Subnational | PANORAMA

Open Data Kit for data driven marine management in Fiji

Snapshot of the ODK based App for marine management in Fiji

MACBIO

The MACBIO project assists its partners in developing effective approaches to marine management. In 2015 the project was requested to support the design and development of open-source mobile solutions for data collection in locally managed marine areas in Fiji, among others. Thorough research and testing of existing platforms and proven examples identified Open Data Kit (ODK), as a suitable open source solution, especially in combination with KoBoToolkit.

In general, app development was carried out in an iterative, responsive way. This approach proved to be very efficient and effective, and led to an increasingly improved app. It is important to note that training, tests and iterative improvement with all relevant stakeholders should not be underestimated, before successfully using an app in the field. Keeping the approach in house had clear advantages for responsiveness.

Strategic approach: Objective and the added value of an app

Don’t reinvent the wheel: Initial market research, discussions with stakeholders and the study of lessons learned
Proof of concept phase is important: Low cost building block systems
Devil is in the detail: User contexts, internet and electricity availability , costs and modalities of data plans etc
In house, iterative approach with quick feedback loops
Development step by step with users
Open source, compatible and scalable approaches, to avoid duplication of development effort, dependencies & lock in effects
Data sensitivity issues are important, also for building trust

Open Data Kit for data driven marine management in Fiji in combination with KoB…

A guide for App Development

Decision Tree for App Development

MACBIO

App development and use is a strategic process. This guide aims to assist in this process, follwing the Digital Principles.

First objectives and types of apps are analysed, before looking at strenghts and weaknesses, as well as alternatives to smartphones and apps as technology. A guide on researching the existing app market concludes this chapter.

Secondly the enabling environment of app development is considered, from user centred development, over budget considerations and development options.

Lastly, technical aspects of app development are explored, dwelling on user needs, functionality, platforms, back and frontend, distribution and hardware considerations.

Successful development depends on enabling factors, following a strategic process that helps to ensure that the app solution

is tailored to user's needs
uses the right type of technology to address the identified objective
doesn't reinvent the wheel, if other suitable solutions already exist
is within the budget
is developed, using resources effectively
has the required functionality
uses the most suitable platform
combines backend end frontend
is distributed well
considers hardware and connectivity

The below decision tree can help to understand whether and how an app may be a useful solution to a given problem statement, following these guiding questions:

"Do I need an App for that?",
"Who makes an App for that?" and
"How to make an App for this?"

This structure is based on our experience and aims to avoid app solutions that do not properly consider objective, user need, available resources and technical requirements.

A guide for App Development

The spectrum of Smartphone Apps in (marine) resource management

There is a wide spectrum of Smartphone Apps in (marine) resource management. This Block gives orientation in the app jungle, starting with definitions and background on smartphone and app usage, and the opportunities this provides e.g. for natural resource management.

Also, there is no need to reinvent the wheel, if the answer to “Isn’t there an app for this” is yes. A list provides an overview of different app types and examples from marine management and other sectors, with a special focus on the Pacific region.

Mobile technology is on the rise and more and more people have access to these technologies, as the computing power of smartphones increases, their price drops, mobile phone coverage and access to the internet becomes more widespread and digital literacy is increasing - in industrialized world, as well as in developing and emerging economies.

Apps are bedoming more and more popular and can be powerful tools, if the addressed problem and objective of the proposed (app-) solution is well defined.

While there are many enabeling factores that can turn apps into powerful tools, often however, novelty and technical feasibility can be deceiving. Digitizing a solution often merely digitizes the problem. Instead of just going with the fashion, the problem and objective of the proposed (app-) solution should be well defined, followed by a careful SWOT analysis and consideration of possible alternatives.

Specific benefits of apps could be, e.g. wide geographical reach, while a threat could be the lack of acceptance by certain audiences, depending e.g. on their cultural background and digital literacy.

Thus app development and use must be seen as strategic process. For such a strategic approach of app development, use and monitoring, it is crucial to identify the right type of app addressing the identified audience and objective, be it “citizen science”, “crowdsourcing”, engagement, education or individual data collection.

The spectrum of Smartphone Apps in natural resource management

Oceania

Isn’t there an App for that? Smartphone Apps in marine resource management

Team

MACBIO

The spectrum of Smartphone Apps in (marine) resource management

A guide for App Development

Open Data Kit for data driven marine management in Fiji

Transfer of knowledge to local governments and uptake of measures

Cooperation projects such as EbA Amazonia are development agents that come and go. In contrast, state institutions, whether national, regional or local, are permanent with the main objective to ensure the welfare of communities in a specific area. Local governments operate close to the rural population.

Capacity transfer is another important issue from the point of view of the project.

To make the development approach of the municipalities compatible with the conservation approach of a protected area is fundamental in order to gain allies for the conservation of an area and the development of the surrounding population. This relates to building block 4 - the generation of conservation agreements between a community and their strategic allies form a solid base to channel support from the local governments in the development and implementation of adaptation measures. At the same time, information and training on how to access the state's public investment system for the local governments broadens their capacity to serve the local population and to access different funding sources.

Information on and access to public investment and rural support programs.
Having capacities for political dialogue.

Involve the local governments from the start.
Map and locate the adaptation measures according to each type of public rural and financial support program.

Implementation

Subnational

Support information on how to adapt an activity according to ecological, social and climatic conditions (Brazil nut case)

The native communities of Boca Isiriwe, Masenawa and Puerto Azul decided to start using chestnut trees (Bertholletia excelsa) that existed within their territories despite having no prior experience in doing so commercially. The first requirement or condition that the EBA Amazonía project established was to exclude the possibility of contamination of the fruits with heavy metals. Samples of soil and fruits of the chestnut were taken. No significant residues could be found, in spite of the proximity of mining operations.

The project supported them as this activity suited well with the ecosystem approach assumed by the project.

A complete database of the occurrence and distribution of the species was created in order to model the changes that the species would suffer based on current and future climatic information. According to the modelling, chestnut will remain a species with a wide distribution throughout the area of the Amarakaeri Communal Reserve, with slight changes in its distribution. This way, the project responded to the local interest by providing the necessary information to guarantee a sustainable production process.

The EbA Amazonía project planned ahead for the provision of scientific information. The necessary resources and capacities to carry out the studies were available.
Good knowledge of the forest resources: although the communities did not use the chestnut before, they knew that it existed and where it grows.

Human vulnerability (to climate change or other factors of change) is neither static, nor one-dimensional, nor uni-directional. It is multifaceted and can change rapidly with decision-making.
On the other hand, analysing the vulnerability of a plant species (the chestnut in this case) is less complex and more reliable (less uncertainty) because it is only necessary to analyse biophysical variables and the variables of exposure to climate change or other factors of change.
Using the results of the analysis is very helpful for the local population to determine their areas of interest for the protection of the chestnut which in turn can be destined for other uses of low ecological impact.

Coastal Zone Co-management & Shared Governance Approaches

Local population collecting snails in co-management areas

GIZ Vietnam, 2014

Local communities use mangrove forests in order to get timber, to fish and to collect clams and other seafood. This human interference disrupts the natural rejuvenation process of mangrove forests, for instance when fishing nets carry away mangrove seeds. For successful mangrove rehabilitation, this has to stop – and mangrove rehabilitation is in the interest of the local communities, because more mangroves mean more fish, seafood and timber. This is where the co-management approach comes in. Co-management or shared governance is a partnership agreement in which the local population gets the right to sustainably use natural resources like forests, fish and shellfish, along with the responsibility to sustainably manage and protect these resources. The idea is to allow local communities to use the mangrove forests which are owned by the state for their livelihoods. In return, local communities take over a part of the responsibility to protect the forest. The co-management building block establishes a system of shared governance between the state and the communities. Amongst others, local communities respect that at certain times, they may not enter certain protection zones.

• One of the success factors of co-management is the inclusion of a component for the payment of environmental services (ES). The programme identified the beneficiaries of ES, namely clam cooperatives that need a functioning mangrove forest. • It is the local population who protects and manages the coastal wetlands. This is why the programme initiated a benefit sharing scheme whereby clam cooperatives pay for their benefits from a well-maintained and protected mangrove forest.

While the programme has developed a number of effective solutions in Phase I, it has become apparent that these solutions can only be implemented at a broad scale when they are part of the Vietnamese government system. Many of the solutions could only be piloted in the framework of a development programme, because current rules for Vietnamese authorities do not always allow such measures – for instance regarding mangrove rehabilitation, where current cost-norms force foresters to plant the cheapest mangrove varieties which are often not suitable for the areas they are planted in. Now, the programme is working with Vietnamese Government to include the technologies in the toolbox of the Vietnamese authorities.

Entirety

Subnational

Creating a technical advisory panel for sound planning

Plan of currently consents scheme – developed with input from the TAP

RSPB, 2015

The project answers to a technical advisory panel (TAP), which meets every six months. This is comprised of a wide range of relevant stakeholders, both directly and indirectly affected by the project. Relevant parties include: Natural England, the Environment Agency (four or five individuals representing each of various arms of the EA that are involved – the environmental permitting team, the land drainage consent team, and the seawall maintenance team), the Crouch Harbour Authority, the local planning authority, Defra, the Essex County Council authorities, the Rochford District Council’s head of planning, Crossrail representatives, the RSPB, individuals from the Centre for Environment, Fisheries, and Aquacultural Sciences (local fisheries advisors), and the Wallasea Island landowner (Wallasea Farms Inc). This panel was a critical source of expertise and analysis during early implementation, and continues to provide advice as the project is completed on potential barriers and means to overcome these.

The existence of the TAP provided an underlying sense of confidence in the planning and implementation process, in order to deal with foreseen barriers. The panel supported extensive modelling, environmental impact assessments, and redesign of solutions. In particular, the design of three smaller managed realignments rather than one large one helped to overcome the problem of scale which was faced in the project.

In a project with such a high chance of technical barriers as in Wallasea Island, a technical advisory panel can be instrumental in a smooth and successful planning and implementation process. The function is essentially to support the identification of both technical and regulatory barriers and development of means to overcome these prior to project implementation.

Fostering win-win solutions through innovative partnerships for landscape engineering

Crossrail Tunnel portal at Canning Town tube station in E London

RSPB, 9 October 2015

Within the Wallasea Project, land-raising and landscape engineering was innovatively approached by creating a novel public private partnership. Materials from the Crossrail tunneling project were transported to a low-lying coastal area at high risk of flooding, in order to raise the land. The project thus established a precedent for using largely waste material generated by a major infrastructure project to meet biodiversity conservation and climate change adaptation aims elsewhere. Financing stemmed from both the private company Crossrail as well as from the Environment Agency, with all parties profiting due to the economic as well as environmental benefits set off by recycling the leftover materials. With Crossrail on board as a delivery partner, the project represents a partnership between Europe's largest civil engineering project and Europe's largest intertidal habitat creation project.

Instead of paying to remove waste materials from tunnel construction, Crossrail opted to transport them to Wallasea Island. An unloading facility enabled the materials to be shipped and then distributed across the island to build the habitats. Crossrail covered most costs (e.g. land purchase and some staff costs), with the Environment Agency (RA) funding the rest. The EA `bought` into the project to deliver replacement habitats for areas impacted/lost within the local Natura 200 network.

While sufficient buy-in was obtained by RSPB to buy the land, funds had not initially been collected to carry out the project itself. At this point, Crossrail came forward with an offer of materials and funding that permitted the project to move forward with more confidence. The main lesson learned is thus to think ‘outside the box’ and consider novel (public-private) partnerships to tap into previously unconsidered resources, and making sure to highlight the range of benefits which will be delivered to each party as a result of the project. Furthermore, a strong relationship with the landowner was particularly important in the early design phases of the project, as this led to the ability of RSPB to take out a two-year purchase option. This meant that, for a two-year period, RSPB could purchase the majority of the island if they decided to, and the price would be fixed at the beginning of this period, thereby creating some certainty surrounding the initial costs of the project.

Integrating EbA into Provincial Climate Change Response Plans

Updating the Provincial Climate Change Response Action Plans (CCRAP) of Quang Binh province and Ha Tinh province for 2016 – 2020 was an important entry point for EbA mainstreaming. This process had been led by Department of Natural Resources and Environment (DONRE) of Quang Binh and of Ha Tinh with technical support from GIZ. The Provincial CCRAP is a legal basis for all coordinated efforts of Quang Binh and Ha Tinh provinces in response to climate change mitigation and adaptation. This CCRAP includes priority projects and programs implemented by different provincial agencies to response to climate changes in Quang Binh and Ha Tinh during the period of 2016 – 2020. Findings and recommendations from the Vulnerability Assessment for Socio-Ecological Systems including recommendations of EbA have been fed into the CCRAP process at both provincial and local levels to create synergies. Expected impacts are to reduce negative impacts of climate changes in Quang Binh and Ha Tinh in the short run and in the long run.

•Sufficient awareness on current and furture climate change impacts among provincial authorities •Willingness to cooperate across sectors and government agencies

oCapacity of provincial officers involved in the CCRAP updating process including DONRE, DPI, DARD was significantly improved but continuous capacity developmenemnt efforts are needed due to staff turnover oEbA has been perceived by provincial policy makers and professional officers as a promising measure to adapt to climate change in Quang Binh and Ha Tinh that has never happened before.

Planning phase

Subnational