1. Local community training on mangrove conservation and management including restoration process is critical in ensuring best practices in mangrove restoration are implemented for successful mangrove restoration.
2. Continuous monitoring and guidance of VNRCs, CoFMAs, and CBOs by mangrove experts are essential to ensuring best practices in mangrove conservation and management
3. Placing mangrove conservation and management in the hands of local communities ensures ownership, thereby facilitating the achievement of conservation and management objectives.

1. Community engagement through elections, training, and awareness-built trust and ownership, essential for effective governance and compliance with by-laws.
2. Supportive institutional frameworks backed up by national policies, Acts and laws enabled the registration of CBOs and enforcement and community-based governance.

1. A supportive legal and institutional framework provided legitimacy and guidance for effective community-based resource management in both mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar.
2. Inclusive participation of all community groups (elders, women, youth, and leaders), fosters ownership, ensuring locally relevant and sustainable plans.
3. Collaboration with government, NGOs, and development partners strengthens community-based initiatives through technical support, resource mobilization, and improved stakeholder coordination.
4. Training and awareness-raising strengthen community capacity and confidence, enabling informed decision-making and active participation in conservation efforts.

1. Consistent and early involvement of stakeholders fosters trust, builds credibility, and facilitates seamless project execution.
2. Governance and accountability within local management institutions are strengthened through open elections and clearly defined responsibilities.
3. Sustained and context-relevant capacity building is vital for nurturing strong and effective community leadership.
4. Legal recognition and formal organizational structures equip local management institutions with the authority and means to access rights and resources.
5. Demonstrable restoration successes enhance community enthusiasm and solidify long-term conservation commitments. 

Intervention methods (experiential learning methods, arts-based approaches and reflexive learning) were applied to explore how the school garden and other nature–based learning methods influence attitudes, values and emotions. Through open discussion, creative expression, and self-reflection, these methods have the potential to deepen students’ connection to nature and cultivate a shared understanding of nature’s values. These methods can be applied separately, but our research has shown that they are more effective when used in combination, as together they can create a more transformative learning experience. However, it is equally important to have a supportive school community that is open to these innovative methods. Teachers should also be given greater flexibility to apply these methods in their practice – ideally, by integrating them more fully into the national curriculum.

Accessible green space is a crucial part for developing school gardens and outdoor learning environments. Unfortunately, not all schools have such access – particularly those in lower-income, densely urbanised areas. However, with the openness and support of the local municipality and school leadership, even concrete areas can be reimagined and transformed into green spaces. Another possibility is to collaborate with local community gardens to create shared green learning environments, or even to establish new ones near the school with municipal support. While these spaces may not be located directly on school grounds, they can still offer students meaningful access to nature and outdoor learning.

It is essential to have at least one teacher at the school who is willing to dedicate time and energy to the project. Our research showed that the teacher’s background is less important than their strong intrinsic motivation – their deep belief in the value of connecting with nature and integrating green spaces into school life. Naturally, this commitment alone is not enough; it must be supported by a democratic school environment, such as an encouraging principal or school district, which enables the teacher to turn their vision into reality. The drawback of this building block, however, is that if the success of a project depends too heavily on one individual, it may not be sustainable in the long term.

Although school gardens are included in Hungary’s national curriculum as an optional specialisation, this currently applies only to grades 5 through 7. However, the teachers and experts we interviewed suggested that it would be more effective if education in this area began earlier and continued beyond these years. Therefore, a potential additional building block could be the presence of a supportive educational policy environment.