Strengthening Community Based Institutions for Biodiversity Conservation

Biodiversity can be called the lifeblood of human sustenance and welfare as it not only fulfills our day-to-day needs but also helps in satisfying our cultural and social needs. Despite knowing and understanding the importance of biodiversity, the world is currently witnessing the unprecedented loss of biodiversity. Almost all the parts of the world face some level of the biodiversity crisis and several species of mammals, birds, reptiles, and plants face the threat of extinction. The proposed project is an initiative to strengthen local community-based institutions to come together to safeguard and conserve local biodiversity. If you are a non-government organization and want a fundraising project on Biodiversity conservation, this project will definitely help you.

Project Summary

Biodiversity can be called the life blood of human sustenance and welfare as it not only fulfils our day to day needs but also helps in satisfying our cultural and social needs. Looking closely into the realm of biodiversity one realizes that no matter how much technologically sound our world may become, our dependence on biodiversity cannot be substituted. Despite knowing and understanding the importance of biodiversity, the world is currently witnessing unprecedented loss of biodiversity.

Problem Statement

Despite knowing and understanding the importance of biodiversity, the world is currently witnessing unprecedented loss o f biodiversity.

Biodiversity loss is one of the most critical environmental issues that the world currently witnesses. The rates at which biodiversity is getting lost has increased manifolds and studies reveal that the current rate of loss of global biodiversity is way higher (close to 100 to 1000 times) than pre-human background loss. Almost all the parts of the world face some level of biodiversity crisis and several species of mammals, birds, reptiles and plants face threat of extinction. Scientists predict that more than 1 million species face the threat of extinction in the coming decades. All the taxons face threat to extinction, and reports suggest that amphibians have the highest rate of extinction.

- Amphibians: Scientists estimate that a third or more of all the roughly 6,300 known species of amphibians are at risk of extinction.
- Birds: 12 percent of known 9,865 bird species are now considered threatened, with 192 species, or 2 percent, facing an “extremely high risk” of extinction in the wild.
- Fish: Across the globe, 1,851 species of fish — 21 percent of all fish species evaluated — were deemed at risk of extinction by the IUCN in 2010, including more than a third of sharks and rays.
- Invertebrates: 30 percent of the known species face threat of extinction.
- Mammals: 5,491 known species of mammals are declining in population and a fifth are clearly at risk of disappearing forever with no less than 1,131 mammals across the globe classified as endangered, threatened, or vulnerable.
- Plants: Of the more than 300,000 known species of plants, the IUCN has evaluated only 12,914 species, finding that about 68 percent of evaluated plant species are threatened with extinction.
- Reptiles: Globally, 21 percent of the total evaluated reptiles in the world are deemed endangered or vulnerable to extinction by the IUCN.

The above mentioned figures clearly indicate that biodiversity loss is real and if steps are not taken immediately to stop the ongoing crisis, millions of species will go extinct. There is a need to engage local communities to help authorities in conserving biodiversity. The proposed project is to strengthen community based conservation mechanisms in the identified project site, as involving the community offers long term support for conservation and restoration.

Governments and organizations are working on developing mechanisms that can help in maintaining and restoring the various aspects of biodiversity along with ensuring equal access of communities to bio-resources. Community-based conservation is a conservation movement that emerged in the 1980s, in response to escalating protests and subsequent dialogue with local communities affected by international attempts to protect the biodiversity of the earth.

In simple terms community based conservation refers to conservation efforts where local communities participate and support in conservation and restoration measures. It is considered to be the most effective strategy in improving the biodiversity of an area as it integrates local traditional knowledge with global scientific conservation measures.

The proposed project is an initiative to strengthen local community based institutions to come together to safeguard and conserve the local biodiversity. The project will be implemented in 10 highly vulnerable project sites, which will be identified after a series of stakeholder consultations and meetings with government officials. The primary purpose of the proposed project will be to actively engage local community members and empower them to become custodians of local biodiversity in their area.

Project Goal

The proposed project aims to improve the local biodiversity of 10 highly vulnerable sites in South East Asia through community participation.

Project Objectives

- Assess the existing status of local biodiversity, threats and overall vulnerability of the project area.
- Sensitize the local communities on issues related to biodiversity loss, importance of biodiversity and restoration activities.
- Strengthen local community based institutions and to establish community based mechanisms for biodiversity conservation.

Project Duration :Two Years

Project Location: 10 project sites in South East Asia to be selected after discussions with Government Officials.

Project Activities

Objective 1. Assess the existing status of local biodiversity, threats and overall vulnerability of the project area. The following activities will be undertaken to achieve objective 1.

- Stakeholder Consultation: A series of stakeholder consultations will be held with Government Departments, Academicians, Conservationists, Community leaders and heads of local institutions to understand their perspectives on biodiversity issues prevalent in their respective areas. Basis the consultations a report will be compiled, documenting the issues that were highlighted and the possible interventions that can be implemented for biodiversity conservation in the respective project sites.
- Identification of project area: The stakeholder consultation and discussion with relevant government departments will help in finalising the project sites that face severe biodiversity loss and require immediate attention.
- Biodiversity Survey: A detailed study will be undertaken to understand the local flora and fauna of the identified project sites. Our teams will conduct biodiversity surveys to provide a baseline overview of the site and also enlist the flora and fauna of the region. The survey will consist of the following three tasks:
  - Mapping and description of vegetation types
  - Inventorizing the flora and fauna of the area
  - Intensive, targeted surveys of habitats most likely to support threatened or endemic species
- Biodiversity Vulnerability assessment: We will be undertaking vulnerability assessment using available software and tools. The vulnerability assessment will help us in the following:
  - Identification of areas that face extreme biodiversity loss.
  - Documentation of both the exposure and sensitivity of key threats.
  - Identification of existing gaps in the policy and management mechanisms
  - Adaptation capacity of different species to the existing threat.

Objective 2. Sensitize the local communities on issues related to biodiversity loss, importance of biodiversity and restoration activities. The following activities will be conducted to achieve objective 2.

- Awareness Camps: A series of awareness camps will be organized in the identified project sites to sensitize the local communities on the following aspects:
  - Importance of biodiversity
  - How loss of biodiversity will impact present and future generations
  - Local remedial practices that can be adapted for restoration
- Screening of Documentaries: Documentaries related to biodiversity conservation and management will be screened in schools, youth clubs and local offices to ensure that people become aware about the importance of biodiversity.
- Setting of Biodiversity Clubs: Special biodiversity conservation and restoration clubs will be set up to carry out mass awareness drives in the project site. The biodiversity clubs will have academicians, nature enthusiasts, youth, school students and public figures. The main role of the club members will be to organize events to facilitate public awareness on biodiversity conservation.
- Organizing Cycle Rally/Marathons: Marathons and Cycle Rallies are an excellent way to publicize social issues and gain mass momentum. A series of cycle rallies and marathons will be organized with the help of local authorities. The primary purpose of these events will be to publicize the importance of biodiversity and the funds collected through the participation/registration fees in these events will be used for carrying out plantation activities in nearby areas.
- Local Biodiversity Fairs: Another way to sensitize people on issues related to biodiversity is through organizing biodiversity fairs. During these local fairs International NGOs, local NGOs, and Community institutes can display and highlight their activities and projects that are being carried out for biodiversity conservation. Also important facts and information related to biodiversity can be displayed through posters, images and presentations.

Stalls to capture the attention of young visitors will also be set and interesting activities will be carried out. Some of the activities that will be carried out in these stalls will include:

- Poster Competition
- Best out of Waste
- Puzzles
- Quizzes
- Bird Painting
- Interactive games

Objective 3: Strengthen local community based institutions and to establish community based mechanisms for biodiversity conservation. The following activities will be undertaken to achieve objective 3.

- Formulate community based conservation plans: Our teams will formulate community based conservation mechanisms to suit the requirement of the location. In order to formulate community based interventions, meetings will be conducted with community leaders, existing local institutions and local authorities. If there are existing institutions or community groups who can help in biodiversity restoration and conservation activities, they will be strengthened and in case there are no such institutions in any of the identified project sites, then new community based institutions will be formalized.
- Training of community members for community conservation: These community institutions and community members will be trained on using basic equipment such as GPS and camera traps, response protocols to threats to habitats and biodiversity, liaison with relevant authorities and basic knowledge on local biodiversity and key habitats. Local community institutions will be trained on various aspects of biodiversity conservation and restoration activities.
- Reforestation
- Plantation drives
- Collection of NTFPS- Sustainable ways to harvest the minor forest produce and other bio resources from the area.
- Establishment of nurseries
- Nature based livelihood options
  - MAP cultivation
  - Eco tourism
  - Value addition
  - Pasture management and conservation
  - Participatory silviculture
  - Community based water harvesting and conservation
  - Revitalising sacred groves

Expected Outcomes of the Proposed Project

- Awareness generation in rural communities regarding biodiversity conservation and protection enhanced.
- Biodiversity of the area is assessed and documented.
- Local communities trained on various aspects of biodiversity conservation and restoration.
- Increased participation of local communities in issues related to biodiversity conservation and restoration.
- Community based biodiversity conservation plans are formulated and put in place.
- Improvement in local biodiversity of the project site.
- Traditional conservation methods are revitalized.