For the last 60 years, a great number of rightsholders in Colombia have promoted sustainable management and biodiversity conservation of their territories beyond protected areas, even though their conservation efforts have not been recognized as important elements of climate-smart land planning and have very little governmental support.
The project’s overarching goal is to strengthen and make visible the culturally rich and socially diverse conservation and sustainable production initiatives that different Colombian actors are implementing, as a contribution to sustainable development that does not impoverish the country's natural patrimony.
As their identification as Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures (OECM) is an opportunity to visualize those efforts, Resnatur and partners have been working for several years in adapting the OECM identification criteria to the Colombian context together with 27 initiatives, according to the international framework.
This project contributes to the implementation in Colombia of the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Decision 14/8 of 2018 that “Encourages Parties and invites others, in collaboration with indigenous peoples and local communities, to apply … …advice on OECMs”; … “Identifying OECMs and their diverse options within their jurisdiction;”
The adaptation of the international framework and especially the OECM criteria of the IUCN guidelines and the Decision 14/8 of 2018 to the Colombian context.
The application of OECM criteria on a case by case basis.
The development of two methodological processes to apply the OECM criteria and to identify the elements to be strengthened.
• OECM framework allows to recognize other forms of conservation and governance.
• Capacity building is needed to apply the OECM criteria in a bigger scale.
• National authorities should be involved in the discussion on how to apply the criteria.
• More resources will be needed to identify OECMs and to monitor the biodiversity outcomes.
• OECMs must be areas maintaining high biodiversity value. There is a necessity to develop participative monitoring methodologies.
• OECMs are an oportunity to increase connectivity, effectiveness and climate change adaptation of protected areas systems.
• OECMs are key elements to Post 2020 Biodiversity framework goals.
Teach the community the skills of Improved Cooking Stoves (ICS)
Learners are practicing the manufacturing of ICS
Pic REAO
Trainees are painting their products
REAO 2021
After understanding bad effects of cutting trees for heating energy, the people look for an alternative to reduce deforestation. The majority concluded to learn how to efficiently use less bulk of trees with same results in energy. Thus, the adoption of improved cooking stoves reduce the use of wood by 30% with the same result in heating.
Within 4 months the cohort is taught how to mix availbale materials turning them in good ICS (clay, sand, used ironsheet, ). They are taught from scratch and become good ICS maker not only for household use but also for sale.
The availability of financial resources: To produce ICS requires a mix of different materials that need to be bought though not expensive(used ironsheet, nails, sand, clay).
Informed community: The knowledge of people enhance the right choice, ICS is one solution but there are other alternatives that might be used including those that are harmful to environment. It is required to educate the community to get good result as well as educating direct beneficiaries before any activity to be conducted for getting the best of the solution
The participation of the local community is the key to all achievements and sustainability of solution in environmental matters. We learned that when the action respects the win-win rule, then there is an interest of all stakeholders. The skills in ICS making was a big benefit for the community, which was motivated and contributed to achievements of our goals.
To increase the awareness of the community on the role of environment in the wellbeing of the humanity
Environment education in schools through National park visit
Pic REAO
To get the awareness of the community and sustainability of our solution we teach the community through public meeting, in chuches, on radio talks and with any other means that delivers information. We prepared an education module that help community to have a full package: explanation of concept "environment", involved parties, the threat to environment, the role, rights & obligations of the community in environmental protection. In partnership with schools we make study tours in parks and other reserves help the community to understand the environment.
1. The appropriate collaboration of local leaders: Local leaders provide tremendous support in mobilization but they create also an enabling environment and in the reinforcement of laws related to environment.
2. The availability of financial resources: In some parts, the implementation of above building block requires money to pay some necessities such as printings, airtalks, park visiting, etc.
The first lesson is that when the citizen is well guided, he undestands the importance of the environment protection and he is ready to act accordingly . Another lesson is that the environment can regenerate itself when taken care of. Forcing the community is not a good option for a sustainable solution in preserving the environment. Teaching them to get the personal commitment is the best alternative.
To increase the awareness of the community on the role of environment in the wellbeing of the humanity
Teach the community the skills of Improved Cooking Stoves (ICS)
Community Partnerships and Multi-Generational Gathering
Personnel from our partnering land management agency City of Albuquerque Open Space leading Yerba Mansa Project field crew members into the restoration site
Yerba Mansa Project
Parterning with local historical museum Gutierrez Hubbell House to create an exhibit on local medicinal plant traditions (co-curated by YMP Director Dara Saville and Herbalist Dianne Rand)
Yerba Mansa Project
Patnering with local schools to bring students into the Rio Grande Bosque for field classes
Yerba Mansa Project
Yerba Mansa Project events are designed to include all-ages for multi-generational events
Yerba Mansa Project
The success of the Yerba Mansa Project relies on community-building. This includes supportive and collaborative relationships with a variety of institutions including public libraries, government land management agencies, environmental- or conservation-oriented non-profits, area schools, or local businesses that share our values and mission. These mutually beneficial partnerships provide critical donations and financial support, new ideas and expertise, legal coverage for events, and also bring different people together who may have a variety of interests and connections. For example, local schools need to meet curriculum requirements in various subject areas and can accomplish that by participating in educational events that also further advance the goals of your programs. Land management agencies may provide support and benefit from invasive species control on their properties. Such partnerships may even be required as in the case of working on public lands. Additional opportunities for community-building come through offering events that are accessible and of interest to all ages. Reaching out to families with children lays the foundation for advancement of your program’s mission into the future while designing activities that encourage participation from elders incorporates their knowledge and experience.
Community support and participation are increased when activities are of interest and provide meaning to a variety of people, align with the goals of other like-minded organizations, and are widely accessible. In other words, programs should reflect something that unites the community. In the case of YMP, our riparian habitat is beloved for many different reasons by many different people and embodies our shared values of land and culture. Our events are all-inclusive providing roles for people with physical limitations or hands-on activities to engage children.
As we offered more co-sponsored events attracting a wider variety of people, we learned how to make our events more accessible. Restoration field work can be very physically demanding and tiring. In order to incorporate elderly folks and others with physical limitations we designed low-impact activities. For example, some people were more able to participate when offered a job of working with an assistant to simply clip seed heads of invasive species and put them in a bag while sitting in a shady area. Alternately, for field classes offered to our youngest students, we developed additional sensory-based and hands-on activities to accommodate more active bodies.
The pandemic presented an opportunity to make educational events more accessible, too. By offering free online classes via Zoom we enabled safe participation during a contagious outbreak and also provided access for people living in remote rural areas or other states. We adapted classes to include photographic slideshows for discussions on plant identification and uses. We also did demonstrations on how to prepare herbal remedies and wild foods in a cooking-show format.
