No species exists in a vacuum. A myriad interacting forces come into play to shape their fate, at levels that go far beyond their direct ecological environment. Recognising this means shifting the focus from the species alone to englobe the entire system (ecological, social, political, economic) in which they live. It also implies accepting the uncertainty that arises from these interactions “that simultaneously affect, and are shaped by, the wider system” (Canney, 2021). This means preconceived solutions have very little, if no, chance of truly succeeding.

Not knowing what to do forced the project to ask, observe and listen, letting the answer be shaped by the context. Over the years, it has meant understanding the social-ecological context to identify key intervention points where small inputs can have relatively large impacts, “planning for a greater degree of flexibility in responding to the unexpected, seizing opportunities, and adapting to changing circumstances” (idem), and working at different levels and with a variety of stakeholders to achieve objectives. While the initial focus was on elephants, this approach has in effect delivered multiple benefits and contributed to improving many problems at once, from ecosystem degradation to compromised livelihoods, youth unemployment, local governance and social conflict.

Conduction of scientific research on the effects of human activities on wildlife allowed us to better understand the effects of humans on wild animal populations. Today, we are the only who carry out scientific studies on biodiversity in the central High Atlas. The solutions proposed consist in encouraging research institutions to participate in these scientific studies and to study other zoological groups.

Scientific research is essential for conservation as it helps establish solutions based on scientific results. For example, we have shown that hunting currently used in Morocco to limit the growth of wild boar populations has, on the contrary, a postive impact on wild boars and that the conservation of wild boar predators is the best method to regulate wild boar populations. We have also shown that poaching affects populations of the Barbary macaque, Cuvier's gazelle, and of other species. The prohibition of poaching and the sensitization of habitats were the main causes for the increase in  the Barbary macaque population in the site of Ouzoud, Morocco.

The cross-cultural and multi-disciplinary study of stone tidal weirs and efforts to raise awareness require the establishment of an international network.

The academic core consists of the three member universities, part of the UNESCO UNITWIN Network for Underwater Archaeology: the Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, the University of Guam, and the University of Warsaw. The network enhances the protection and research efforts on underwater cultural heritage by connecting universities and professional training institutions, and acting as a bridge between academia, civil society, local communities, and policy makers. 

On the other hand, local NGO or NPO organizations play a central role in safeguarding or reviving stone tidal weirs. As an intermediary the academic core builds relationship between coastal community stakeholders, including NGOs or NPOs, and international organizations, including the UN, UNESCO, ICOMOS, plus local and national governments.

A capitals approach can help compare options between two alternative livelihoods for coastal communities including the impact on people and nature

By applying valuation to marine spatial planning, a capitals approach can help to value trade-offs when developing offshore energy

A capitals approach can supplement ESG metrics to yield robust information crucial for investor decision making, based on all the capitals, such as the traceability of seafood

A capitals approach can inform fisheries management supplementing traditional measures such as maximum sustainable yields with more complete metrics

Asset balance sheets log the stocks of assets and their values in the national accounts. Whereas flows of economic production--goods and services--have been used as primary indicators of the "health" of an economy, these measures do not take into account depreciation or degradation of the asset base form which these flows stem. Changes in the asset balance sheet would reflect, for example, the reduction in value of depleted fisheries stocks.