To ensure comprehensive representation, stakeholder groups and actors that are directly and indirectly connected to fisheries and aquaculture have to be mapped. This can be done through workshops where key stakeholders, in the case of aquaculture, e.g. the responsible ministry and fish farmer associations, jointly identify other relevant stakeholders. Due to different constellation in each country, stakeholder types can vary. In the case of fisheries and aquaculture, general key stakeholder groups and actors that are involved are:

• Public sector: ministries and departments responsible for fisheries and aquaculture and, potentially, other governmental bodies that are connected to the sector, e.g. dealing with forestry, water, or agriculture;
• Private sector: various actors including small scale fishers and fish farmers, large scale operators and companies, as well as actors along the value chain, operating in e.g. feed and gear production, fish processing, transportation, or marketing;
• Agriculture farmers having impact on water quality and use;
• Other user of water bodies related to aquaculture and fisheries;
• Civil society organisations and the media;
• Cooperating partners: international and national development agencies, international organisations (e.g. FAO, World Bank, WorldFish, WWF, etc.), and development banks;
• Academia and research: universities and research institutions;
• Traditional leaders, indigenous communities, and community members; and
• Conservation groups: agencies working in environmental protection and conservation.
   

Firebreaks are gaps in vegetation or other combustible material that act as barriers to slow or stop the progress of a wildfire. They can be man-made, for example, cleared strips of land. Firebreaks are strategically placed to protect not only valuable forest resources but also homes and other infrastructure. The effectiveness of firebreaks can be supplemented using early warning systems and predictive modeling. Early warning systems utilize technologies like remote sensing and satellite imagery to detect heat anomalies and smoke, while weather monitoring stations provide crucial data on temperature, humidity, and wind conditions. Ground-based sensors further enhance detection by monitoring environmental changes, and effective communication systems ensure timely dissemination of alerts to authorities and the public. Predictive modeling, on the other hand, uses data and algorithms to forecast fire behavior and spread. Fire behavior models simulate fire dynamics based on fuel type, topography, and weather, while machine learning algorithms analyze historical data to predict future fire occurrences. Coupled fire-atmospheric models integrate fire behavior with atmospheric conditions, offering a comprehensive understanding of fire-environment interactions. Risk assessment tools evaluate the potential impact of fires, aiding in resource allocation and protection prioritization. Together, these technologies enhance the ability to prevent, detect, and respond to wildfires, mitigating their impact on communities and ecosystems.

The vulnerability study follows the methodology of the GIZ Vulnerability Sourcebook which uses the vulnerability definition by the AR4 of the IPCC. As a starting point, temperature and precipitation in six focus regions in Madagascar were analysed and climate project maps were created. They served as a basis for the impact analysis. In three interregional workshops, impact chains and adaptation measures were developed by private, public, and civil society actors of the aquaculture sector. In a national workshop these findings were shared and verified. Fish farmers in the Highlands and on the east coast participated in capacity building activities on climate change adaptation.

Overall, the results revealed a high vulnerability of the freshwater aquaculture sector in all six focus regions in Madagascar. The models predict a significant reduction of rainfall, an increase of the number of days without rain and more frequent extreme weather events until 2060. More cyclones (and more intense cyclones) imply flood and erosion and a siltation of rice fields. More frequent and longer droughts lead to a lack of water, shorter production cycles and delays in the fish farming season. Furthermore, extreme weather events can create “panic sales” at low prices which affects the economic performance of fish farmers. 

Adapted to the country specific contexts, different measures are being used for the GP Fish’s intervention areas. However, the procedure is similar, starting with studying the individual effects of climate change to the region, piloting mitigation strategies to curb them and then implementing the most effective solutions.

In 2022, the GP Fish conducted a vulnerability study for the freshwater aquaculture sector in Madagascar on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung, BMZ). Public, private, and society actors of the sector reflected jointly on the impacts of climate change and developed adaptation measures for pond farming and rice-fish culture. 

Moreover, in cooperation with the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the former Sectoral Programme for Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture, the project researched and implemented measures to protect fish farmers from the total loss of fish stock due to extreme weather events through intermittent harvest.
The aquaculture adaptations were applied and supported through training and consulting services, accompanied by additional activities like the implementation of a mobile phone-based climate information system.

A participatory project committee process and platforms like the SMAG ensured diverse stakeholders, including government, NGOs, and local communities, contributed ideas. This inclusive approach empowered all participants to have a say in shaping activities, fostering collaboration and accountability. Inclusivity built trust and reinforced the outcomes of the needs assessment by incorporating a wide range of perspectives into project planning and execution.

This foundation block ensured the project was community-driven by identifying priorities such as beekeeping and training. By aligning project goals with the Chimanimani Climate Change and Watershed Management Policy and ward development plans, the project reflected community aspirations and offered a framework to guide interventions. This process provided a strong, participatory baseline for project design upon which the project success was built on.

This building block emphasizes the critical role of engaging men and boys in addressing GBV within the fisheries sector. Recognizing that gender equality requires collaboration between men and women, this initiative targets the predominantly male-dominated fisheries sector to foster a more inclusive and supportive environment. By involving men ie: fishermen, law enforcer, male stakeholders, landowners, transportation providers, and traditional leaders—in awareness raising, training, and GBV Watch Committees, the intervention seeks to transform negative attitudes and behaviours that perpetuate GBV, including exploitative sex-for-fish practices. It also leverages the influence of traditional leaders to drive societal change, ensuring that men play an active role in avoiding backlach and safeguarding women and addressing the interconnected challenges of resource depletion, illegal fishing, and GBV. 

The GBV Response mechanism at community level was establish to prevent and respond to the GBV cases and fishing illegalities which occours in the fisheries sector due to the lack of reporting structures and long distances from the fishing communities to the formal GBV response structures through the establishment of GBV Watch Committees. The GBV Watch Commitees provide awareness in the fishing camp and fishing communities about the exploitative sex for fish practices. They also respond to GBV disclosures at community level, the committees also link survivors to proffessional services and operate as safe space in the community among other functions. 

This building block is to explain how I developped an App that allow fishers to contribute to marine science knowledge in Africa. 

Initially we gave fishers a pre-printed form to report opportunistic sightings they encountered. However, the form was getting lost most of the time. 

We decided to move to a digital solution. The existing App by then required internet to work and was just too complicated for fishers. So we thought we shoud develop an App that will be more userfriendly for fishers. 

We wrote the  algorithm (workflow) of the App and then contracted an Indian development company to write the code. 

Later we had to bring the development of SIREN back to Cameroon to reduce the cost of developement. 

We work with volunteer around the world that will continuously support with the development of the SIREN

Conserving ecosystems is key to curbing climate change, and maintaining ecosystem services, which are closely linked to over 50% of the world’s GDP. Over 1 million species face the threat of extinction this century: however, selecting which areas to conserve is challenging with the existing data gap, which is biased towards observations in the global north. Increasing the amount of biodiversity data in the Global South is critical in the conservation of endangered species, found at high density in biodiversity hotspots in the Global South. Amphibians are ideal for acoustic identification due to their diverse vocalizations and are crucial ecosystem indicators (Estes-Zumpf et al., 2022), with over 40% of species at risk of extinction (Cañas et al., 2023). Increasing labeled data for the more than 7,000 amphibian species worldwide would enhance conservation efforts and reduce knowledge gaps in vulnerable ecosystems. By using a citizen science platform to aide in the mitigation of biodiversity loss, we help establish local environmental stewardship of these critical habitats.

Other citizen apps have shown the potential that citizen science has on mitigating biodiversity loss. eBird, the largest citizen science project related to biodiversity, has 100 million bird observations from users around the world. These observations help to "document the distribution, abundance, habitat use and bird trends through collected species list, within a simple scientific framework." (Sánchez-Clavijo et. al., 2024).  

iNaturalist, another citizen science app, that uses computer vision algorithms for species identification, has also proven successful in mitigating biodiversity loss. To date, the app has over 200,000,000 observations, with 6 million observations per month, globally. On iNaturalist, research-grade observations are shared with GBIF, which in turn uses that knowledge for policy decisions, research, and community building (GBIF, 2023). 

Currently, our app identifies 71 species of frogs and toads, worldwide. Though many of them are identified as least concern (LC) under the IUCN, we do have one IUCN endangered species, the Southern Bell Frog (Ranoidea raniformis). This lack of threatened species included, underscores the need for diverse practitioners to participate in bioacoustic ecological monitoring. Increasing data points on vulnerable species can serve to inform policy decisions using data-driven insights.