Local | PANORAMA

Use of data for decision-making and planning.

SAGE Findings:

Little involvement of fisherwomen in LMMA decision-making, discriminated against because of mosquito net fishing.
Lack of recognition of community rights to participate in LMMA decision-making.
Major deficiencies in the process of complaints and follow-up of cases related to invasion of the reserves by the entire community due to the lack of inspection instruments.
Deficit of collaboration and coordination, it does not share reports and plan of activities between different actors.

Recommendations:

Involve mosquito net fisherwomen at all stages of LMMA establishment and prioritize opportunity costs for them.
Disseminate information on rights to participate in LMMA decision-making to all community.
Encourage community to report offenders and follow up on cases related to the invasion of the reserves.
Promote regular meetings to share reports and activity plans between actors.

Based on these recommendations, the project is implementing bivalve aquaculture, prioritising women’s involvement to address opportunity costs. We are supporting annual district, provincial and national stakeholder meetings. We are supporting CCPs with equipment for improved LMMA enforcement. We are strengthening CCP skills for communication and equitable governance through training by AMA.

The purpose of this exercise needs to be well understood by the focus group members. It must exist a will to improve existing conditions by the focus groups members and they must recognise change is possible.

SAGE and IMET methodologies are the simplest, fastest, easiest and cheapest way to evaluate and monitor the progress of a project. Before adopting these tools, the project used only EXCEL to analyse the data, and this was time consuming and expensive as we needed to hire consultants to conduct the surveys. Data analysis and interpretation was also done manually, which too was time consuming.

Implementation

Local

Participatory Assessment

Data Collection, Data Analysis and Data Synthesis:

Organised groups of actors from different social backgrounds gathered for this process, which was facilitated using the local language and a translator was engaged to assist with the translation. To take into account the level of education of participants, we defined the appropriate means of communication. People participated according to the same interest group or social status (Community Fishery Council, fishermen, fisherwomen, government, influential members and income generation alternatives, among them). In the first phase, discussions were done separately and later discussed in plenary; after the discussion participants reached consensus, it is this consensus that was considered as the final response. To ensure that the selection of members taking part in each target group was inclusive, it did not take into consideration party affiliation, religion, social level, gender. During the meetings we also explained the importance of the SAGE process.

FPIC standards (Former Prior Informed Consent) must be applied to maximise genuine participation. The data collection/facilitator team should be well known by the community members and recognised as trustful. There should be a sense of long-term engagement in support of the community.

One of the lessons learned was to present the results of the issues discussed separately in a plenary, where members of different groups discuss the same ideas and reach consensus.

A sign that we are valuing local knowledge.

And that is good for the success of a community-managed conservation area.

Implementation

Local

Training participants in the SAGE and IMET tools.

The first part of this project was training participants on SAGE. To make the SAGE more applicable to our situation, we chose six of the most important principles that are relevant to the LMMA:

1: Respect for resource rights and human rights of community members

3: Effective participation of all relevant actors in decision making

4: Transparency, information sharing and accountability for actions and inactions

8: Equitable sharing of benefits among relevant actors

9: Achievement of conservation and other objectives

10: Effective coordination and collaboration between actors, sectors and levels

The SAGE methodology is a participatory process, conducted with: Community Fisheries Council, fishermen, livelihoods group, community and religious leaders, district and provincial government.

The IMET was supported by two consultants from the National Administration of Conservation Areas. Various actors were invited: a) National Fisheries Administration, Provincial Service of Economic Activities, Provincial Directorate of Environment, Provincial Directorate of Tourism; b) District Service of Economic Activities, Maritime and Lake Police, Administrator of Quirimbas National Park and Justice Authority; c) Community Fisheries Councils, fishermen, community and religious Leaders).

The two tools, IMET and SAGE, value local knowledge, so the contribution for all actors involved in the process was very positive. It was also a positive process because through this tool, the community understood that management power can be transferred to the community from the government, increasing their sense of ownership and empowerment. Prior to this, the majority of the community thought that the management of the reserves was only for the Conselho Comunitario de Pescass and not for the whole community.

The good communication and the results of the opening of the temporary reserves (octopus) helped the communities to understand that the reserves belong to the community and are for the benefit of the community, hence neighbouring communities have started to request the project to create new conservation areas.

Implementation

Local

Funded Projects

Following two funding calls, a total of 17 projects were selected. The projects represent a very wide range of different approaches and solution ideas for pursuing the Alliance's goals, depending on the respective context.

To increase the visibility of the projects and to foster knowledge exchange they are invited to present their ongoing work, intermediate goals and preliminary results to the Alliance community through posts on the website or at online events.

Sufficient funding is necessary to ensure long-term support and sustainable implementation of the project goals.

Continuous communication between those responsible for the project and the Alliance secretariat ensures the success of the project, the feedback of results to the community and thus added value for the community.

Adequate feedback from project partners can be challenging and requires good communication strategies.

Inception phase

Implementation

Monitoring

Documentation and dissemination of results

Local

Subnational

By the Alliance supported projects

Attention to problems that afflict the people who produce

Fire Brigade.

Daniel Domínguez Monzón

Often, a project has objectives and activities defined at the beginning of its implementation in the field; however, interactions with the people who produce reveal other needs, problems and relationships that were not visible to the naked eye and that can become limitations to achieving the fundamental objectives of the initiative. For this reason, it was necessary to dedicate time to listen to the people who produce, accompany them to the places where they travel, support them in carrying out various activities in their daily lives and talk with them. This made it possible to identify specific problems and allied institutions that could contribute to addressing them, such as vulnerability to forest fires, the deterioration of the families' health due to poor nutrition (the result of their low purchasing power and lack of knowledge of how to take advantage of local ingredients). In addition, needs were identified to respond with first aid to accidents at work and in the families' daily lives.

Allocate time to socialize with the population to build trust, respecting the uses and customs of their culture;
Strengthen the management capacities of community leaders so that they have the skills to meet their needs;
Establish alliances with institutions to address some of the needs identified by the local population;
Establish a relationship of trust with coffee growers, maintaining mutual respect, allowing them to share their expectations and needs different from those related to production and the environment.

The approach to municipal authorities to present the APSyM project made it possible to map the actors involved in the implementation territory. In this case, the municipalities of Villa Corzo and Villaflores were visited. The governments of the three levels coordinate in different spaces to plan, evaluate and decide on the implementation of plans and programs in the territory, so it was very useful to participate in these spaces to offer technical assistance and to request support in specialized topics. We also participated in the modification of local regulations that serve the interests of the people participating in the project.

Implementation

Local

Training in intensive sustainable coffee production

Preparation of mineral broths for pest and disease control.

Daniel Domínguez Monzón

Increasing the quantity/quality of coffee increases the income of producers, which motivates them to train in intensive sustainable coffee production. The training included the management of fabrics to increase the production/quality of coffee, elaboration of inputs for integrated pest/disease management, improvement of the nutrition of the coffee plants with soil fertilization, and the application of foliar products that promote consistent development and improve their capacity to adapt to adverse climatic conditions (drought, increased sunlight), as well as to better resist attacks by pests and diseases. This resulted in higher flowering and better fruit set, with yields well above the regional average, going from 8-10 quintals of parchment coffee/ha to 18-25 quintals/ha in 4 years. These high average production levels have motivated producers to renovate coffee plantations damaged by coffee rust, as well as to plant coffee trees in places where corn and beans were planted or where pastures were used for cattle grazing. The benefits of the aforementioned practices are very visible, since the communities went from having one or two vehicles to having around 15-20, with which they use to move their harvest.

To have trained instructors with specialized experience in intensive sustainable coffee production;
Consider local conditions in the techniques to be implemented; the success of a technique that has not been validated cannot be guaranteed;
Use low investment technologies and affordable inputs in the region;
Use a demonstration plot, where the technologies to be internalized in the practices of the producers are put into practice.

The use of visual support in training facilitates access to information and knowledge among the people who produce.
The best technique to internalize knowledge is "learning by doing". If it is about reasoning or mental processes of analysis, the description of the process or expected result must be correctly expressed.
Giving summaries that concretely show the procedures to be replicated makes it easier for people who could not take notes to repeat the activity later.
Applying the techniques to increase production in a demonstration plot helps people to see the response of the plants that have received the correct application of sustainable intensive production techniques.
Allowing experimentation for producers to test their theories is healthy, it shows them that there is an openness to try other ways of how to achieve the same result, and it motivates minds to decipher the elements that make up success.

Implementation

Local

Training in landscape regeneration techniques

Production of native shade trees.

Daniel Domínguez Monzón

The coffee-growing landscape of the Frailesca region is facing adverse factors such as climate change and overexploitation of natural resources. For this reason, training was provided to adapt production schemes to halt and reverse the degradation/loss of natural resources. Awareness-raising workshops and landscape restoration practices were carried out in 8 localities, with groups of 20-25 people. An exchange of experiences between coffee growers was also carried out, which consisted of visiting localities with sustainable production practices to show the management of a coffee plot with landscape restoration actions, which showed the participants that with the appropriate technical support, it is possible to improve environmental conditions (lower temperature and nutrient/humidity retention), the yield of fruit per plant and the quality of the coffee.The visit to specialized research centers and the transfer of technologies (demonstration plot) served to show how knowledge is generated to improve crops, applying landscape regeneration techniques with Climate Smart Agriculture, and the importance of sharing it with the people who produce.

Conduct a participatory training needs assessment to identify common issues;
Involve technicians with skills to facilitate training workshops;
Have a system in place to track training, attendees and implementation of restoration techniques to provide additional support to those who are lagging behind;
Monitor implementation of restoration knowledge and skills learned;
Procure in-kind incentives to reinforce the implementation of restoration actions.

The training should have several didactic resources, not only the speech or slides, since the participants learn by observing and doing, which allows the appropriation of the restoration techniques and favors their implementation in the future. An atmosphere of trust should also be generated, outside the formality of the training, with diverse topics that even seem unimportant, so that participants can have the confidence to ask questions and mention some of the daily problems that afflict them. The exchange of experiences with producers in other localities or regions that have implemented restoration measures allows them to show examples of what they are trying to do in new producer communities. These visits allow them to talk directly with the people who implement them to learn about the tangible benefits.

Local

Feasibility Study

A study on how the carbon market could potentially finance climate adaptation/mitigation projects.

Collaboration with researchers in the climate financing field and relevant governmental stakeholders.

The Indonesian carbon market is yet to be fully developed, with many uncertainties in the policy side. Nonetheless, feasibility study became a guideline for other initiatives who are searching for sustainable financing for their mitigation projects.

Although the findings were not fully conclusive, connections with the Government were established along the way to receive the necessary information for future implementation.

Climate Field Schools

Informal training in the field about climate information, biogas usage, and creating adaptation plans for the upcoming seasons.

Farmers were first identified through vulnerability assessments, where their areas are noted to be impacted by climate change (e.g. low crop production).

It is important to conduct CFS to close-knit communities, as such groups would motivate each individual to implement practices that are being taught.

Different farmer groups require different approaches and educational curricula. Depending on what problems are in the field, the CFS module must be adjusted to their needs.

The same way the biogas digesters are promoted in the field schools, some farmer groups would have different highlights about the digester. For instance, some groups struggle more with getting fertilizers than gas. Biogas as a tool for fertilizers need to be highlighted in this case.

Implementation

Local

Biogas Deployment

Installing small-scale biogas digesters to farmers.

Important criteria to receive a digester include: owning pigs/cows, access to water, location with enough sunlight, and sufficient space nearby the kitchen.

Champion farmers must first be identified a important pilot cases for each village. Once a champion farmer has successfully utilized the digester, the other farmers in the village will follow. This way, biogas digesters are installed village-by-village and not farmer-by-farmer.

It takes time for farmers to fully understand how the biogas digester work. Farmers are hands-on learners, which makes the CFS the perfect platform to promote the digesters.

Implementation

Local