Policy dialogue to develop governance arrangements for improved coastal zone management
Key impediments to sustainable lowland development are the lack of integration of coastal zone management policies and approaches, and limited translation into practice and limited community engagement during design and implementation of plans. The Indonesian government has embarked on various integrated master planning processes and established taskforces and working groups to address these challenges. A large proportion of the solution is dedicated to supporting this policy dialogue process, creating an enabling environment. At community level, project partners have been invited by the target communities to facilitate the development of 10 year village development plans and regulations that guide resources management. These will define ambitions for sustainable aquaculture and coastal security. Community-village plans will contribute to implementation of the provincial master plan, addressing community priorities and needs. This alignment greatly increases community ownership with regards to decision making and engagement in implementation of development plans. After the project, representatives of all 10 target communities will have actively become involved in government-led planning.
-Close collaboration with government partners and other players at different policy levels -A thorough policy analysis on where and how to embed measures in national and subnational policies and budgets e.g. (spatial) development plans, master plans, coastal zonation plans, mangrove strategies, greenbelt and forest legislation, NDC, NAP, DRR (Sendai Framework) and SDG Community plans: We will facilitate village planning discussions in 9 villages about problems, root causes and solutions.
Tangible results: –Master plan for sustainable development of Demak district - including Building with Nature Indonesia measures - developed with and endorsed by Taskforce Integrated Coastal Zone Management led by planning agency of Central Java and involving all relevant stakeholders. –Master plan and Building with Nature approach embedded in Central Java Provincial policies (spatial plan and mid-term development plan 2019-2024 and provincial mangrove strategy). Village development plans and regulations on land use rights, protected areas and coastal zone management developed and adopted by 10 communities and formalised with local government.
Gaining an invitation to the CBD EBSA meeting in Moscow
We carefully prepared our maps and other data and then wrote a supporting letter to one of the organizers of the IUCN CBD EBSA meeting in Moscow in March 2013. After some back and forth, we managed to get a formal invitation and to raise the funds to send researcher Mikhail Nagaylik. He attended and submitted a strong case for a large EBSA covering most of the east coast of Kamchatka. This EBSA was accepted and supported both by the scientists as well as the Ministry in Moscow.
The fact that FEROP co-director Erich Hoyt had attended MPA meetings and was an IUCN WCPA and SSC member helped in approaching the organizers of the CBD meeting in Moscow to obtain a place for a FEROP researcher. FEROP's deep experience in the region meant that the expertise would be essential.
Think creatively and just because you aren’t formally invited to something doesn’t mean you don’t belong, or that you can’t get in.
Working toward a marine protected area (MPA)
This is the essential building block toward creating an effective MPA at the Costa Rica Dome. It is still In process. The steps already taken are stimulating, through conferences and meetings, discussion at national, regional and international levels. This process was started by presenting the idea with a case study in Marine Protected Areas for Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises (Hoyt, 2011) and an associated campaign, and, crucially, working closely with the Central American (Costa Rica based) NGO MarViva.
: In process; obtaining further funds to facilitate meetings and lobbying
Need ABNJ legal structure for high seas MPAs
Broad discussion of the community rules with the community
Strong communication efforts (exchanges, meetings, popular debates, interactive radio in local languages) throughout the process of establishing and operating Kawawana. This has given fruits, as today other community conserved areas have been created close to Kawawana and more are in progress. .
Only available in French. To read this section in French, please download the document "Blue Solution Template in French: ‘L’aire du patrimoine communautaire KAWAWANA: La bonne vie retrouvée par la conservation’” from the bottom of this page, under 'Resources'.
Only available in French. To read this section in French, please download the document "Blue Solution Template in French: ‘L’aire du patrimoine communautaire KAWAWANA: La bonne vie retrouvée par la conservation’” from the bottom of this page, under 'Resources'.
Coral reef restoration toolkit
The purpose of this Toolkit is to share the knowledge gained by the Reef Rescuers team. It aims to fill a void in the practical know-how of coral reef restoration By sharing what was learned and tested in the field, it is hoped that the success of others implementing similar projects elsewhere will be improved. It aims to be a companion for scientists, managers, practitioners and local communities who are facing a coral reef restoration challenge and need guidance using low-cost field tested methods, as well as how to fix problems encountered in field conditions. The team explains what they did in the coral reef restoration project and how they solved the problems encountered using low cost solutions and the limited resources found in a developing nation.
• Feasibility and desirability of coral reef restoration in the specific site • Adequate project funding or private sector investment • Buy-in and collaboration of government, communities and NGOs • Coral reef practitioners/biologists working in the project
• One size doesn’t fit all. The experimental methods which were used in the project didn’t all work and there was a lot of trial and error. The toolkit explains these. This is why the guide was not called “Best Practice”. • The toolkit doesn’t make you an instant expert. The toolkit cannot be used by amateurs and communities without the design and supervision by experienced coral reef scientists. Otherwise it becomes tinkering and more harm than good can be done. • It’s complicated. Potential users of the Toolkit need to keep in mind that reef restoration is complex , time consuming, costly, and not always recommended. In fact, as regards the latter the Toolkit presents a flowchart to decide whether or not reef restoration is necessary or even feasible in a given situation
Inform corporate requirements
CI has been providing technical expertise to BHP Billiton to help them manage land and enhance biodiversity in a responsible manner. This has included contributing to improvements in their corporate environmental requirements in the areas of compensatory actions and the definition of ‘area of influence’, which takes into account business activities and their potential direct, indirect and cumulative impacts on the environment.
Please contact solution provider
BHP Billiton has applied lessons learnt through the governance and financing requirements for protected areas to establish more robust internal requirements for compensatory actions (or offsets).
Capacity development for coral reef restoration
The capacity development program was implemented in 2 phases: The first phase started with the implementation of the project and lasted till the last corals were planted and was based on the “learning by doing” concept for knowledge transfer. The second phase was a formal training program which was designed by Nature Seychelles and launched in 2015. This was a full time course which lasted 6 weeks and included classroom as well as field work. A paying program, it filled up on the first call with 8 international “students” completing it. More courses are planned.
• It depended on attracting volunteers who were qualified up to master or scientific diver level and who would work under grueling conditions for free in exchange for a unique learning experience. • It was essential that the core staff were ready and able to work with volunteers from all parts of the world. • The project had free accommodation to provide to the volunteers and students.
Volunteer procedures. These had to be put in place to keep the teams harmonious and working. Teaching skills. Staff had to be skilled-up to teach the coral reef restoration course and deal with paying students who were all mostly coral reef practitioners already. Two training programs were originally planned in 2015 but only one was implemented as the resources and time to roll out this “first in the world” program had been underestimated.
Developing and promoting the tourism product
This building block involves everything related to producing your tourism product. It is recommended that a private sector partner possessing the appropriate market focus and experience in ecotourism be selected before embarking on tourism development in order to ensure long-term sustainability. Our model suffered as a result of not having a partner from the start, putting all responsibility for marketing and tour operation on the project. Selecting and training village tourism service group members is the next important step, and should be done with involvement of community leaders, the local government tourism agency and the private sector partner. Contracts with service group members can be used to create incentives for good service and protection of wildlife. Infrastructure should be built as a community project to instill maximum ownership. A cost effective, high impact marketing tool is a ‘familiarization trip(s)’ for tour companies and journalists, in contrast to printing brochures. Word of mouth is the most important factor and is ultimately determined by a unique and well thought out product.
It’s important for stakeholders to understand the importance to partner with the private sector. It is equally important that the private sector understand the product and the goals of the project. If these conditions are not met, an appropriate partnership may not be created, handicapping the project’s ability to create a sound business model. If a partnership cannot be created from the start, it is important to have the financial resources to incubate the product until the conditions are better for forming a partnership.
Private sector partnership is key to developing a sustainable business model, especially in remote areas that require heavy marketing to attract visitors. In the absence of a clear partnership, the project must be ready to operate the tour, possibly with subsidies from donor funds if tour numbers are low in the beginning. This is not recommended, as it takes resources from other project components and risks failure. Infrastructure built and maintained by the community should be designed in the sturdiest fashion to reduce maintenance costs. In selecting and training village tourism service group members, effort should be made to find responsibilities that allow for gender balance
Creation of awareness raising and policy influencing tools
Multi-stakeholder Dialogue (MSD) platforms are created, comprised of government representatives, NGOs, civil society involved in the project. The platforms consist of management committees set up in each village and at provincial level, to monitor the project’s activities and inform its management. The committees provide support for the daily implementation of the activities as well as for strategic engagement with other institutions. Advocacy material for policy makers is also produced. The engagement at national, regional and global levels is crucial, to ensure that knowledge is transferred, and that policy makers become advocates/implementers of the key lessons learned from the project. Strategic engagements at national, regional and global levels included so far: - A national inception workshop of the project - A national forum with the Directorate of Civil protection on ecosystems-based risk management - Presentation of the project at regional forums and meetings (regional conservation forum, regional consultations for the WCDRR) - Showcasing the project in publications or case studies for global events (UNFCCC COP 21)
-Early involvement and awareness of governments: local governments should take part in the project from its start, and national government representatives should been invited to its inception workshop. - Establishment of MSD platforms at multiple levels of implementation allows monitoring of activities and provides guidance for strategic policy outreach - The international role and presence of an organization like IUCN, allows for opportunities to showcase activities and advocate for nature-based solutions for climate change adaptation at various levels.
- The creation of multi-stakeholders committees, in charge of monitoring and informing field activities, is key for actively involving partners and local governments in the implementation of the project. Their active engagement at every step of the project gives them ownership and encourages interactions between different sectors (research, civil society, environmental organizations, etc.) that usually don’t work together. - Working on policy influence at all levels (local to global) allows to effectively make the case for ecosystem-based solutions for climate change. -Showcasing local traditional knowledge for adaptation encourages government to implement similar actions at broader scales.
Design and implementation of conservation project portfolio
Through the Alliance, CI and BHP Billiton have jointly developed a systematic framework and approach to designing and implementing conservation investments. The approach leverages both BHP Billiton’s risk based approach to project design and CI’s experience and expertise in establishing long-term conservation areas that address financial, legal and governance requirements. Projects are selected based on their conservation significance and evaluated to ensure that they will make a lasting contribution to our global natural heritage. Each project is required to reach a high standard for effective conservation management and will be supported by a sustainable financing mechanism, so benefits to people and nature will continue for many years into the future.
The approach leverages both BHP Billiton’s risk based approach to project design and CI’s experience and expertise in establishing long-term conservation areas that address financial, legal and governance requirements.
Prior to launching the collaboration, both organizations spent a year collaborating, building trust, understanding respective expertise, tools, management systems and jointly piloting and developing processes that formed the basis for the Alliance. One of the applied learning’s of the Alliance to date has been application of new risk assessment methodologies to conservation projects, using insights from BHP Billiton’s robust systems for risk identification, assessment, prevention and control. These methodologies, when applied to conservation project design, allow for improved communication of project planning and implementation to decision makers whose core area of business expertise fall outside environmental conservation. Importantly, they have also resulted in project investments that should be resilient to a variety of factors and events – including reputational, financial and implementation risks.