Research initiatives

The 2004 Symposium ‘Monitoring Matters’
Monitoring Matters: Comparative Analysis of Innovative Approaches
Climate Change Monitoring in Developing Countries
Locally based Monitoring and Indigenous People in the Arctic
 

The 2004 Symposium ‘Monitoring Matters’

The suggested benefits of locally-based monitoring of natural resources are promising. An important question however is: How much of the potential of locally-based monitoring can be translated into tangible results on the ground? To address this question, the Nordic Agency for Development and Ecology (NORDECO, Denmark), and the Zoology Department of Cambridge University (UK) hosted a two-day symposium on locally-based monitoring in Denmark in 2004. Workshop participants included scientists, natural resource managers and staff of indigenous organizations, NGOs, governments, The Global Environment Facility, and The World Bank.

Fifteen case studies were presented and discussed at the symposium (See objectives; and Programme) The case studies have all been published in a Special Issue of Biodiversity and Conservation. One of the main conclusions arising from the discussions at the symposium was the need for further quantitative comparisons of the findings of locally-based and scientist-executed monitoring, especially in developing countries, and in circumstances where data-gatherers have received little or no formal scientific education.

‘Monitoring Matters: Comparative Analysis of Innovative Approaches’

A new research programme, ‘Monitoring Matters: Comparative Analysis of Innovative Approaches’, abbreviated MOMA, was initiated in 2006. The MOMA programme examines whether the locally-based monitoring approaches can detect true local or larger-scale natural resource trends and address the shortfalls of conventional monitoring.

This programme is conducting quantitative comparisons of the findings of locally-based vis-à-vis conventional natural resource monitoring in selected sites in five priority developing countries. These countries are Ghana, Madagascar, Nicaragua, the Philippines and Tanzania. The findings will not only be of relevance for natural resource management communities, agencies and donors in their efforts to establish and sustain effective monitoring, but also for guiding realistic indicator development and policy-making of national line ministries.

The programme is funded by the Research Council of the Danish Government (Danida) over a four-year period. It involves 15 institutions in 9 countries:

  1. Department of Ecology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
  2. Nordic Agency for Development and Ecology, Copenhagen, Denmark (NORDECO)
  3. Zoological Museum, University of Copenhagen, Denmark (ZMUC)
  4. Forestry and Beekeeping Division, Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, Tanzania (MNRT)
  5. Kilolo Districts Lands, Natural Resources and Environment Office, MNRT, Tanzania
  6. Sokoine University of Agriculture, Faculty of Forestry and Nature Conservation, Tanzania
  7. Centro Humboldt, Nicaragua
  8. Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Nicaragua
  9. Wildlife Division, Forestry Commission of Ghana, Ghana
  10. Ministry of Environment and WWF Namibia under the LIFE Programme, Namibia
  11. Durrell Wildlife Madagascar Programme, Madagascar
  12. Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Protected Area and Wildlife Bureau (PAWB), Philippines
  13. University of California Berkeley, Department of Environmental Science, Berkeley, California, USA
  14. The University of Florida, Centre for African Studies and Department of Geography, Gainesville, Florida, USA
  15. Conservation Science Group, Zoology Department, Cambridge University, UK

A 3-day Programme Kick-Off Workshop was convened in April 2006, involving the participating researchers and institutions to discuss and plan the research. The fieldwork of the research programme began in late 2006 and is now ongoing. Progress reports for 2006 and 2007 are available.

 

Climate Change Monitoring in Developing Countries

Deforestation continues at an alarming rate. It results in release of greenhouse gases originally stored in the trees and in other organic matter.

Reducing and preventing deforestation is the mitigation option with the largest and most immediate carbon stock impact in the short term per hectare and per year globally Most forest-clearing occurs in developing countries.

The Copenhagen compact of 2009 is likely to mandate forest conservation payments, because greenhouse gas emission abatement from forest conservation is much lower-cost than abating emissions from fossil fuels. Carbon traders and donor agencies demand accountability, transparency and quantifiable achievements in return for their support. In order to ensure the support of the people living in the forested areas, transparency, participatory decision-making and benefit sharing is necessary. No common methodology is in place to estimate and verify carbon emission reduction benefits in initiatives to reduce forest degradation and improve land and resource management.

Locally based monitoring may serve to ground-truth data from remote sensing, reduce uncertainty and add governance aspects yet it does not seem to be fully included in the discussions on carbon emission reduction activities in developing countries. Details on why locally based monitoring may be useful to monitor reductions in emissions from forest degradation are available.

Three factors make locally based monitoring techniques particularly relevant:

  1. They can promote accountability of carbon emission reduction efforts.
  2. They appear effective in incorporating evidence-based assessments in decision-making at the local level, and thus have considerable potential to influence on-the-ground management activities in favour of sustainable forest management.
  3. They can generate ownership to carbon emission reduction efforts, and they can encourage equitable benefit-sharing at local levels and contribute to build social capital.
     

Locally-based Monitoring and Indigenous People in the Arctic

Locally-based approaches to monitoring of natural resources appear to be relevant in the Arctic (see Science 2007). In Greenland, the livelihood of the 2,500-3,000 full-time hunters and fishermen is threatened by climate changes. With the rapid change in ice cover, the future of the hunting and fishing communities remains uncertain. Moreover, Greenland is being widely criticised internationally for the decline in the numbers of several species. Recently, the Home Rule Government has issued new policies for hunting but the regulations are not benefiting from support of the local people.

In 2008, the Home Rule Government organized a 4-day seminar on "Sustainable Management of Living Resources" for hunters and fishermen and the local government administration. One of the topics discussed was the possible potential of locally based monitoring to further improve the dialogue between local stakeholders, government resource managers and scientists, and to enhance the capacity of local community members in resource monitoring and management.

The Home Rule and The Organization of Fishermen and Hunters in Greenland are discussing opportunities for developing a hunter/fisher-based monitoring scheme and to initially establish this scheme on pilot-basis in a small number of villages. A project brief of ”Opening Doors to Native Knowledge” is available in Danish and Greenlandic.