IPSI Case Study Workshop in Tokyo, Japan

A workshop was held by the IPSI Secretariat from 28 to 30 May 2019 at the United Nations University Headquarters in Tokyo, Japan as part of the process toward the publication of the fifth volume of the “Satoyama Initiative Thematic Review” (SITR vol. 5). The theme of this year’s workshop was “Understanding the multiple values associated with sustainable use in socio-ecological production landscapes and seascapes (SEPLS)”, covering how landscape and seascape approaches on-the-ground can contribute to understanding what kind of values and how they are being provided and utilized through sustainable use of nature’s resources in SEPLS. In particular, this year’s workshop and Thematic Review aim to provide knowledge for IPBES’ ongoing “Methodological assessment regarding the diverse conceptualization of multiple values of nature and its benefits, including biodiversity and ecosystem services”.

The objective of the workshop was to share case studies among the SITR vol. 5 authors and get feedback on their manuscripts for further improvement. Participants shared a wealth of opinions and suggestions about SEPLS management practices and multiple values, taking lessons from IPSI case studies from around the world.

The SITR vol. 5 is planned for publication later this year, and will have the same theme as the workshop, including write-ups of the case studies presented and a synthesis paper aimed at bringing together the various projects and extracting lessons learned.

For more information on this event, please see the IPSI website here.

New Member Introduction: ASEAN Green Justice Network (AGREEN)

ASEAN Green Justice Network (AGREEN) works with local and indigenous communities (LICs) in the ASEAN region. LICs are facing the enormous negative impact such as deforestation, land and cultural degradation, induced by climate change and mismanagement of natural resources.

For example, in Karao community, Philippines, people use Tongil, which is a conservation practice when gathering wood from the forest populated area. It refers to the selective pruning of trees, with the lower and more mature branches being harvested first, but taking care to leave a canopy that sustains the tree. The decision making process in Karao is implemented in Abonan, community center managed by A-ama (the selected elder male) and Ebbakol (the selected elder female). In Karenni, Myanmar, forest resources are inextricably tied to the spiritual world view and cultures. Strong cultural beliefs, values, and norms have led to the creation and updating of rules and regulation on resource management for generations. The households have been allowed to store some amount timbers as assets and talisman. Furthermore, there are traditional principles for resource management; A tee sar chin yin, a pin ma koke par net (“If you want to eat fruits, then don’t cut the tree unnecessary”); Thay beu hee (“Forest for our house”); Nya ar chi yin, myint, chaung, inn I ko hitain thein par (“If you want to eat fish, then protect the water”). There is no gender differentiation in the decision making process in Karenni. Women are also privileged to be a landowner with the same right as men.

AGREEN contributes to sharing traditional knowledge and methods on appropriate resource management in LICs for conservation and rehabilitation of the socio-ecological system.

For more information, see the AGREEN website here.

Recent Case Study: Bioversity International

The IPSI Secretariat recently received a case study from partner organization Bioversity International, titled “Perceptions of resilience, collective action and natural resources management in socio-ecological production landscapes in East Africa”.

If properly managed, socio-ecological production landscapes and the ecosystem services they provide can contribute to the well-being of local communities, as well as to the achievement of the global conservation agenda and of other relevant development policies at the national level. However, many of these landscapes worldwide are often highly insecure due to unsupportive government policies, agencies, and lack of local collective action. By conducting a network analysis and participatory exercises with district officials and farmers in two communities from Rakai (Uganda) and Lushoto (Tanzania) Districts, researchers studied local perceptions regarding (a) the contribution of natural resources to local farmers’ livelihoods, and how these farmers, in turn, contribute to the conservation and sustainable use of these natural resources, (b) landscape threats and resilience, and (c) major causes of the identified and possible local solutions for mitigating them. The study shows that in the four communities there was very little communication among farmers and that the cooperation between farmers and local and district stakeholders was rather limited. Farmers did not seek much information concerning conservation and use of natural resources and very few of them were aware of the existence of government programs regulating natural resources management. In addition, the study sites were found to be experiencing a progressive degradation of their natural resources. It was therefore concluded that the creation of spaces for informed, public discussion aimed at making the institutional context more favourable for the creation and coordination of community groups and at enhancing their interaction, would contribute to a wider movement of knowledge and social exchange that, in turn, could ultimately result in the creation of local initiatives aimed at the conservation of natural resources and of the services they provide.

For more information, please see the full write-up of the case study on the IPSI website here.