CATS CARPHA UAS flying and mapping methods training course St. Lucia, November 2018
GIZ
CATS CARPHA UAS flying and mapping methods training course St. Lucia, November 2018
GIZ
CATS CARPHA UAS flying and mapping methods training course St. Lucia, November 2018
GIZ
CATS CARPHA UAS flying and mapping methods training course Grenada, December 2018
GIZ
Demonstrating UAS Site Results: Beausejour Wetlands
GIZ
Mushroom Cultivation Training: Inoculating substrate, St. Lucia, 2017
GIZ
Mushroom Cultivation Training: Trainee collects sample for pure culture, St. Lucia, 2017
GIZ
Soufriere Primary School Tree Planting and Farming initiative, St. Lucia.
Caribbean SEA/Waterways
Soufriere Primary School Tree planting by students with the assistance of Grounds Crewl
Caribbean SEA/Waterways
World Food Day Exhibition of Soufriere Primary School
Caribbean SEA/Waterways
The CATS Programme was based on the acknowledgement that good practices within the terrestrial zone augur well for the health of the coasts and marine spaces. Thus, it worked with practitioners (farmers, foresters, agroprocessors) within this space by teaching and reinforcing good practices that could be incorporated within their operations. A small group was also taught the specialised skills for mushroom cultivation as an alternative to traditional crop production. This niche area was anticipated to increase food production diversity as it aligned with the practices of good resource management, recycling of byproducts and resilience. For practitioners at the management level, the Programme supported the training of various persons in the practical application of Unmanned Aerial Systems for natural resource management and monitoring. Since CATS Programme’s introduction of this, several other organisations both private and public sector have embarked on similar trainings for their officers.
Resource management was an area of much focus by various actors within the stakeholder community. Thus, the challenge of obtaining buy-in and interest was minimal. Partners already had at least a basic understanding of the importance and relevance of effective resource management and the interconnection between the terrestrial and marine spaces. Further, given there were several other actors in the technical support and grant sectors with whom it was possible to collaborate to maximise results. Support from the ministries of agriculture in the various islands was also an enabling factor. Their technical expertise helped facilitate the implementation of the various initiatives. The ministries were the principal source of technical support for all terrestrial interventions under the programme. With regard to the management level, the actors, particularly in the forestry sector, saw the technology as a very relevant intervention as they were keenly aware of their monitoring limitations and saw the tool as an opportunity to improve the scope and efficiency of their monitoring.
The incorporation, within farming practice, of non-synthetic inputs for fertility and control of pests and weeds, though widely practiced many decades ago, is now alien to the majority of farmers. Modern farmers rely on their crop for their livelihoods and have clearly expressed that they are not willing to experiment on their sale crops by incorporating improved practices. They expressed concern about the risk of diminished crop quality, a situation which would reduce their revenue. They were unconvinced that they would be able to sustain their livelihoods if they were to change their farming practice to be more environmentally friendly. Thus, and future iterations of projects seeking to improve farm practices would have to incorporate significant investment and focus on demonstration plot establishment, research and development and start-ups. Despite having gone through a very rigorous process of participant selection for the mushroom cultivation training, it was recognised that the personal economic challenges and ambitions of the participants was an inhibiting factor; although all the trainees were keenly interested in pursuing the business start-up, they were challenged by the need to have secure revenue, and found it easier to continue their modus operandi prior to the training, as opposed to making the sacrifice needed to start the new businesses. All this was despite the project incorporating in its design access to raw materials needed for production during the initial months of production. The high-risk aversion of persons being encouraged to start up new businesses needs to be overcome by incorporating even more support mechanisms. The Programme failed to complete the second phase of the remote sensing training, thus pilots trained and their organisations failed to attain the full support needed to confidently incorporate remote sensing in their operations. Future such interventions should ensure completion of all necessary phases of support to ensure sustainability.
The project team facilitated the development process of the supporting documents (05) required to enhance the capacity of the network and finalize the formal registration as an NGO in Zanzibar.
The documents developed included a Communications Strategy, Financial and Accounting Manual, Partnership and Fundraising Policy, Human Resources Policies and Procedure Manual, and Procurement Annual. In addition, the website of WIOMN was redesigned and updated: https://wiomn.org.
Moreover, the WIOMN Five-Year Strategic Plan 2023-2027was developed during the SOMN project implementation process as an effective tool. This ensures opportunities and challenges that affect the Network’s operations and bring changes in governance and management of mangroves in the WIO region.
The availability of the funds, the willingness of the WIOMN Executive Secretary and its board to take their organization to another level, the fruitful collaboration within the consortium and the local expertise of the consortium was a great help in that phase.
The honest dialogue and flow communication between partners turned out to be one of the most important cornerstones for the successful institutionalization of the WIOMN.
National Mangrove Ecosystem Management Plan 2017-2027
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National Mangrove Ecosystem Management Plan 2017-2027 provides for establishment of National and County Mangrove Management Committees to serve as advisory organ to inform Kenya Forest Service on the technical issues regarding mangrove management. The committees at national and in the five counties of Kwale, Mombasa, Kilifi, Tana River and Lamu, have been established and operationalized. Their membership comprise of technical experts for mangrove ecosystem relevant disciplines, including; Forestry, Fisheries, Wildlife, Water, Land, and Climate, and representatives of communities and Civil Society/Non-governmental organizations.
The National Mangrove Ecosystem Management Plan was developed through a participatory process and adopted by Government.
Inclusive participation of Government, community, Civil Society/Non-governmental organizations
Government policy that provides for establishment of the committees to coordinate mangrove management
After conducting an initial stakeholder mapping in the WIO region, the WWF Tanzania Office-led consortium initiated discussions with the WIO Mangrove Network (WIOMN) regarding potential collaboration on mangrove conservation. Through these consultations, two key barriers to the network’s past effectiveness were identified: (1) a pressing need for capacity-building initiatives, and (2) the absence of formal NGO registration. To address these gaps, the consortium strategically integrated these priorities into the project proposal, ensuring appropriate activity planning and budget allocation.
The strong, long-standing partnerships between WWF offices, IUCN, and Wetlands International - combined with their deep regional expertise in the WIO - were critical enabling factors throughout this process.
Early Stakeholder Alignment is Critical: Proactively engaging core partners (WWF, IUCN, Wetlands International) during the planning phase built consensus and accelerated decision-making.
Legal Status as an Enabler, Not an End Goal: Formal NGO registration was essential for governance and funding access.
Adapt to Regional Complexities: Navigating varying national legal frameworks across WIO countries demanded flexible, context-specific approaches.
Invest in Parallel Capacity Building: Addressing gaps in administrative/legal expertise (e.g., through partner support) proved as vital as the registration itself.
Leverage Existing Networks: The Nairobi Convention and WIOMSA provided institutional credibility, reducing bureaucratic hurdles.
Patience Pays Off: Legal processes took longer than anticipated; early scoping of timelines prevented unrealistic expectations.
Committee establishment, formalization and operationalization
Forest Conservation and Management Act, No. 34 of 2016
Building block 4 – Cooperation between NOCs and local nature conservation organisations as a prerequisite for success
The IOC requires that all Olympic Forest Network projects “be developed and implemented in collaboration with the relevant experts and authorities.” All six projects that are currently part of the Network not only take this requirement into account but establish it as a corner stone of their implementation.
For example, the Papua New Guinea project involves a partnership between the NOC, local communities, the National Fisheries Authority, and the Conservation and Environment Protection Authority. The Slovenian project is partnered with the Slovenian State Forestry Company; the Spanish with the Ministry of the Environment and the Federation of Spanish Municipalities; while the Portuguese project has the technical support of the governmental Institute for Nature and Forest Conservation (ICNF) and the Abramud e Sentido Verde association.
Requiring partnerships between NOCs and environment experts ensures that projects running under the Olympic Forest Network are as relevant and effective as can be with regards to nature conservation. Partnering with local experts and organisations also ensures that the Network can have meaningful impact not only on the environment, but also on the local communities where projects are run. Moreover, it facilitates local interest in, and ownership of, environmental work.
Criteria set by the IOC requiring NOC-led projects seeking to be a part of the Olympic Forest Network “to be developed and implemented in collaboration with relevant experts and authorities”.
Local organisations’ environmental knowledge and expertise.
Interest of local environmental organisations in the (communications and engagement) potential of the Olympic Movement.
Providing basic standards and guidelines helped the NOCs find the right partners and (business) solutions locally. Thanks to this local approach, NOCs could be guided by national/local experts to find the best solution in terms of added value for ecosystems and local communities.
Building block 3 – Embracing local expertise, governance, and ownership of projects
While following the direction and guidance of the IOC, NOCs are best placed to design and implement projects complying with the IOC’s global standards at local level. This means that the IOC can support and promote environmental projects, while benefiting from expertise that the NOCs can provide in the local context through. This implementation method not only promotes local solutions to global problems, but also increases local ownership, empowers local communities, and promotes cooperation between sports, local environmental groups and indigenous peoples.
In Brazil, for example, the “Brazil Olympic Committee Olympic Forest” project aims to restore a damaged part of the Tefé National Forest in the Amazon and is executed together with the Mamirauá Institute of Sustainable Development. Besides restoration, the project’s objective is to reinforce the sustainable use of the forest by the local community through planting key species such as Brazilian chestnut and açaí or providing training to the local community.
Training and upskilling of local communities (on mangrove planting/rehabilitation) is one of the main objectives also of the Papua New Guinea Olympic Committee’s “Love Your Coast Project” where they aim to train “Love Your Coast Champions”, who are to lead small conservation projects in their communities
As leader of the Olympic Movement, the IOC is responsible for coordinating relations and actions of all members of the Olympic Movement, including the National Olympic Committees. This ensures that projects and actions can be designed and implemented according to consistent regulations or guidelines, enabling continuity and best practice across the Olympic Movement’s environmental activities.
While it was important to set up general criteria that all projects would need to comply with to ensure consistency and high quality, providing NOCs with the flexibility to reflect local context and its particular risks and opportunities in how they approach the criteria proved to be equally vital.
The use of scientific data and analysis provides a sound and sustainable basis to develop scenarios and provide information for the design of sustainable plans, projects and activities. Given specific knowledge may not be always a working tool, particularly when GIS and scenario and data analysis is referred to, it is important to ensure and to include the need IT and specialist that may build knowledge, capacities and awareness in all development and biodiversity practitioners.
For this the project supported the technical contribution of a specialist and developed a series of power point to explain and to train the beneficiaries on its use and on the use of the provided scenarios, as development and ecosystems-based planning tools.
Software and human resources available
Capacity to present the solutions and results in a manner that is understandable by all and by each sector.
Maintenance of updated data
Focus on results and scenario analysis, including the linkages between climate change, poverty, population dynamics and biodiversity.
Capacity to demonstrate what mangrove loss impacts imply on coastal communities' livelihoods.
Systemic information sharing.
Best quality analysis and skills.
Practical examples on use of the products.
Linkages to sectors - conservation, biodiversity, climate change, water, land systems, economic activities - to ensure appropriation and use of the products at local and community level.
For the integration of multi-sectorial data and multiple partners databases, as well as post action awareness raising efforts, IUCN mobilised its members, donor community, conservation actors and biodiversity and GIS specialists, around the Government technical group. Along the document development, several meetings were organised to ensure engagement and participation, with the focus on wider and qualitative data. The partnerships contributed for actors coordination, integration of several studies and the inclusion and the links to biodiversity components, particularly mangroves.
The exercise facilitated a joint and common voice on mangrove protection and status to the Nairobi Secretariat, to WIOMSA and furthermore to the integration on and support to the Global Mangrove Alliance and to the Great Blue Wall.
The exercise was complimented with a training of trainers MSP workshop that built capacities in planning specialist to integrate coastal and marine components into local development plans.
Focus on mangrove and mangrove actors, IUCN membership mobilisation capacity, high level technicians and sound and transparent dialogue with Government.
Open and continuous dialogue, with focused technical content, to maintain all partners interested and engaged,
Functional database and GIS facilities to keep presenting results and how to use them,
Assure IUCN role and mandate is exercised with all members aligned and in support of the action,
Maintain decision makers aware of the results and provide evidence of how it contributes to sustainable policies and activities
