Climate and Environment – Page 3

Her Farm Radio: Building knowledge and developing the capacity of Malawi’s female farmers on forest landscape restoration (Farm Radio Brief, 2018)

June 12, 2018

As farmers, foresters and providers, women have a unique understanding of the ecosystems they live alongside. A radio programme in Malawi is tapping into this immense body of knowledge by creating a platform for women to engage in landscape restoration.

This brief illustrates the work carried out by Farm Radio Trust on gender-sensitive radio programming on forest landscape restoration in Malawi, using the Her Voice on Air approach to engage women in crucial discussions both on-air and off air.

Click here for full brief.

Where Land Meets the Sea: A Global Review of the Governance and Tenure Dimensions of Coastal Mangrove Forests (CIFOR and USAID 2016)

February 10, 2017

This report provides a synoptic analysis of the legal and governance frameworks that relate to the use and management of mangrove forests globally. It highlights the range of challenges typically encountered in the governance and tenure dimensions of mangrove forest management. This assessment forms part of a broader study that includes national-level assessments in Indonesia and Tanzania. It was carried out under the USAID-funded Tenure and Global Climate Change Program. The report provides information on the challenges for mangrove rehabilitation and restoration, legal frameworks for the governance of mangroves, mangrove governance and tenure in practice, and lessons in mangrove governance for policy and practice.

Primary findings from this assessment show that authority over mangrove forest management is overwhelmingly vested in state institutions and that mangrove protection is a central objective. Given the ambiguous role of mangroves situated between the land and sea, the configuration of state authority for mangrove management is quite complex. Mangrove forests that incorporate local communities into their management fare better, the study finds. Recognizing the importance of gender and community rights in mangrove use and planning prevents the deterioration of these fragile ecosystems. In some countries, there is fragmentation of responsibilities across two or more agencies such as forests, fisheries, environment, and wildlife. This contributes to a high level of segmentation and jurisdictional ambiguity. Frameworks and mechanisms for enabling multi-sectoral coordination across agencies and governance levels are uncommon, and where they exist, they are difficult to put into practice.

Participatory Planning for Climate Compatible Development in Maputo, Mozambique (UCL Press 2015)

July 17, 2016

Participatory Planning for Climate Compatible Development in Maputo, Mozambique is a practitioners’ handbook that builds upon the experience of a pilot project that was awarded the United Nations ‘Lighthouse Activity’ Award.

Building upon a long scholarly tradition of participatory planning, this dual-language (English/Portuguese) book addresses crucial questions about the relevance of citizen participation in planning for climate compatible development and argues that citizens have knowledge and access to resources that enable them to develop a sustainable vision for their community. In order to do so, the author proposes a Participatory Action Planning methodology to organise communities, and also advances mechanisms for institutional development through partnerships.

This book is available as a free Open Access PDF

Climate Information and Early Warning Systems Communications Toolkit (UNDP 2016)

March 11, 2016

This toolkit provides National HydroMeteorological Services (NHMS), policy makers, and media and communications for development practitioners with the tools, resources and templates necessary to design and implement an integrated communications strategy.

These communications strategies include the effective issuance and packaging of early warnings as well as the creation of supportive communications products and outreach efforts that will support the long-term sustainability of investments in the climate information and services sector. While this communications toolkit is tailored to the specialized needs and political contexts of sub-Saharan Africa, it can easily be applied to other developing nations.

Communications is a cross-cutter and should be injected and leveraged at every stage of project implementation. Thoughtful and purposeful communication and advocacy can build in-house collaboration, foster knowledge sharing between nations, support technology transfer and build political support.

More importantly, through the issuance of early warnings and improved climate and weather information – and the development of appropriate public service announcements on what to do when bad weather hits – integrating communications into the everyday activities of NHMS can save lives, support sustainability and build livelihoods.

In this toolkit, we will define goals for the issuance of early warnings, and creation of improved climate information products and supportive communications strategies. These supportive strategies serve to engage actors, build political support, engage the private sector and present a true value proposition to end users. The toolkit explores best practices, defines roles and expands on the tools that are necessary to create an integrated communications strategy. The toolkit continues with a step-by-step outline to create response protocols and issue early warnings, address challenges and opportunities, define messages and stakeholders, package early warning systems, and engage with individual media and other relevant actors. There is a communications strategy template and TORs template that can be used by projects and practitioners to generate integrated communications strategies.

(Source and copy: email from Greg Benchwick, Senior Communications Specialist, UNDP)

News media and climate politics: civic engagement and political efficacy in a climate of reluctant cynicism (CCPA, 2015)

September 24, 2015

This study from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives looks at how the news media cover climate change and how this in turn has a strong impact on how citizens understand and engage with the issue. This study identifies ways in which media either create “climate cynicism” or help build more positive public engagement.