Local | PANORAMA

Villager Trail Mapping; capturing local knowledge

Villager trail mapping: boundaries, trails and natural features indication on ‘blank’ maps

Trail mapping in very difficult circumstances

Government staff and surrounding villagers are able to communicate with each other when a common language on geographical features is established. Villagers surrounding the protected area have been brought up with the local knowledge of the area which includes local names and characteristics. Capturing this information is done in three repeated steps. The first step is to organize village meetings using general topographical maps in which the villagers indicate trails inside the NPA and names of areas, rivers/streams, hills etc. Where possible the villagers indicate areas they are controlling. The second step is to train teams of rangers (villagers & PA staff) to use GPS receivers and to have them walk all trails collecting location specific names and boundaries with GPS coordinates. The third step is the creation of updated maps with all trails and with location-specific names. The information on this map is then verified in a village meeting. These three steps may be repeated several times. The resulting maps are then used in discussions on zoning and village area delineation which determine the area for Village Rangers to patrol and which rules apply.

As there is very little known about the Hin Nam No in general, there was no objection by the responsible ministry to start collection of data from the bottom up. The villagers are very willing to share their knowledge of the area and lively discussions amongst villagers erupt when different perceptions or names are known. Returning with updated maps creates a lot of understanding from both sides, and direct map updating in the village meeting with high resolution imagery shows the villagers the importance of their knowledge.

The initial topographical maps used in village meetings should be accurate and show rivers and hills/cliffs with the names in the local language (and script). Maps printed on vinyl sheets allow villagers to write and erase with white board markers which supports discussions as labels can be changed. It is difficult for villagers to determine boundaries between locations. Especially for areas like forests, the boundaries are difficult to indicate as the boundaries are known only on the trails, not further afield. Some areas are limited by physical features (rivers, hills/cliffs) and thus with remote sensing estimations can be created but these need verification. Therefore several rounds of trail mapping, updating and meetings are required as villagers and government staff learn from each other which type of information is required for a common understanding. The resulting maps should be discussed with different groups in the village to ensure agreement and common understanding by all.

Implementation

Local

Village Ranger System

Training on poacher apprehension

Results of patrolling: capturing poachers, removing snares

There are 18 villages that have traditional land rights inside the park boundaries. First 4-5 rangers per village were selected by the community based on their willingness to become rangers, knowledge of the area and having time available. The first teams were set up and trained to start villager trail mapping. Payment fee for biodiversity monitoring and patrolling was agreed through negotiations and based on a fair compensation for the hard and dangerous work of hiking in the mountains. The division of the park in village responsibility areas designates the village ranger working areas. Due to the different sizes, terrain and threats, some villages indicated the need for many more rangers and involvement of village militia or police. Now 110 villager rangers have been trained in use of GPS equipment and in the recording of sightings in coded booklets. They make regular trips into the park to record wildlife and threats (monitoring) and are involved in patrolling for law enforcement. The patrol frequency is adapted with the incoming information. As the village rangers know the area well, they are willing to go into very remote places and in very difficult circumstances where other rangers usually do not venture.

Identification and acceptance of the limitations by government: agreement to fill the gap left by government of people for patrolling. A system that government could support in future: as cheap as possible but an effective patrolling system; no ranger stations and part time workers. Use limited government resources as effectively as possible as staff does not know the area well and do not want to work under remote and difficult circumstances; make use of local knowledge and hardened people for ranger activities.

The system of village rangers depends on the willingness of all villagers to uphold the rules that they have established and agreed upon, as for the village rangers it is not possible to arrest their neighbors. Therefore it is important to have a separate ranger team focused on law enforcement from the government/outside. Village rangers only work in their own village managed area as trust between villages needs to be built. In the Hin Nam No the village ranger teams always include village militia or police who are authorized to carry arms which is a requirement to stop well equipped poachers. Training on monitoring, apprehension and other tasks needs to be done regularly. Clear processing of violators and support for poaching camp raids needs to be established. Feedback sessions are an important tool for exchange of information and improving effectiveness.

Implementation

Local

Resource management

SMART data collection tool

Village Rangers training on GPS and data recording form

SMART is a ranger based data collection tool specifically for managing patrolling activities. As it is a data collection tool for spatial data, the database was re-designed to not only serve the patrolling needs but also the wildlife monitoring and location data gathering needs. Training was given to government volunteer staff to work with the software and adapt the database, and to rangers on the use of the data booklet. Trials were done and the database and data booklet adapted to requirements from rangers and researchers, i.e. small size booklets, wildlife per category (indicator, key, hunted). To be able to collect data systematically and report important features to management, a tool like SMART is ideal. As the data gathering is done by staff with limited reading/writing capabilities, we simplified and coded the booklet, with the codes on the front and back of the booklet. The data entry (and reporting) can be done by few experienced staff. As rangers stay in the field for up to 6 days and electronic data gathering equipment does not have this kind of battery power, a more sophisticated system is not possible. For more sophisticated geographical analysis and mapping, the data is transferred to a GIS system.

The tool is promoted by major players in the conservation world and as such is seen by the partner organizations as a tool that is acceptable. The tool is free and thus, besides training, no extra costs are necessary for software licenses. The very limited amount of data before the adoption of SMART and the lack of qualified staff to manage the previous software made the change easy. It is possible to transfer data from an old system into SMART.

There needs to be an absolute minimum of one highly trained staff member who is responsible for entering the data, analyzing the results and creating the reports for management. More people is better as regular sharing of the database prevents data losses. Training of the staff responsible for SMART takes time as it is complex. Providing information to management creates awareness and results over time in further requests for information. This motivates those involved in data gathering (the rangers), analysis and reporting (PA staff). It is necessary to be flexible at the start of the usage of the tool as to be able to adapt to the data gathering needs. This requires several rounds of updates and trials; the database should be kept flexible. Training of rangers on the data booklet needs to happen several times and regular feedback of patrolling results increases effectiveness.

Implementation

Local

Participatory zoning

Verification of GPS and mapping results in the village

To be able to effectively manage the park, it should be clear in advance which areas are of importance for the villagers for their livelihoods, as they have customary rights to use non-timber forest products (NTFPs), wood for construction and hunting for food security. Meetings at the individual villages for trail mapping indicated approximate boundaries between villages. The updated maps from trail mapping are used in village grouping meetings to commonly agree on the boundaries between the villages. The participatory zoning meetings are held to delineate different use zones and rules for each zone. Discussions at village level cover: the maps and locations indicated, the use of NTFP’s and wood, the location of areas of usage and the rules and regulations for the collection of NTFP’s and wood. The outcome is a proposal by the village community to delineate a Total Protected Zone (TPZ) and Controlled Use Zone (CUZ) according to the Lao law, with specific rules and regulations for access and use. A final meeting is then held with surrounding villages to explain the areas concerned and the rules and regulations so that outsiders no longer misuse these areas. These rules are built on existing laws, just adding extra detail where needed.

Lao protected area laws recognize 4 zones: Total Protected Zone (TPZ), Controlled Use Zone (CUZ), Buffer Zone and Corridor. The CUZ allows villagers to use part of the PA for self-sufficiency. The law leaves opportunities to create detailed village rules. As Participatory Land Use Planning is practiced nationwide for all village land, the villagers are used to zoning activities. Villagers have learned from other activities that creation of rules and dissemination of these rules may result in having more control over their resources.

Although villages have commonly understood boundaries between them, many villagers will go into other village areas to collect NTFPs or hunt. For villagers to be able to control access it is thus of great importance to establish boundaries between village territories within the park and use areas within the village areas. After dissemination of the results these rules and regulations can be implemented and monitored and outsiders banned. Especially in the beginning the rules and regulations will be challenged and support of the village authorities by external support/mediation helps to settle issues between villages.

Local

FAO

Zonation

Scientific Biodiversity Monitoring

Scientific monitoring is part of the process of regular verification of some biodiversity indicators in the field. This is done in pre-selected transects and at specific times in the year. The selection of transects and timing are based on research on key species for the area. The team consists of village rangers and scientists. During the transect walks the sightings and calls are recorded. The activity has two results: (a) an independent set of data indicating the biodiversity status in a core zone of the PA providing a comparison with previous times and with the ranger monitoring data (b) a learning experience for the village rangers on the methodology of monitoring wildlife and a confirmation of the importance of their work.

Project donors request biodiversity monitoring results as part of project monitoring. External experienced wildlife scientists are enthusiastic and this helps to positively influence villagers, village rangers and government staff.

Having regular scientific monitoring done costs lots of money and is difficult to repeat regularly. Well trained locals (village rangers) may be able to do the same and cover larger areas.

Local

Monitoring of outcomes

Monitoring is primarily used to help avoid repeated mistakes and to enable an adaptive approach to management. This is especially important where local conditions of the site may not have been extensively researched as is the case in our project and common with community-led initiatives. Trial and error can be a practical way to design and manage a project in these situations and regular monitoring is essential to identify undesirable trends sooner rather than later. We have applied monitoring at several scales. We have used targeted monitoring at the small trail scale for example to trial different foredune restoration methods before scaling up. At the whole-site scale monitoring has been very useful to show the level of success against long term objectives, which in turn has helped build support for the project as well as helping management planning going forward. Examples include measuring plant growth, mortality and dune profile changes over time along with records of the inputs required to achieve various results. We also monitor the human dimension, such as the experiences of participants in the project and perspectives on priorities for management.

Developing and trialling new monitoring techniques, especially for methods that are suitable for a wide range of end-users (eg. in community sector) or where a range of methods is developed to suit different end-users.
Production of guidance materials to help lay people and community groups design and implement robust monitoring programmes. This is especially important within context of monitoring for community-based projects.
Funding for monitoring programmes and analysis/communication of the results.

We have found that monitoring and the feedback of information to those involved can useful as a motivational factor. The information also has practical utility for securing buy-in from key authorities or sponsors for funding. Recently we have extended monitoring to the human dimension to gauge aspects of the project that are of interest to the participants. This is proving useful with project design and planning. Selection of appropriate metrics for monitoring remains a key concern. Ideally these are not just of academic interest and will represent tangibles sought by stakeholders. To address this we coupled the design of monitoring activities with stakeholder perception surveys to establish key values to monitor from various perspectives. In this way we are using monitoring to help gauge the success of management in terms of stakeholder needs. Although it is not possible to monitor everything of potential interest this is helping to get the best value from monitoring efforts.

Monitoring

Local

Implementation of plan

According to the Master Plan, we have done research on strategy and mechanism for the implementation and developed 60 implementation plans. We have detailed our tasks and targets, made schedule to reach them, then divided those tasks to responsible departments.

1.Legal status 2.Promotion: After we finish the plans and implementation strategy, these documents will be sent to every departments. And we post it on our website and info column. We would also Ccarry out activities like special lecture on our plans for staffs, put banners on our community square. 3.Adequate funding

1.Strict plan and management is the most important. Management is the key for plan implementation. Bad management will discount the targets or lead to a wrong way. Good implementation will never succeed without powerful management mechanism, well developed management system and strict monitoring and accountability system. 2.Good relationship with surrounding areas is the basement for plan implementation. With the support from surrounding areas, coordinate work will be much easier.

Local

Developing positive relationships with neighboring communities

Huangshan Nature Reserve is never an isolated island. Its sustainable management cannot be accomplished without the participation and support of the neighboring communities. Over the past years, 18 cooperative modes have been identified between the nature reserve and the neighborhood communities, which has greatly ensured the implementation of the plans. Before decision making, community will be informed to give suggestions. They also participate in discussion meetings and have right to vote and know the result. And management cooperation with community was established for good implantation of the master plan.

Positive and active communication Interest protection

n.a.

Local

Developing aligned management plans at different levels

In line with the National Regulations on Scenic Areas as well as the Management Regulations for Huangshan Scenic Area, the Master Plan is reviewed and ratified by the State Council, the Detail Plan for Each Zone is by the Ministry of Urban and Rural Construction, the Sectional Plan and Designated Plan for Specific Challenges are approved by the Provincial Bureau of Construction or relevant provincial administration, so the whole systematic plan has solid legal status.

1.Strict supervision and follow-up monitoring system has guaranteed the effective implementation. 2.Unified management: In the past years of practice, the Committee has shaped a suitable mechanism to execute the plans. 3.Adequate funding: over 60 mio. yuan each year is designated in heritage conservation, infrastructure improvement, support for neighborhood communities. In addition, Anhui Province dedicates a grant of 2 million yuan every year specifically for heritage conservation. Adequate funding is crucial for the implementation of plan

1. Systematic planning is extremely effective in solving challenges. In the process of planning, scientifically based studies will be conducted to find out the factors that may pose threats to the conservation. In holding workshops at different levels, all stakeholders are involved in contributing possible solutions. These discussions will lead to a holistic solution and unified action plans. 2. A plan shall be both visionary and practical. A plan is believed to be visionary. It predicts what will happen in the future. So, it takes in the best practice and advanced concepts to ensure its foresight and futurity. However, it has to be practical so that it can be operational to solve the specific challenges that face each entity. 3. A sound and unified planning system can guarantee effective implementation. No single plan can solve all the problems. Different plans are tailored to different targets. They may differ in their specific goals, but all of them shall be complementary to each other in the umbrella Master Plan.

Local

Public rewards for best actions

All work is recorded in photos and videos and disseminated on social media. The best actions and practices are awarded in public events. The association will meet at its General Assembly and each member will vote for a person to be named the volunteer of the year. The person with the most votes will be publicly awarded and reported in local and national media.

Existence and partnership with a local community Radio station.

By publicly rewarding a person you motivate them and inspire others to follow the same example. You have to make sure the process is clear and fair to avoid any discontent.

Implementation

Local