Planning phase | PANORAMA

Assessing the views of those who don’t want to get involved

It should not be assumed that all those who have an interest in an area or the planning process will necessarily provide a written submission. Around 1 million people live adjacent to the GBR and many millions of people elsewhere in Australia and internationally are concerned for the future of the GBR. However the 31,600 written public submissions represented only a small proportion of all those concerned citizens (noting many individual submissions were prepared on behalf of groups representing many hundreds of members). At many public events during the planning or in the media, it was a small ‘noisy minority’ who dominated the discussions. Different techniques were therefore applied to determine the views of the ‘silent majority’, many of whom were interested or concerned but did not bother to write a public submission. This included commissioning telephone polling of major population centres elsewhere in Australia to determine the ‘real’ level of the wider public understanding and support. In addition, community attitudes and awareness were monitored through public surveys. These showed that many stakeholders were misinformed about the key issues/pressures and what could, or should, be done to address their concerns.

Telephone polling in major population centres around Australia is an approach used by political parties for political purposes. The same polling companies who undertake these surveys were used in the rezoning, with the planners working closely with them to determine the most useful questions. The results helped politicians to understand the wider public perspective, not just the noisy minority or the media reports. Community attitudes were also monitored through public surveys.

Don’t ignore those stakeholders who choose to remain silent.
Remember that politicians are usually more interested in what the wider community thinks than just those who send submissions.
Recognise the ‘noisy minority’ usually does not represent the silent majority comprising all those with an interest in the future of the MPA.
Public meetings are often dominated by a few – ways are needed to allow wider concerns to also be heard.
Some stakeholders ‘leave it to others’ to send a submission – either because they think everything is fine, or else they believe changes are unlikely and so are not motivated to act.
Telephone polling of the wider public or internet surveys can determine the real level of understanding and support.
Tailor your key messages for different target audiences (take a strategic approach).
Monitor wider community attitudes and awareness through media analysis, via the internet (e.g. Survey Monkey) or face-to-face interviews or surveys.

Opinion polls - Wikipedia

Telephone and Internet Polling - Boundless Political Science

Written public submissions during the planning

Some of the thousands of public submissions received and waiting to be scanned (note some submissions included maps and lots of additional supporting data).

During the first phase of public comment, large maps were provided free to the public; this submission used the map to mark areas of interest to the submittee. Other submissions choose to cross-hatch the entire map, claiming they fished the entire area.

One of the A3 submission forms used in the 2nd phase of public comment; this format proved much easier to code than the original maps and submission forms and helped many of those who made submissions to provide more useful comments.

Given that GBRMPA had previously never received so many public submissions (> 10,190 in the 1st phase and 21,500 in the 2nd phase commenting on the draft zoning plan), the following multi-stage process was used to analyse all the submissions:

Contact details from each submission were recorded in a database, a unique identification number was assigned, and an acknowledgment card was sent to whoever made the submission.
All submissions were individually scanned and the electronic files were saved into an Oracle submissions database.
Trained GBRMPA staff analysed each submission using a coding framework consisting of keywords for a range of themes and attributes. The framework was developed from a stratified random sample of submissions based on place of origin and sector. The database linked the scanned PDF with the relevant contact details and analytical information (i.e. keywords)
A search and retrieve ability based on the keywords enabled planners to search and retrieve PDFs of specific submissions or to run various queries of all the information in the submissions.
Many submissions involved spatial information, including some 5,800 maps in the formal submission phases; these maps were digitized or scanned.

The legislation outlines a comprehensive process for community participation in the planning process. The fact that the locals were ‘familiar’ with two phases of public participation and written submissions from previous experiences with GBR planning processes did assist this most recent planning process. Many groups assisted by submitting joint submissions. Consistency of analysis across the analytical team was ensured by the team leader checking a sample of the analysed submissions.

The analysis method must consider the substance of submissions rather than the number of times a comment is made. The submission process is not a numbers game but more about the quality of any argument that is made.
In the first public phase, many open questions on the submission form led to long rambling answers; these proved hard to code, as were the large maps that were also distributed.
The 2nd phase was more effective as a simple two page A3 size submission form asked more specific questions. Not everyone used the submission form, but it did make scanning and coding easier.
Many pro-forma submissions were received; easy to code but not helpful.
Linking spatial information with a qualitative coding system in the GIS was important.
Coding was based on seven key themes and a range of sub-themes, allowing a detailed analysis of each submission and all information provided.
Public feedback is important to demonstrate that all comments were considered.

Managing, Analysing and Presenting Public Submissions in the GBR

Report on the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Zoning Plan 2003

Understanding the issue and working with the PA management.

SGNP is possibly the most visited protected area anywhere in the world. The average annual visitation is more than 1 million people. Our problem at hand was to transform this visitation into popular public support for SGNP. The figures speak for themselves, and I set out to convince the forest department that if we are able to engage with the visitors in a detailed manner, our problem would easily be solved. We put together an active Facebook page for SGNP and a website (government agency) to start this Out reach campaign. We also produced popular, high quality publications on various biodiversity related topics and handouts for enhancing user experience (in multiple languages). Because of the vibrant social media presence, we were able to build a public following of about 20,000 people till now and so created a bandwidth for our outreach. The website is a means to utilize the internet to start online data collection and transactions. With these things in place it was relatively easy for the forest department to go ahead and implement further actions.

1. Understanding of the functioning and mentality of a government agency and work to their skill sets, rather than forcing your priorities. 2. Visualise your solution as an upward engaging structure and start working on the basics.

- At least in India, the mandate of the forest department (PA management) is to protect and manage the area. Education, outreach, tourism are so to say not their mandates and are looked upon as additional burdens. It was very important for me to demonstrate how this particular approach was going to help them do their job in a better way. Only then was the process smooth and up-scaling was possible. The ownership of the process has to lie with the PA management. I prefer working as a volunteer, just facilitating the solution. I think this is very important as it prevents any financial ambiguity.

Planning phase

Subnational

SGNP Facebook page

SGNP official website

Collaboration of authorities with international experts

Director of Egyptian Nature Conservation Sector, upon prompting by the tourist international community and local authorities, engaged to address the issue, seeking international expert advice. The decision was made to intervene and gather expertise; initial contacts and discussion with experts was expeditiously completed. Expert visits were organised, to facilitate the best possible understanding of underlying conditions and constraints to intervene and gather expertise; Initial contacts and discussion with experts is completed.

Opportunity provided for meeting and discussions with IUCN expert at World Park Congress in Durban, South Africa, September 2003

Expertise often cannot be found locally. International expert organisations such as IUCN can supply useful advice.

Planning phase

Local

National

Creating media and popular momentum

Collection and publication of scientific discoveries on the ecological importance of the Ligurian Sea and the unusual level of cetacean mortality attributable to driftnet fishing; engagement of the media; circulation of a petition to the Italian Government to stop driftnet fishing in the area with the collection of large number of signatures.

Onset of ecological field research in Italy and France in the mid-1980s promoted by scientific and advocacy NGOs; onset of a volunteer-based cetacean stranding monitoring network which revealed the extent of cetacean mortality; attention of the general public to marine mammal conservation in the 1980s; availability of the media to cover the story.

Press can help create momentum at governmental level.

Planning phase

Inception phase

Multi-national

Capacity-building of local people in agroforestry

Rehabilitation of coastal areas through agroforestry reforestation

Gervais Munyororo Yade

Embers production from trees planted by the project - modern carbonization technique

Gervais Munyororo Yade

Formation on chicken breeding techniques

Gervais Munyororo Yade

Agricultural technicians formed the population in the sustainable use of land, tree planting, charcoal production and crop management.

Only available in French. To read this section in French, please download the document "Blue Solution Template in French: ‘Réhabilitation des espaces côtiers par le reboisement agro forestier” from the bottom of this page, under 'Resources'.

Blue Solution Template in French: ‘Réhabilitation des espaces côtiers par le reboisement agro forestier'

Rehabilitation of the banks of the mouth of Lake Togo

Structure built in the ocean to protect the city of Aného.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Bank of the lagoon and rehabilitated road.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Southern embankment in the city of Aného. The stabilized bank enables the resumption of fishing activities.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Embankment in the city of Aného.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Phosphate mud in Kpémé.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Primary school threatened by erosion in the village of Agbodrafo.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Beach erosion before construction work.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Abandoned house in the city of Aného.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Several abandoned houses in an area subject to erosion.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Proposition for a protection plan.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Resource extraction.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Unprotected sectors in Baguida.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Rehabilitated mangroves.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Reinforcement of embankments of the mouth of Lake Togo: construction of a rocky structure, paving of the street and creation of a parking area.

Only available in French. To read this section in French, please download the document "Blue Solution Template in French: ‘Contribution à l’amélioration de la résilience à l‘érosion côtière au Togo’” from the bottom of this page, under 'Resources'.

Planning phase

Implementation

Documentation and dissemination of results

Local

Subnational

National

Blue Solution Template in French: ‘Contribution à l’amélioration de la résilience à l‘érosion côtière au Togo’

Use of Information and Communication Technologies

Awareness-raising activity on the beach on the themes of erosion.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

Coastal seascape model in Togo.

Pessièzoum Adjoussi

A vulnerability map was compiled after performing a field survey with use of Global Positioning System (GPS) technologies. This has allowed to identify the areas most vulnerable to erosion.

Planning phase

Implementation

Documentation and dissemination of results

Local

Blue Solution Template in French: ‘Contribution à l’amélioration de la résilience à l‘érosion côtière au Togo’

Participatory research and planning through a systemic and prospective sustainability analysis

Open Standards Planification

Planification participative Pêcheurs Mar Chica

Goal

In order to engage the artisanal fishermen in natural resource conservation, the analysis carried out has included sociocultural, economic and ecological topics. The goal was to fill the lack of data to allow all the stakeholders to realize the initial decrease in biodiversity and the solutions brought by the project.

Process

The participatory approach used by this study has allowed for all the stakeholders to accept the results.

The study was carried out in accordance with a systemic approach including several components:

Scientific: “Sociocultural, economic, ecological indicators”
Participatory: the study has not only involved the project holder, but also the stakeholders
Prospective: the study has allowed to identify “current, potential and alternative scenarios”

The systemic analysis has led to an integrated action program for the sustainable management of the artisanal fisheries sector within the National Park’s marine area.

Artisanal fishery represents one of the main economic activities in the region. As a sideline, it also improves farmers’ quality of life along the Mediterranean coastline.
The main constraints to the artisanal fisheries’ economic growth have negative impacts on product quality, due to the lack of landing infrastructure and commercialization.
The flotilla’s fragmentation and isolation, which the fishmongers take advantage of, does not allow the fishermen to work under satisfying conditions.

It is necessary to minimize the growth constraints on artisanal fisheries confined to the National Park’s fishing grounds. The reinforcement of fishing gear and equipment has to serve as a motivation for fishermen to stick to our integrated management plan.

Defining the artisanal fisheries sector remains an essential step in the process of implementing a commercial organization plan, which has to be subjected to future project propositions.

In the sociocultural plan, the fishing villages are confronted with a high rate of analphabetism. The fear of losing their jobs, translates itself to the high frequency of poaching, the use of dynamite or chemicals and illegal fishing.

It would be desirable to define a new zoning plan for the National Park’ marine area, which responds to the ecological conservation concerns and not only to those of fisheries resources. This would guarantee a sustainable development for a future approach of monitoring and participatory evaluation.

Recherche et planification participative du secteur de la pêche artisanale à tr…

Community management of no-take areas within the MPAs

Chalutier 1 au coeur de la Zone Intégrale du PNAH

To be added

Carte de Zonage de proposition de No Go Zone

Goal

The artisanal fishermen of three cooperatives are trained and involved in the resource management plan in the National Park’s marine area.

Process

Organization of 2 x (3) training sessions on participatory planning as a resource management tool in the National Park’s marine area.

Proposal of no-take zones or Fisheries Reserved Areas (FRAs) within the National Park’s marine area.

A monitoring report for the captures within the National Park’s marine area are being prepared in a collaborative manner by the fishermen who provided the data and the team of AGIR who wrote the report, which served to evaluate the project’s benefits.

The establishment of a climate of trust between communities as well as state and institution partners, prior to the actual project launch
The validation of no-take zones or FRAs by the fishermen and the respective authorities
The monitoring report of fishery product captures in the National Park’s marine area has to be communicated to the AGIR fishermen by the experts in order to evaluate the project’s benefits.

The activities (weekly monitoring field trips and participatory species caretaking) prepared in collaboration with the administration, has allowed an increase in fishing resources of 30 %
The involvement of local and national stakeholders in the restauration of biotopes and species has allowed a restauration ranging from 20 to 30 % according to the species and the ecosystems
The choice of no-take zones has been made by the fishermen to tackle illegal fishing. The no-take zones correspond to the marine areas close to the cliffs affected by poaching and dynamite fishing.
It is necessary that the workshops take the fishermen’s schedule into account (during bad weather periods or breaks)
It is necessary that at least 60 % of the artisanal fishermen support the no-take zones.