Building a protected areas network in the world’s largest freshwater ecosystem.

North America’s Laurentian Great Lakes truly are great. These “inland seas” represent the world’s largest freshwater ecosystem, with over 21% of the earth’s surface freshwater. And yet for all their importance these lakes have suffered much. Climate change, invasive species, contaminants and habitat loss are just some of the stresses that have profoundly impacted and altered them.

It is a challenging context for conservation, and accordingly, protected area agencies and partners across the lakes have sought ways to strengthen and enhance the effectiveness of their efforts. To this end, the Great Lakes Protected Areas Network (GLPAN) was established to improve communication and facilitate collaboration at the binational (Canada-United States) scale. One outcome of this partnership has been better profile and awareness of protected and conserved areas on other binational platforms, most notably the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.

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Community-led policy advocacy on Natural Resources Management in Kenya

NACOFA gathers community feedback on Forest and Landscape Restoration (FLR) and Natural Resource Management (NRM) challenges, such as degradation. It analyzes existing laws and policies to identify gaps and inconsistencies that hinder effective solutions. To empower its CFA members, NACOFA builds their capacity in policy advocacy, teaching them to influence policymakers, secure inclusion in consultative forums, and impact policy planning and implementation. Collaboration with government bodies like the Ministry of Environment, Kenya Forest Service, and County NRM departments addresses these gaps through policy reviews, amendments, and new regulations. NACOFA also formed coalitions with stakeholders to tackle policy issues. When governments are slow or resistant to change, NACOFA engages in horizontal advocacy by working within government oversight structures, such as Technical Working Groups and Forest Conservation Committees, to influence policy from within.

Climate mitigation using renewable energy through participatory approaches in Bipindi, Cameroon

The “Strengthening Access to Solar Energy for the Bagyeli Indigenous Communities” project in South Cameroon addresses the Bagyeli’s climate change challenges, such as variable rainfall and temperature, which affect their livelihoods. These communities face poverty and vulnerability due to limited access to electricity, impacting education, health, and quality of life. This initiative aims to enhance their resilience by increasing solar energy access, building capacity in solar system maintenance, and raising climate change awareness. Beneficiaries include 500 people and 200 students, primarily women and youth. Expected outcomes include improved solar capacities in schools, enhanced youth skills, solar installations in community centers, and solar kits for 50 families, benefiting over 300 Bagyeli individuals.

Propagation of Indigenous Tree Species in Drylands; A case study of the Red Pod Terminalia in Kenya

Propagation and regeneration of native plant species, such as the Red Pod Terminalia (Terminalia brownii Fresen), pose significant challenges, especially in developing countries where research is limited. Native to the semi-arid regions of East, Central, and West Africa, this drought-tolerant tree offers numerous benefits, including medicinal properties, timber, fuel, and materials for handicrafts. Despite its potential, the population of T. brownii in Kenyan drylands is rapidly declining due to deforestation, ecosystem fragmentation, and overexploitation. The lack of proper seed handling and germination guidelines has hindered the domestication and large-scale planting of this valuable species, affecting livelihoods and the sustainable development of drylands.

One Goal, 100 Trees – We play, We plant advocating environmental stewardship for Youth in Tanzania

The ‘ONE GOAL 100 TREES’ WE PLAY, WE PLANT Campaign is a dynamic initiative targeting youth at universities and colleges, using football as a powerful tool to promote environmental conservation. The campaign links the excitement of football with the goal of planting trees, encouraging students to score goals both on field and for the planet. For every goal scored in matches or tournaments, a commitment of 100 trees to be planted per score. This approach not only fosters teamwork and competition but also raises awareness about environmental issues, empowering students to actively contribute to a greener future. Through tree planting events and collaborations with university football clubs, the campaign inspires a culture of sustainability and responsibility among young people.

Habitat Conservation Activities for Endangered Plants in Yangsan Wondong Wetland

Wondong Wetland in Yangsan, Korea, is a rare habitat for Korea’s endangered plants, such as the Viola raddeana Regel and Pterygopleurum neurophyllum (Maxim.) Kitag.. In particular, it is known as the only habitat in Korea for Pterygopleurum neurophyllum (Maxim.) Kitag. Wondong Wetland is a wetland behind the Nakdong River that was once used as agricultural land and was restored to its natural state. However, as plants such as silver grass expanded, the population of endangered plants decreased due to competition. To expand the population of the two endangered plants, an event was held in February 2023 (winter season) with citizens to cut down grass, including silver grass, a competing species. As a result, the germination rate of the two plant species increased, and their habitat range expanded. Grass cutting was also carried out in February 2024, and it is planned to be carried out in the future before the germination period in February every year.

The TREEO Technology: A Certified digital Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (dMRV) tool for tree-planting efforts

The TREEO Technology – the first dMRV tool certified under the Global Tree C-Sink standard from Carbon Standards International – lets you prove your tree planting efforts to your stakeholders through forest inventory and even carbon sequestration calculations. The TREEO App works through image processing and machine learning models based on tree allometry, which allow for the calculation of biomass (thus the amount of carbon in a tree) by measuring the tree’s diameter at breast height (DBH). The App then calculates the CO2 sequestered by tree in a matter of seconds. When the trees are small (with a DBH less than 3 cm and less than 1.3 m in height), you can still report tree evidence for your inventory and survival rate estimations via the App. The TREEO App also collects other data such as GPS coordinates, GPS accuracy, and azimuth, as well as tree species. This information is uploaded and stored on the TREEO Cloud, our data management system where you can manage your project, teams, and data.

Community driven regeneration of native forests in Kenya

Mount Kenya, with its lush biodiversity and vital ecosystems, has been increasingly threatened by deforestation, habitat degradation, and the adverse effects of climate change. To combat these challenges, our project, funded by IKI small grants and implemented by Help Self Help Centre, focuses on the community-driven regeneration of native forests. This initiative is not just about planting trees; it’s about empowering local communities and ensuring environmental sustainability for generations to come.

Our solution begins with the heart of the issue: the people who live adjacent to the forest. These communities are directly impacted by the degradation of the environment and are pivotal to its restoration. We have trained over 1,300 members of Community Forest Associations (CFAs) in essential skills such as organizational management, leadership, and sustainable natural resource management. This comprehensive training equips them to actively participate in and lead conservation efforts.

Conservation of Critically Endangered Tree Species: The Case of the African Black Walnut (Mansonia altissima A. Chev.) in Benin

Conserving critically endangered species may involve translocation, assisted migration, introduction, or reintroduction to suitable sites. The African Black Walnut faces extinction in Benin, because of the small size of its population and the habitat degradation from agriculture, forest fires, and logging. Our solution has focused on seed germination, seedling growth, and introduction into protected forest ecosystems. One of the foremost challenges in this solution lies in identifying appropriate microsites that can support the species restoration. Thus, we have introduced seedlings into three protected forest ecosystems, with significant differences in terms of soil properties. One of the three sites, the Lama Forest Reserve (LFR), exhibits the highest nutrient levels and optimal conditions for plant growth. These favorable conditions led to the impressive growth of the species at the LFR. Furthermore, the species was fruited within five years, demonstrating the potential for its reproduction and dispersal in these forests.

Empowering Communities to Protect and Manage the Lake Naivasha Catchment in Kenya's Aberdare Forest

The solution addresses the degradation of Lake Naivasha by focusing on sustainable land management and community-driven conservation. It combines forest conservation with community livelihood support, contracting Community Forest Associations (CFA) members to raise seedlings, which were paid for by National Alliance of Community Forest Associations)(NACOFA) after being planted on degraded sites. The Kenya Forest Service allowed community members to cultivate food crops alongside the young seedlings, boosting food supply, creating jobs, and protecting the seedlings. Stakeholder mapping and strong partnerships ensured cohesive efforts, while developing governance structures empowered local leaders to manage restoration. The project’s success demonstrates that conservation initiatives aligned with community livelihoods achieve higher success rates, offering a scalable model for ecosystem restoration.

The state of protected and conserved areas in Eastern and Southern Africa : second edition

This second edition of The state of protected and conserved areas in Eastern and Southern Africa builds on the first edition published in 2020 and provides updates on how the region is managing and governing protected and conserved areas, effectively providing a regional update on the progress towards the achievement of Target 3 of the Global Biodiversity framework. While the first edition was published in relation to the previous global targets (in particular Aichi Target 11), this edition covers progress on the common indicators around management effectiveness and governance and expands to include additional information that corresponds to the revised target on PCAs (Target 3).

Amphibian conservation action plan

As the most threatened vertebrate class on earth, amphibians are at the forefront of the biodiversity crisis, with the recognition of global amphibian declines and extinctions dating back several decades now. The current Amphibian Conservation Action Plan is adopting two strategies to address the goal of the amelioration of the amphibian crisis: the development of two complementary documents that work to 1) synthesise developments in major themes of amphibian conservation over the last 15 years, as in this document, and 2) summarise the key findings and recommendations to a broader audience in a user-friendly way (a practitioner document that will follow this synthesis document). The purpose is thus to provide the most up-to-date evidence on threats and approaches to amphibian conservation, and from there identify gaps and priorities that can then be disseminated and adopted by stakeholders across the globe.

Climate mitigation and biodiversity conservation

Global climate mitigation policies are promoting a radical shift in emission reduction activities to achieve net-zero targets by 2050. Although recent scientific studies have explored the impacts of some climate mitigation initiatives on biodiversity in various contexts, a global perspective of these developments is required. This report contributes to these needs and includes a current synopsis of the carbon market mechanisms implemented around the world, how these mechanisms are related to natural ecosystems, the potential impacts of their operation, and the potential contribution of natural ecosystems in the design of Nature-based Solutions to reducing carbon emissions.