REPORT ON EU AND ACP VISIBILITY THROUGH BIOPAMA AT THE IUCN WORLD PARKS CONGRESS 2014 Report from the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014 of the BIOPAMA- Protected Areas Component www.biopama.org
An Intra African-Caribbean-Pacific programme with a global voice at the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014 The Biodiversity and Protected Area Management (BIOPAMA) programme participated in the protected area event of the decade, the IUCN World Parks Congress (WPC) 2014, taking place in Sydney, Australia, 12-19 November 2014. By putting forward its resources and capacity, and with the support of the European Union and the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Secretariat, who initiated and funded this programme, BIOPAMA achieved important results at this global event. In the lead up to the World Parks Congress, the BIOPAMA programme supported a number of planning meetings and regional fora that enabled stakeholders to provide technical inputs into the design of congress streams as well as prepare key regional messages. Since BIOPAMA was launched in 2012, the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014 has represented one of the most important opportunities to showcase BIOPAMA as a major initiative contributing to achieving better management of protected areas in Africa, Caribbean and Pacific countries and worldwide. It was also an excellent opportunity for networking with ACP experts and institutions participating in the event. With more than 6,000 participants from 160 countries, Head of States and governments, protected area managers, indigenous peoples and conservation leaders, participants were regularly exposed to BIOPAMA and the programme s efforts to support and promote effective management of protected areas as a sustainable solution for the long term conservation of biodiversity. The congress was also attended by high level representatives from The World Bank, GEF, UNDP and FAO. Through financial and technical contributions, BIOPAMA and its donors, the European Union and the ACP Secretariat, were recognized as silver partners of the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014. BIOPAMA was also acknowledged as a major contributor to the agenda of the Congress, and through the significant support to the capacity development cross-cutting theme at the Congress, considered to be one of the primary legacies of the overall Congress. The Promise of Sydney the main outcome of the WPC includes 12 innovative approaches to transformative change, one of which is a set of capacity development recommendations. BIOPAMA will work to support implementation of these recommendations, as well as several of the other innovative approaches including Achieving Conservation Goals, Responding to Climate Change, and Reconciling Development Challenges 1. This report summarizes in a few numbers, words, and images, the breadth of activities and work that resulted in a strong BIOPAMA presence and visibility of the European Union and the ACP Secretariat at the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014. Prepared by Roxana Bucioaca & Nick Cox, IUCN Caption - IUCN President Zhang Xinsheng and IUCN BIOPAMA Programme Manager Nick Cox discussing Africa Leaders Dialogue opening. Credit- ICMS. 1 For more information: http://worldparkscongress.org/about/promise_of_sydney 2 P a g e
In a nutshell... BIOPAMA at the IUCN WPC 2014, some numbers and facts: - Raising awareness of the EU and ACP support for BIOPAMA and protected area management issues, to an audience of more than 6,000 delegates from 160 countries - 29 BIOPAMA and BIOPAMA-related events during the 6 days of Congress events, representing 13% of all congress events - A BIOPAMA-supported team of 17 staff from IUCN regions, IUCN Headquarters and JRC present at the WPC to support our communications and visibility efforts - 22 protected area champions supported by BIOPAMA to bring the African messages to the WPC, 5 participants from the Caribbean and 2 participants from Fiji Locally Managed Marine protected area network supported by BIOPAMA - 4 traditional voyaging canoes that travelled from the Pacific Islands to bring the regional conservation messages to the WPC - 1,200 new users of the BIOPAMA website in the WPC timeframe - 10 new marketing materials developed before the WPC to promote our work and the support from our donors - 3 publications launched at the WPC with BIOPAMA support - Social media coverage through the IUCN, WPC and stakeholders channels. And more, the IUCN WPC presented the opportunity to: - Engage with stakeholders and introduce BIOPAMA to new audiences - Call on the conservation community and policy makers to contribute to BIOPAMA - Propose an inspiring solution for the long term conservation of natural resources through better capacity to improve policy and decision making, and better access to the best available science and knowledge. - Enhance collaboration with: o Partner organizations and stakeholders: ESRI, Google, SMART Partnership, UNEP-WCMC, WCS, American Museum of National History, SPREP, SADC, AHEAD TFCA, Parks Caribbean, LMMA o Representatives of the extractive industries sector: Rio Tinto and DeBeers o BIOPAMA donor s representatives: DG ENV and DG DEVCO o o Local/regional/national actors across Africa, Caribbean, Pacific Different IUCN programmes, under the One Programme approach: the Biodiversity Conservation Group, The Regional Offices for Oceania, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, West and Central Africa, Eastern and Southern Africa, the EU Representative Office, the World Commission on Protected Areas, the Environmental Law Centre, the Programme on African Protected Areas and Conservation, and the Business and Biodiversity Programme. 3 P a g e
Some impressions from the BIOPAMA team and partners Steve Peedell (JRC-BIOPAMA project leader): A common message I've heard around the IUCN World Park Congress is the continuing need for a sound information base for decision making. Although there are undoubtedly data gaps, in many cases the challenge is delivering the right information products from existing data. In BIOPAMA we are providing a platform to integrate data, so it is encouraging to see a growing number of datasets being made available online and openly shared, and focused tools to support their use. Eleanor Sterling (IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas): The Capacity development for protected areas tools developed with BIOPAMA support can be used anywhere in the world. Christine Mentzel (BIOPAMA Regional Coordinator, Eastern and Southern Africa), talking about the Mutual Gains Approach (MGA) process to negotiations: The WPC offered a good opportunity to network and explore more examples of the application of the negotiation methodology for protected areas. The TED Talk session was great! The methodology presented (MGA) fit perfectly as the process followed in all the examples that preceded my talk, i.e. variations of the MGA were used in protected area land negotiations in various countries and these examples comprised the first part of the session. The MGA process discussion confirmed and formalized the processes already followed in these areas and which had already shown good results. Hyacinth Armstrong-Vaughn (BIOPAMA Regional Coordinator, Caribbean): The IUCN WPC was an opportunity to increase BIOPAMA s visibility and share with colleagues in the Caribbean region with a view to advancing further regional integration through IUCN s regional office for Mexico, Central America and Caribbean. The BIOPAMA tools presented were well received. Tony O Keeffe (BIOPAMA Regional Coordinator, Pacific), taking about the Mua: Guided by Nature : I was struck by the apparent simplicity, yet eloquence, confidence and power, of the regional perspectives voiced by individual Pacific Islanders concerning their approach to nature, their livelihoods and their customs. Additionally, the voyage bought forward many younger, and older, people who were crew members and gave them the opportunity of being regional environmental champions, community role models and spokespeople, and which many of them did with notable skill, maturity and impact. 4 P a g e
1. BIOPAMA and Capacity Development for a Protected Planet Capacity development for protected areas is a major initiative of IUCN, the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (IUCN WCPA), and the BIOPAMA programme. BIOPAMA contributed significantly to the preparation of a series of workshop-style capacity development sessions at the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014 where several new products were introduced to a wide range of participants for feedback. Competencies, standards, a body of knowledge, professionalization of protected areas management, and certification are some of the key themes and products discussed in numerous WPC sessions that BIOPAMA supported. BIOPAMA Capacity Development Presentation - The whole IUCN BIOPAMA team presented on progress made across all the ACP regions on capacity development initiatives. The session was well attended and provided an opportunity for regional stakeholders to hear about plans for the future as well as provide feedback and suggestions for partnerships and networking. E-Poster Presentation A rapid-fire presentation giving an overview of the objectives of the BIOPAMA programme with particular emphasis on capacity development for improved decision making and protected area management using information systems and data tools. Knowledge products: The Protected Area Governance and Management Book is an important contribution to the IUCN WCPA professional development programme and an investment of the BIOPAMA programme in the expertise of the next generation of protected areas managers. It was officially launched at the IUCN WPC 2014 and it has been available online for free since February 2015. The Protected Planet Report 2014: Produced by UNEP-WCMC, Protected Planet not only monitors global efforts to support and expand protected areas, but supports governments toward faster progress with recommendations for action. The 2014 edition of the Report was released at the IUCN World Parks Congress and it was possible with financial and technical support from BIOPAMA. Responding to Climate Change: Guidance for Protected Area Managers and Planners : The Guide addresses key adaptation concepts and includes discussions on how to integrate protected areas adaptation into regional to national-level environmental planning and decision-making. Prepared by IUCN WCPA and partners, and with financial support from BIOPAMA and others, the consultative draft was launched at the IUCN World Parks Congress and the publication will be available mid 2015. 5 P a g e
Capacity development initiatives at regional level showcased at the IUCN WPC: 1. Mutual Gains Approach Ted Talk: negotiation for better PA management and decisions One of the key capacity building priorities for BIOPAMA Eastern and Southern Africa region is the cross-sectoral engagement for integrated sustainable planning. The Mutual Gains Approach is an example of negotiation process applied by BIOPAMA for facilitating constructive dialogues with other sectors and stakeholders in and around protected areas. At the IUCN WPC 2014, this process was highlighted within the Capacity Development Resource Fair and a Ted Talk Session in the framework of Stream 5, Reconciling Development Challenges. 2. BIOPAMA Pacific Capacity development session in the WIN-Pacific Pavilion This event provided a brief snapshot of the capacity development activity that BIOPAMA has progressed in the Pacific to date and to identify future activity focus. The objectives of the session were to inform and raise the profile of the BIOPAMA programme, its presence in the Pacific and what it currently does, and intends to offer. It has generated increased and realistic understanding of what BIOPAMA s ambition is in terms of regional capacity development. As a result of the discussions with regional actors on their specific capacity development needs, the BIOPAMA team noted there is a considerable regional demand for improving protected area management skills. 3. Protected areas and the extractive industries sector in Africa - good decisions for better impacts BIOPAMA engaged with the IUCN WPC Business and Biodiversity pavilion, organizing a session on protected areas and the extractive industries sector in Africa and closely linked to the theme around land and resource use conflicts. The session explored pro-active approaches to collaboration in Eastern and Southern Africa, where there are overlapping interests between extractive industries and protected areas. It engaged on a strategic level to understand the best modalities particularly on sharing all relevant information to allow the best possible decisions for biodiversity. 6 P a g e
2. Tools for protected areas management and decision making BIOPAMA s Regional Reference Information System (RRIS) was demonstrated daily at the SADC (Southern African Development Community) TFCA (Transfrontier Conservation Areas) and European Union s Directorate General for Environment exhibition stands. Throughout these demonstrations and interactions with IUCN WPC delegates the team noted an overwhelming need for new protected area data. As the needs of policy and decision makers become more focussed, so do the data and information needs. This confirms the justification of BIOPAMA s objectives, and the Regional Observatories and the Regional Reference Information Systems it is developing. The Protected Areas decision support tools event was a highlight of all the BIOPAMA events and presented an overview on existing datasets and tools that will be integrated in the BIOPAMA Regional Reference Information System (RRIS). Led by the JRC BIOPAMA team, and including inputs from high profile participants from Google, ESRI, the SMART Partnership, and UNEP-WCMC, the event was crucial to showcase a broad range of tools that can support decision making on biodiversity and protected areas, but also the current lack of integration. It highlighted the role of BIOPAMA to fill this gap through the RRIS and the Regional Observatories that are set into place in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. The JRC BIOPAMA team presented their work in other events showcasing the importance of data for protected area decision making. Contributions highlighted the importance of the DOPA (Digital Observatory for Protected Areas) and other tools for monitoring conservation outcomes, and the relevance of BIOPAMA in the context of mainstreaming protected areas into jobs and sustainable livelihoods. The European Commission s side event presented EU s development and cooperation approaches and policies in support for nature conservation, and particularly protected areas, in the developing world. At this event, the BIOPAMA team made the case for the importance of a sound information and knowledge base to support the implementation of the EU African Wildlife Conservation Strategy and the Biodiversity for Life (B4Life) flagship initiative. 7 P a g e
3. Bringing the regions protected area messages to the IUCN WPC 3.1. African Leaders Dialogue This high level, invitation-only event organized by IUCN brought together more than 160 senior delegates from across Africa to discuss and define key conservation goals for Africa for the coming decade. The dialogue aimed to provide a forum for coordinating an African voice as input into the overall Promise of Sydney. This dialogue will serve as the start of several discussions for follow-up during 2015/2016 to define key protected area priorities and commitments. After IUCN President Zhang Xinsheng opened the event, the following speakers were invited to address the event with recommendations for the rest of the region: Hon Henri Djombo, Minister of Environment, Forests and Sustainable Development, Republic of Congo; Hon Uahekua Herunga, Minister of Environment and Tourism, Namibia; Prof Lee White, Executive Secretary National Parks Agency, Gabon; Mr Greg Carr, Founder Gregory C. Carr Foundation, American Entrepreneur and Philanthropist and President of the Oversight Committee Gorongosa National Park; Mrs Sabine Plattner, Businesswoman and Philanthropist (Sabine Plattner Africa Charities and Owner of the Congo Conservation Company) and Hon Jesca Eriyo Osuna, Deputy Director General, East Africa Community. 3.2. Pacific Talanoa The informal Talanoa (talk) session, co-hosted by the IUCN Oceania Regional Office and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), aimed to encourage open conversation and sharing of leaders perspectives on conservation. The three country leaders, President Anote Tong of Kiribati, President Tommy Remengesau of Palau and Prime Minister of Cook Islands, shared inspirational stories on how they had been driven to make their conservation commitments and decisions and what this means for the future of their island nations. This high level dialogue, that provided commitments from the Pacific leaders towards the Promise of Sydney, was supported by BIOPAMA with the aim of promoting and celebrating such important decisions informed by the best available scientific data and information. 3.3. Caribbean voices at the IUCN WPC With BIOPAMA support, 5 delegates from CANARI (the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute), WCPA Caribbean, Belize Audubon Society, Grupo Jaragua and respectively the Bahamas National Trust were able to present their messages at the IUCN WPC. Eric Carey, Bahamas National Trust, acknowledged the support BIOPAMA gave to the revision and application of IUCN protected area management categories in the Bahamas. He noted that the review process was an invaluable exercise for his organization and country and that other countries from the Caribbean were able to participate in the final review workshop with a view to possibly replicating the process. 8 P a g e
3.4. Mua: Guided by Nature Voyage The Mua: Guided by Nature canoe voyage to Sydney for the IUCN World Parks Congress 2014 was a compelling way of conveying and advocating the importance of the Pacific s protected areas to the world this is why the BIOPAMA programme lent its considerable support to the voyage. Highlighting and supporting the conservation of these large marine protected areas is one of the central objectives of the BIOPAMA programme in the Pacific. BIOPAMA invested resources in supporting regional preparation and delivery actions for the voyage, including: MOUs with voyaging societies, communications and promotional activities including voyage website, fundraising, interaction with associated support groups in Australia, management of a consultancy contract for specific voyage coordination tasks and some on ground coordination during the WPC. 3.5. African champions 22 African protected area champions were able to attend the IUCN WPC 2014 thanks to a programme initiated by IUCN PAPACO and supported financially by BIOPAMA and other donors. Throughout numerous sessions at the WPC, the 22 champions presented their conservation messages, grouped under the main themes: Empowering local communities in protect area management in West & Central Africa, Innovative ways of addressing current challenges of protected areas in Africa, How to reconcile development and conservation? and Governance for Conservation. 3.6. Regional protected area preparatory fora 2013 Several regional fora that prepared the regional messages for this once-in-a-decade event were organized in the year preceding the IUCN WPC 2014. BIOPAMA contributed and participated in five of them: the 4 th Mesoamerica Parks Congress (March 2013), the High Level Dialogue on Protected Area Governance in Southern Africa (May 2013), the 3 rd International Marine Protected Area Congress (October 2013), Asia Parks Congress (November 2013) and the 9 th Pacific Islands Conference on Nature Conservation and Protected Areas (December 2013). 9 P a g e
4. Networking and convening stakeholders 4.1. Africa Night This BIOPAMA funded networking event, organized in collaboration with IUCN PAPACO was a valuable opportunity for African protected areas representatives to network with each other and also meet the BIOPAMA team. With an audience of more than 100 WPC delegates, it was a well received event that promoted BIOPAMA and its donors. 4.2. West and Central African protected area networks for regional conservation dynamics Four main protected area networks are active in West and Central Africa: RAMPAO (West Africa Marine Protected Areas Network), GVTC (Trans boundary Collaboration for the Great Virunga), WAPO (Networks of Entente Parks, W, Arly, Pendjari and Oti) and RAPAC (Central Africa Protected Areas Network). BIOPAMA is investing in these networks. The IUCN WPC offered an ideal opportunity for BIOPAMA to bring every one of the 4 main PA networks around a table to share their experience with others from around the world. 4.3. The Caribbean and Nature-based solutions BIOPAMA was part of a networking event organized by IUCN targeting the stakeholders from the Caribbean and wider Mesoamerica region in the Nature based solutions pavilion of the IUCN WPC. It highlighted BIOPAMA s role in achieving the objectives of the IUCN Quadrennial Programme 2013-2016, linked to valuing and conserving nature and developing nature-based solutions to climate, food and development. The session gave Directors of Protected Area agencies from Belize and other countries in the region an opportunity to share their experiences on the status of protected areas in the region, particularly their challenges, achievements, trends, and opportunities, and to understand the benefits that BIOPAMA can bring to their countries through a video showcasing some of the BIOPAMA activities in the region so far. 10 P a g e
4.4. BIOPAMA support for the Pacific-WIN pavilion BIOPAMA was a half share financial and organising partner in providing the joint WIN/Pacific Congress Pavilion space that represented an ideal forum for regional presentations, events and displays. The event was co-hosted by IUCN Oceania and Equator Initiative s WIN, the World Network of Indigenous Peoples and Local Community Land and Sea Managers, with the support of the Commission on Environmental, Economic and Social Policy (CEESP), Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Cooperation (CTA), Mua: Guided by Nature voyage, and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environmental Programme (SPREP). The Pacific-WIN pavilion was the most optimum programme visibility opportunity to invest in presenting BIOPAMA on the regional and international stage during the current funding term. Having a focal point and meeting place for regional people to assemble and mix enabled a variety of informal discussions, events and planning meetings to take place. With cultural elements that were interwoven into the formal schedule such as displays, music, dance and art and crafts work, the pavilion created a strong Pacific atmosphere and placed the region clearly on the world stage in terms of protected areas values and issues. BIOPAMA communications and branding materials were prominent in displays.... and finally: The IUCN World Parks Congress also represented an important opportunity for the global BIOPAMA team to meet, strategise and plan next steps in our efforts to deliver the objectives of the BIOPAMA programme. In this picture: A part of the BIOPAMA team 11 P a g e
About BIOPAMA The Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management (BIOPAMA) programme aims to address threats to biodiversity in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, while reducing poverty in communities in and around protected areas. It is financially supported by resources from the intra-acp envelope of the European Commission s (EC) 10th European Development Fund (EDF). BIOPAMA combines improving data availability with capacity development to strengthen protected area management. It has two main components: one concerning protected areas, jointly implemented by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the EC s Joint Research Centre (JRC), and another dealing with access and benefit sharing (ABS), implemented by the Multi- Donor ABS Capacity Development Initiative managed by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. www.biopama.org About the European Union The European Union is made up of 28 Member States who have decided to gradually link together their knowhow, resources and destinies. Together, during a period of enlargement of 50 years, they have built a zone of stability, democracy and sustainable development whilst maintaining cultural diversity, tolerance and individual freedoms. The European Union is committed to sharing its achievements and its values with countries and peoples beyond its borders. http://europa.eu About the ACP Group of States The African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP) is the largest trans-national intergovernmental organisation of developing countries in the international system, with 79 member countries from Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. Today, the main goal of the Group is to drive South-South solidarity and North-South cooperation for the sustainable development of ACP countries and their successful integration into the world economy. http://www.acp.int Photo credits: BIOPAMA Photo Library (Hyacinth Armstrong-Vaughn, Roxana Bucioaca, Nick Cox), ICMS, Twitter and Yammer screenshots, UNEP WCMC (Protected Planet Report cover), IUCN (other publications covers). This publication has been produced with support of the 10 th European Development Fund. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of IUCN and EC-JRC and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union nor of the ACP Secretariat. Contact: IUCN, International Union for Conservation of Nature, Rue Mauverney 28, CH- 1196, Gland, Switzerland biopama@iucn.org; www.biopama.org; www.yammer.com/biopama www.biopama.org 12 P a g e