Global | PANORAMA

Community engagement and partnerships

This project cannot succeed on its own. For the long-term success of coral reef restoration, it was important to develop strong collaboration with locals, fisher communities, other stakeholders. Through the Tech4Nature partnership, we were able to get more support and engage locally with other stakeholders.

By engaging the fisher communities in coral reef restoration from the beginning of the project and allowing them to take part in eco-tourism activities. This not only saved the area from further damage but allowed the fishermen to generate more incomes through sustainable touristic activities while also enjoying the overspill of increased fish abundance in the area.

Close-up monitoring by local communities
Ownership by fishermen communities
Strong partnership with local companies

This has allowed us to continiously bring the work done underwater to the general public (global level).

Interaction between conservation and population health

Nature conservation and its relationship with the quality of life and health of the local population.

Conservation and maintenance of functional environmental conditions are a priority to avoid emerging and zoonotic diseases.
Preservation of local knowledge and appreciation by indigenous peoples of plants and animals for use in local medicine and culture.
Management actions by protected areas to systematize and rescue local knowledge.

The relationship between nature and health is becoming more and more critical, there are many empirical evidences that diseases that affect humans through the relationship with wild species can cause outbreaks and new pandemics. In this sense, the conservation and maintenance of stable natural conditions and functional food chains can reduce this risk.

The risk of degradation affecting vulnerable people in local communities is very high, so protected areas are playing a critical role in conservation.

Art Photography

Documenting traditional food from Waluguru indigenous tribe

Tengeneza Generaration and Davie Masanja

We document and promote our work through art photography. Pictures are powerful, as they are visual materials that people can see. They make messages around conservation more impactful among the community members we work with.

We engage professional photographs to join and document expeditions. So far, we have a portfolio of more than 17,342 pictures.

Keen to involve artists in supporting conservation work.
Revisiting our local traditional conservation methods involved working with artists and cultural practitioners.

Art and culture is a tool Africans have always used and continue to use to educate wider communities to love their nature.
Visual art is the best tool to send a message faster and more powerful to communities, especially young people.
Art and culture reconnect personally to his/her roots.

Implementation

Documentation and dissemination of results

Strong Partnership

TEG photo with Government officials

Tengeneza Generaration

We established strong partnerships with the Nature Reserves government authorities (Tanzania Forest Service Agency (TFS), as well as with the Department of Natural Resources and Tourism and Youth Development. They provide continuous support, whether it is the use of a vehicle, the delivery of permits, recommendation letters, or waive camping fees to our team and skills.

We also maintain good partnerships with local communities, who propose new activities, and new camping sites to extend the eco-tourism offer and support in installations of sign boards. EAMCEF provided funding $10,000 to support ecological and cultural tourism by empowering the Choma community found adjacent to the Uluguru mountains. Nafasi Art Space provided training in developing art program and fund $1000.

Report and continuous activities updates sharing with stakeholders.

Updating about and involving others in our work and cooperating with our partners have improved and shaped positive impact to our communities. For example they have formed an ecotourism group called Choma ecotourism group to manage ecological and cultural tourism development.

Implementation

Documentation and dissemination of results

Economic drivers

Reptile farming is well positioned to capitalize on emerging markets. Until recently, reptiles have been somewhat overlooked and undervalued due to colonial legacies and euro-centric agri-food tendencies towards warm-blooded livestock. Reptile products are mostly valued in the Global South where the impacts of climate change are predicted to be acute and the drivers for transformational change are dynamic. Dovetailing a novel agri-food sustainability concept with traditional cultural and culinary values in tropical regions offers unique economic opportunities. That said, future growth will depend on good farming practices and close supervision by veterinary and other authorities. Research on envionmental impacts and broader health implications (e.g., feeding unprocessed animal waste protein to reptile livestock) is essential.

The reptile industry holds substantial growth potential. Established local and international markets exist for meat, skins, pets, and various body parts used in the pharmaceutical industry (e.g. squalene oil). Farmers are typically linked to multiple revenue streams and financial risks are spread across multiple geographies. These economic opportunities are complimented by the ability to scale management inputs and outputs in accordance with adaptive physiologies in order to buffer farmers against the impacts of economic and environmental shocks.

Many reptile production models are expanding via vertical and horizontal integration (i.e., emergence of corporate factory farms). Development approaches that focus purely on economic profitability may compromise the viability of small-scale production models and threaten key animal welfare, environmental, and social sustainability credentials. The loss of democratic food systems presents a risk to regional food security and food sovereignty.

Technology for Wildlife Surveillance Data Collection, Sharing and Management

Ranger using SMART cell-phone based technology

WCS

SMART for Health reporting and response cycle

WCS

WildHealthTech: WildHealthNet develops and employs innovative, appropriate, and user-friendly technologies for surveillance. With proven, globally distributed, open-source software (e.g., SMART for Health) and hardware like handheld cell phone devices for data collection and diagnostics, WildHealthNet supports effective and timely communication of data for improved reporting of wildlife health and rapid response.

- Cell-phone network accessibility and cell phone provision

- Human personnel to monitor network and data at the central level

- Access to a server

- Diagnostic capacity for safely testing wildlife samples for pathogens of concern (Point-of-care for some pathogens; in-country laboratories; regional laboratory networks, and agreements to support rapid and biosecure export, testing, and data sharing)

- Technical and analytical support

- Financing to enable technical support and capacity development for data platforms and data analysis

- Early detection of wildlife morbidity and mortality events facilitates a timely and appropriate response to disease threats; the inability to detect and identify the causes of mortality events is a major limitation in the protection of wildlife, livestock, and public health.

- Employing an already proven open-source and cell-phone-based technology through the Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool (SMART) platform used by rangers in close to 1,000 biodiverse sites across the world, leverages an unprecedented network of globally distributed boots-on-the-ground and eyes-in-the-field that can act as sentinels for unusual events in remote areas.

SMART for Wildlife Health Surveillance

Biodiversity communication

Voices of the Forest Digital Series Poster1

Ikam Expeditions

Forest Voices Digital Series Poster2

Ikam Expeditions

Voices of the Forest Digital Series Poster3

Ikam Expeditions

The creation of the series came about because we identified the need to communicate differently about biodiversity.

During our expeditions we have recorded several species in high quality videos, and in our networks we published those videos, but we saw that there was little interaction from people who did not know about the birds or those who were interested.

In that sense, we came up with the idea of making a digital series, with the intention of making a different way about the biodiversity of the Alto Mayo. We had to design the series, evaluate possible recording scenarios, select fauna, build stories, plan logistics, make alliances with audiovisual production companies, expert professionals, audiovisual production, and post production.

Planning
Story creation
Experts (in biodiversity and audiovisual production)
Quality wildlife audiovisual recording

A lot of learning about the development of an audiovisual project
New ways of communicating about biodiversity
It has been important to reflect on the importance of sites that carry out conservation actions.

Documentation and dissemination of results

Serie Digital Voces del Bosque

Biodiversity communication

Voices of the Forest Digital Series Poster

Ikam Expeditions

Voices of the Forest Digital Series Poster1

Ikam Expeditions

Forest Voices Digital Series Poster2

Ikam Expeditions

The creation of the series came about because we identified the need to communicate differently about biodiversity.

During our expeditions we have recorded in high quality videos several species, and in our networks we published those videos. However, we saw that there was little interaction from people who did not know about the birds or those who were interested.

In that sense, we came up with the idea of making a digital series, with the intention of showing the biodiversity of Alto Mayo in a different way. We had to design the series, evaluate possible recording scenarios, select fauna, build stories, plan logistics, make alliances with audiovisual production companies, expert professionals, audiovisual production, and post production.

Audiovisual production planning
Creation of nature and conservation stories for each episode
Experts (in biodiversity and audiovisual production)
Quality wildlife audiovisual recording

A lot of learning about the implications of developing an audiovisual project.
New ways of communicating about biodiversity and conservation
It has been important to reflect on the importance of the sites where conservation actions are carried out.

Planning phase

Inception phase

Implementation

Documentation and dissemination of results

Biodiversity awareness

Recordings

Ikam Expeditions

Bird monitoring

Ikam Expeditions

Bird monitoring

Ikam Expeditions

We were aware of the local biodiversity, and at the same time we knew what we were looking to show in terms of biological importance and possible national and international audience interest.

In addition, we consider the product to be very valuable in terms of photographic record.

- Presence of endemic and/or restricted birds

- Fauna and flora monitoring

- Constant field trips

- Relevant photographic and video recordings, in good quality.

- Equipment and materials available

The dedication we had in the wildlife observation activity was important. Also the previous wildlife records were important, thanks to the fact that we had adequate equipment and informative material to build the stories.

Another important lesson was to provoke interest in all participants. It is important to remember that the series was recorded in different spaces and our work was also to integrate the people who work here in the making of the series, their participation was key.

Assisting the Community: Alternative Livelihood Measures

Preparing soil for Ginger plantation

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With the forest left undisturbed, forest-dependent communities have few options for their livelihood sustenance. Therefore, the LEMSACHENLOK Society started to introduce alternative livelihood measures for the economically downtrodden. Income generation activities such as piggery promotion, ginger plantation, packaging and sale of certain products are initiated on our own small scale.

Acceptance of one’s specific role in a community-initiated work. We needed to prepare for possible livelihood alternatives, even including contributions from our own organisation. The Society’s management team had extended economic assistance by integrating income generation activities.

Global communities should recognize the indigenous communities that are involved in nature conservation, and facilitate to empower them to be an agent of change towards creating a healthy sustainable environment.