Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Poverty Reduction Strategies

Transcription

1 Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Poverty Reduction Strategies 1* 2 Anurag Kumar Srivastava and Deepti Priyadarshini 1* Pubic Administration and Pubic Poicy Department of Socia Sciences, Schoo of Libera Studies, Pandit Deendaya PetroeumUniversity, Gandhinagar , Gujarat, India 2 URICM, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India. *Emai: anurag.srivastava@ss.pdpu.ac.in Introduction The chaenges reated to conservation of the our panet's rich biodiversity are penty and daunting and pose a severe threat to overpower our coective efforts to minimize the oss of fora and fauna, degradation of our ecosystems and devastation of natura resources. The vita units or entities of biodiversity conservation have been protected areas (PAs), but they are becoming increasingy vunerabe due to deveopmenta pressures connected to demand of and, water and reated resources. In response to these emerging trends, environmenta conservationists and internationa institutiona, mutiatera organizations have deveoped and promoted a new biodiversity conservation paradigm known as Biodiversity Mainstreaming. In essence this process is reated to impanting biodiversity concerns, considerations into statutory egisation, pubic poicies, schemes, strategies, programmes and practices of key pubic and private actors for promoting conservation and sustainabe deveopment. Being a newy emerging paradigm, biodiversity mainstreaming is a conservation approach that has yet to make a significant impact on aigning biodiversity preservation with deveopmenta panning and practices. Mainstreaming Biodiversity Biodiversity is defined by the CBD as The variabiity among iving organisms from a sources incuding, inter aia, terrestria, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecoogica compexes of which they are part; this incudes diversity within species, between species, and of ecosystems (CBD, 2014b). The concept of mainstreaming was incuded in the Convention on Bioogica Diversity (CBD) artice 6(b) which caed on the contracting parties to integrate, as far as possibe and as appropriate, the conservation and sustainabe use of bioogica diversity into reevant sectora or cross sectora pans, programs and poicies (CBD 2003, p. 6). Mainstreaming aso contributes toward fufiing artice 10(a), which cas on parties to integrate consideration of the conservation and sustainabe use of bioogica resources into nationa decision making (CBD 2003, p. 11) (Petersen and Huntey 2005). The Convention on Bioogica Diversity (CBD) a c k n o w e d g e s t h a t e c o n o m i c a n d s o c i a deveopment and poverty eradication are the first a n d o v e r r i d i n g p r i o r i t i e s o f d e v e o p i n g countries. Its 2010 target to achieve a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity oss at the goba, regiona and nationa eve as a contribution to poverty aeviation and the benefit of a ife on Earth was endorsed by the Word Summit on Sustainabe Deveopment and, since 2006, aso forms one of the targets within Miennium Deveopment Goa 7, to ensure e n v i r o n m e n t a sustainabiity. The GEF-6 Programming Directions (2014b) states that Biodiversity mainstreaming is the process of embedding biodiversity considerations into poicies, strategies, and practices of key pubic and private actors that impact or rey on biodiversity. Mainstreaming enabes biodiversity to persist across entire andscapes and seascapes. The societa faiure to adequatey price the economic vaue of biodiversity has undermined the ong-term sustainabiity of mainstreaming efforts, which have 13

2 22 MAY 2016 INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY Mainstreaming Biodiversity; Sustaining Peope and their Liveihoods 14 Image 1 : Coexistence of Birds in Gomi Kheda often focused too narrowy on threat mitigation and paiative attempts to offset biodiversity oss. As highighted in Mainstreaming Biodiversity in Practice, Scientific and Technica Advisory Pane (STAP) Advisory Document, Mainstreaming biodiversity was deveoped as a means of addressing the fact that biodiversity conservation goas are viewed as distinct from, and sometimes even contradictory to the goas of deveopment and economic growth. The higher priority put on deveopment means that biodiversity w o r k d o e s not receive the poitica, socia and financia support it needs to succeed (UNDP and UNEP, 2008). Though mainstreaming has been referred to as integrating biodiversity into deveopment, it has the added meaning of modifying that into which it is integrated (e.g. changing the focus of deveopment poicies and interventions toward incorporating the vaues of biodiversity). Economies and societies are dependent on biodiversity for cean water, sois, biomass, food, and other ecosystem goods and services. Conservation of natura ecosystems shoud be seen as a core part of deveopment, as it provides vauabe and cost-effective support to the deveopment process, especiay with respect to the poor (Kosmus et a., 2012). Mainstreaming biodiversity then has as its objective in the integration of biodiversity conservation and reated sustainabe use principes into poicies, pans, programs and production systems where the primary focus has previousy been on production, economic activity and deveopment, rather than on biodiversity conservation (Petersen and Huntey, 2005). Biodiversity and poverty reduction are interdependent and achieving both sustainaby requires integration in both the directions a process known as 'Reciproca Mainstreaming'. Mainstreaming promises the need to ink biodiversity and deveopment strategies is increasingy recognized within the goba poicy frameworks that guide action towards their major goas. For exampe the inking of biodiversity with poverty reduction appears to be distanty reated concepts invoving different sets of poicies, institutions, factors and actors. However the deeper anaysis and growing debate on cimate change reveas that this inkage is rea, comprehensive and substantive. These two concepts are intrinsicay inked. Poor peope often depend on biodiversity both for their iveihoods and as a safety net against deeper poverty. Biodiversity aso deas with the provisioning of ecosystem services such as food, water, herbs, reguating cimate and preventing disease outbreaks. Major Target areas for mainstreaming biodiversity are: Image 2 : River Loni in Gomi Kheda, Lucknow Source: Srivastava, Anurag. Priyadarshinini, Deepti.2016 Transportation Energy Agricuture and aied areas incuding forestry Private Sector-Corporate practices Deveopmenta poicies and panning at oca,

3 Image 3 : Coexistence of Animas in Gomi Kheda Image 4 : Agri- fieds and tree diversity in Gomi Kheda (Mahesh Kheda viage) Lucknow Source: Srivastava, Anurag. Priyadarshinini, Deepti nationa and internationa eves Consumption patterns Economic, trade and taxation poicies Mainstreaming Biodiversity Framework The mainstreaming biodiversity framework deas with identification of priorities which incudes biodiversity poverty mapping, critica input areas, Source: Srivastava, Anurag. Priyadarshinini, Deepti. Fig.1. Mainstreaming Biodiversity Framework spatia distribution patterns, demographic and cimatic pecuiarities etc. The panning priorities cover forecasting, visioning, scenario deveopment, perspective anaysis, resource mapping, and tabuation etc. The capacity deveopment is reated to deveopment of institutiona and individua capacity buiding. It is concerned with creating sensitization, awareness and understanding. Thereafter the deiberation and discussion on identified priorities is initiated to faciitate the isting of fitered priorities. The assessment deas with consoidating the inputs, priorities, streamining the road map, considering tempora dimensions and financia intake. The financia outay is structured to achieve the impementation objectives of mainstreaming. The monitoring and evauation is constanty performed for achieving the intended outcomes. Dependence of the Poor on Biodiversity Briefy the need for inking Biodiversity Conservation and Poverty Aeviation is based upon two basic premises: The poor are dependent on biodiversity for their day-to-day iveihoods; The biodiversity conservation can promote poverty reduction. The biodiversity provides the poor a form of cost effective and readiy accessibe insurance 15

4 22 MAY 2016 INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY Mainstreaming Biodiversity; Sustaining Peope and their Liveihoods against risk, particuary food security risks, risks from environmenta hazards, and heath risks. As per the evidences the poor have few aternative sources for protecting themseves, they have a higher dependency on biodiversity for deaing with risk. The poor tend to depend disproportionatey on reativey ow vaue or inferior' goods and services from biodiversity, simiary, risk dependence of the poor on biodiversity takes the form of a ast resort, due to absence of viabe aternatives. This dependence of the poor on ow vaue activities (and on biodiversity as a ast resort against various forms of risk) may ead towards the 'debt and poverty trap'. To further substantiate the argument the Technica Series No.55 pubication of Secretariat of the Convention on Bioogica deaing with dependence of various regions of the gobe on biodiversity resources is worth mentioning. The Tabe shows that the depth of dependence reported in these studies is high, athough there is some variation when this is broken down by weath cass, with the poor typicay showing higher eves of dependence. Poverty Reduction Simiary, poverty reduction impies ifting peope beyond a defined poverty ine transforming them from poor to non poor. But often poverty is aeviated (i.e. some of the symptoms or poverty are addressed but peope are not actuay transformed from poor to non-poor ) or it is prevented (i.e. peope are prevented from faing into or further into poverty) rather than actuay being reduced. The beneficiaries of conservation activities are often not the poor (i.e. those identified as iving beow a defined threshod of income or we-being) but simpy rura communities or those who ive oca to conservation areas or who are primary users of iving natura resources (who may or may not be poor) (Roe et a. 2010). The Word Bank, describes poverty as 'a pronounced deprivation in we being. To be poor is to be hungry, to ack sheter and cothing, to be sick and not cared for, to be iiterate and not schooed. But for poor peope, iving in poverty is more than this. Poor peope are particuary vunerabe to 16 Tabe 1 : Evidence on depth of dependence on biodiversity resources

5 Image 5 : Biodiversity and Liveihood inkage: A Software Engineer practicing Agro-Biodiversity and providing iveihood opportunity to the poor viagers in Gomi Kheda(Mahesh Kheda viage), Lucknow. adverse events outside their contro. They are often treated bady by the institutions of state and society and excuded from voice and power in these institutions' (Word Bank 2001, p15). One of the most important strategies to mitigate poverty is to create empoyment opportunities for the poor speciay the rura poor in rura areas by pushing and promoting sustainabe practices in the agricuture. As depicted in the image number 5, the Agro-biodiversity has brought a new wave of opportunity, even the highy educated professiona are pursuing farming to create empoyment opportunities for poor peope and reducing poverty and higher economic returns. Concusion Source: Srivastava, Anurag. Priyadarshinini, Deepti Mainstreaming is a socia experiment invoved in changing the vaue proposition of organization and peope. It has vita consequences for the word and the entire humanity. Enhancing the quaity of governance and creating accountabe institutions are key determinants of success or faiure of mainstreaming. The countries with strong support for Good governance woud have higher possibiity of achieving mainstreaming objectives and to enhanced capacity to tacke the most pressing mainstreaming chaenges. Good governance and strong institutions are recognized as perhaps the key determinants of project success or faiure. A baance needs to be struck between working in countries and sectors where there is sufficienty strong governance capacity for mainstreaming outcomes to have a good chance of success, and tacking the most pressing mainstreaming chaenges in situations where gobay vauabe biodiversity is threatened but capacity is often acking. Mainstreaming approaches shoud be incined towards to country specific and regiona contexts for achieving ceary defined objectives and desired outcomes. These objectives and outcomes shoud operate in goba broad based framework for targeting goba environmenta concerns and benefits, aong with serving the nationa priorities. Mainstreaming in a its forms and settings wi ony work if peope change their behaviors (Schutz, 2011). Yet recent work shows concusivey that increasing knowedge by itsef does not ead to a change in behavior (McKenzie- Mohr et a., 2012). Effective work coud be done to assess the most effective ways to promote behaviora change toward biodiversity using methods such as socia marketing a n d c o m m u n i t y e m p o w e r m e n t ( W i h e m - Rechmann and Cowing, 2011, Boderdijk et a., 2013, Cayton et a., 2013, Wihem-Rechmann et a., 2013). One of the vita aspects of mainstreaming is to identify nationa, regiona or oca environment concerns on the deveopment agenda and thereafter mainstreaming the pubic poicies and panning process with the overa deveopmenta initiative. There coud be situations when more often than not the confict emerges between biodiversity conservation and poverty reduction however baancing is required through prioritizing. The roe of poitica and administrative eadership is of immense significance in mobiizing the popuar support and promoting peope's participation for biodiversity conservation and deveopment. The poitica wi at nationa and internationa forums is required to push for providing a faciitative framework. Integrating biodiversity and deveopment approaches by focusing on economic factors that have significant impact on food, energy, tourism, water and energy. There is a need to promote deiberation and discussion invoving various patforms for raising the voices and aso 17

6 22 MAY 2016 INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY Mainstreaming Biodiversity; Sustaining Peope and their Liveihoods making them to be heard in poicy mainstreaming. It is equay important to give space to the community and earn from their perspectives on common probems. Strengthening egisative and poicy frameworks at nationa and sub-nationa eves; promoting biodiversity-friendy poicies and faciitating their impementation, through by biodiversity-driven physica, economica, socia and spatia panning wi promote biodiversity mainstreaming. It is hoped that this paper wi faciitate the improved understanding of the concept of biodiversity mainstreaming in to Poverty Reduction Strategies and highight the impementation chaenges and opportunities, and wi thereby strengthening the richness of biodiversity and ensuring sustainabe deveopment. References CBD, 2014d. Good practice guides. Convention on Bioogica Diversity. CBD. 2014a. Ecosystem approach. Convention of Bioogica Diversity, Begian Cearing House Mechanism. CBD. 2014b. What is biodiversity? Convention on Bioogica Diversity. Retrieved from: CBD, 2014c. Cimate change adaptation database. Convention on Bioogica Diversity. GEF, 2014b. GEF-6 Programming Directions. Goba Environmenta Faciity, Washington, DC, USA. Kosmus, M, Renner, I., and Urich, S., Integrating Ecosystem Services into Deveopment Panning. A Stepwise Approach for Practitioners Based on the TEEB Approach. Deutsche Geseschaft für Internationae Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, Bonn and Eschborn, Germany. McKenzie-Mohr, D., Lee, N., Schutz, P.W., Koter, P., Socia marketing to protect the environment: what works. Sage, Thousand Oaks, Caifornia, USA. Petersen, C. and Huntey, B., Mainstreaming Biodiversity in Production Landscapes. GEF Working Paper 20. Goba Environment Faciity, Washington, DC, USA. Roe, D., Mapendembe, A., Biodiversity and Deveopment Mainstreaming: A State of Knowedge review: Discussion Paper. Internationa Institute for Environment and Deveopment (IIED) and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). London, UK. Schutz, P.W., Conservation means behavior. Conservation Bioogy 25: Wihem-Rechmann, A., Cowing, R.C., Framing biodiversity conservation for decision makers: insights from four South African municipaities. Conservation Letters 4: Wihem-Rechmann, A., Cowing, R.M., Difford, M., Using socia marketing concepts to promote the integration of systematic conservation pans in and-use panning in South Africa. Oryx 48: Word Bank (2001) Word Deveopment Report 2000/2001: Attacking Poverty, Word Bank, Washington, DC. 18