity are established.

Sustainable financing

Basket trap Fishers weekly Table Banking Meeting

CORDIO EA

We resolved the challenge of financial limitations by encouraging the fishers to join saving groups. The fishermen have formed Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs) with the aim of saving part of their income and access loans with ease. We trained the groups on how to run the VSLA, also known as table banking, as well as on financial management and group dynamics and provided them with the required inputs such as record keeping books. The VSLA members hold weekly meetings, where they contribute savings and those who need loans requesting for them, clearly stating mode of repayment, use of the loan and repayment period. The fishermen are now able to cater for their daily needs during the Southeast Monsoon (SEM) season when there is no fishing due to the rough weather conditions. They spend time constructing and repairing the basket traps in preparation for the high Northeast Monsoon (NEM) season where they can go out fishing.

The existence of a similar table banking within the Beach Management Unit (BMU) being done by women through UNEP funded project, was used as a good example as they had made significant and admirable progress. This motivated them to also form their table banking groups where they will be saving their income from fishing.

Most of the community members engaged in small medium enterprises require ease at accessing finances to not only meet their daily needs, but also grow bigger financially, as well as save more for the future. The members had not engaged in income savings scheme hence spent all their money without retaining some for the days with low or no earning.

Monitoring

Local

Sustainable Financing:VSLA

Sustainable Financing

Trial and upscale of modified basket traps

Natural Materials for Basket trap construction

CORDIO EA

M & E Exercise with Baske Trap fishers

CORDIO EA

Sample of a Basket Trap

CORDIO EA

We conducted a series of awareness and sensitization meetings with the basket traps fishers and the community on impacts of destructive fishing gears on ecosystems and livelihoods. The recommendation was to modify the traditional basket traps from 2-3 inches mesh sizes. We co-designed the traps with the volunteer fishers prior to the trials. Sixteen fishers volunteered to trial the modified traps. Trained fishers and other community members collected fish data throughout the trial. We used the data to evaluate the catch composition, size structure of fish captured, juvenile retention, catch per unit effort (CPUE) and fishers’ income. From the data, modified traps were considered beneficial economically and ecologically, and all the basket traps fishers expressed interest in starting using them. This led to the upscale phase where the fishers were facilitated to construct the modified basket traps.

Sensitization and awareness programs
Building on participatory research
Capacity building in construction of basket traps
Use of local traditional knowledge in gear construction

Community-based conservation initiatives must involve the community actively in planning, designing, execution, and discussions on progress.
It's important to educate the local population about the effects of unsustainable fishing methods.
Making the fishers construct the traps was an assurance of traps of good quality.
When beneficiaries understand the issues, are involved in creating solutions, and gathering data to show if the suggested remedy is effective, recommended interventions are more readily accepted.

Monitoring

Local

Building blocks towards successful uptake of modified Basket Traps

Trial and upscale of modified basket traps