PROJECT PROPOSAL

Alfredo Quarto, Executive Director
Mangrove Action Project
PO Box 1854
Port Angeles , WA 98362-0279 USA
phone/ fax (360) 452-5866
e-mail: mangroveap@olympus.net
web site: http://www.earthisland.org/map/map.html

Legality – MAP is a registered non-profit under the administrative umbrella of Earth Island Institute which is a Federally recognized 501 (c) 3 tax-exempt organization based in San Francisco, California, USA  

Title – Ecological Mangrove Restoration Training Course

This will be the 11th In the Hands of the Fishers (IHOF) Workshop and will take place Nov. 7-12 in Vijayawada , Andhra Pradesh , India . This is one workshop of the ongoing series entitled, In the Hands of the Fishers Programme.  Ten previous IHOF workshops have taken place in Senegal , Cameroon , Brazil , Thailand , Cambodia , Indonesia and Sri Lanka .

Budget – total expected budget  $46,000

Location - Vijayawada , Andhra Pradesh , India  

Purpose – To help inspire the implementation of the ecological/ hydrological restoration method for mangrove restoration in order to create a more effective, long-term solution to coastal erosion, degraded bio-diversity, including declining wild fisheries, while offering substantial protection against future cyclones and tsunamis.  In fact, it has now been proven beyond a reasonable doubt that healthy mangroves protected both lives and property which found refuge in or behind the remaining mangroves.  This IHOF #11 restoration workshop will train the trainers from Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Burma and India in techniques and the general principles of this innovative approach to mangrove restoration, while at the same time implementing small-scale restoration projects in several locations of the participating groups who attend the workshop.  

Reason – This project is being carried out as a direct consequence of our realization that mangroves act as natural buffers or greenbelts offering a great level of protection from winds and waves.  Perhaps many of the deaths and much of the property damage that resulted from the tsunamis of Dec. 26th could have been prevented had only a healthy natural buffer of coastal mangroves been conserved along those same battered coastlines.  Following the tsunami many NGOs in India have requested assistance from MAP to help them restore the mangroves in their region.   Therefore this training is being driven by a request by groups in India .  As well, the restoration of mangroves will result in increased wild fisheries and local improvements to the lives and livelihoods of millions of coastal residents.

Beneficiaries – The coastal residents of the affected nations hit by the tsunamis, including indigenous and local communities.  As well, with the increased wild fisheries livelihoods and health of the marine environment, all the planet's life will benefit via increased food supply from the sea, decreased greenhouse gases and reduced global warming via the benefits associated with carbon sequestering by the mangroves which is part of their natural functions. Mangrove also act a filter of sediment and nutrients from land before reaching the sea.  Also  farmers living behind the mangrove will have their agricultural land protect from salt water intrusion into the soil and ground water.

Objectives – MAP working with the local NGO partner, Coastal Community Development Programme (CCDP), based in Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh, will implement a train the trainers program during the IHOF #11 workshop.  This will allow us to ensure that effective, long-term solutions are set in motion in those tsunami-affected nations.  Robin Lewis, who is a mangrove restoration expert and an authority on the ecological/ hydrological restoration techniques, will be leading this workshop.  MAP and CCDP will be working with Robin in assessing the needs of the participants, and gearing the workshop towards the real, on the ground needs of these participants before, during and after the workshop event.  Dr. Oswin from Gujarat , India and Dr. Ravi Shankar of Chennai, who are both also mangrove restoration experts will be joining our team to help with the workshop and follow-up projects.   Small-scale, follow-up restoration projects will ensue after the workshop will allow participants to put into practice the skills and learned lessons from the workshop.

Sustainability–  The project itself is designed from start to finish to involve mangrove restoration practitioners who are experienced in mangrove ecology issues of conservation, but are not familiar with the principles of ecological/ hydrological restoration.  MAP's team will be training those selected participants from India , Sri Lanka , Burma and Malaysia who will have agreed to help train other practitioners in their home regions.  In this way, MAP expects the workshop will inspire a sort of ripple effect whereby each participant will help train others in his or her home region, thus spreading the message further into mangrove country.  The will be follow-up, small-scale restoration and conservation projects, which each participant NGO will have an opportunity to help design and implement utilizing the same concepts taught in the workshop.  Drs. Oswin and Shankar will be helping to do follow-up consulting on each such project, involving local community members in the process, including the monitoring and regulation within the project zone.  Thus, sustainability criteria will be built into the project from the start.

Evaluation - The project will be reviewed by workshop leader Robin Lewis and the Indian mangrove ecologists Drs. Oswin and Shankar, as well as MAP and CCDP staff who all will be checking up on the progress before, during and after the workshop.  A plus/ minus evaluation system will be introduced to the group, asking that each workshop participant evaluate the workshop and the handout materials used during the training.  Visits to actual restoration project sites will enable the newly forming restoration team members to gain practical, on-site restoration experience, while providing a working model for other surrounding coastal districts and communities to follow.

We are projecting a budget of around $36,000 for the workshop and $10,000 for the follow-up restoration projects which will be initiated in several selected locations of the workshop participants.  During the actual restoration work in the field, others will be trained in the ecological/ hydrological restoration techniques via hands on experience in the field.

Time-frame – June-October, 2005-- Project preparation, organizing and attention to logistical needs for the workshop

mid-August-- selection of participants based on their experiential levels and submitted registration forms, including CVs and answers to questionnaire.

Sept.-- pre-workshop site visit by MAP workshop coordinator, Jim Enright to evaluate sites selected for  workshop and assess logistical needs prior to the workshop

Oct.-- All participants have obtained travel documents, airline or train tickets, and pre-selected potential sites for follow-up, small-scale restoration projects in their areas which they will document in advance with maps, photos and other statistical data to back up their efforts at commencing a restoration site proposal and assessment by the workshop trainers and coordinators.

Nov. 7-12-- IHOF #11 Ecological/ Hydrological Restoration Workshop at Vijayawada, AP, India led by Robin Lewis

Dec. 2005- July. 2006--small-scale restoration projects supported in several participant selected sites with ongoing consulting, evaluation and monitoring by both participants, trainers and workshop coordinators

Funding –

Global Greengrant Fund      $10,000
Marisla Foundation            $10,000
ICCO                              $ 3,000
IUCN                              $ 2,000
Intl. Tree Fund (ITF)         $  6,000
AID India (?)                    $ 10,000
Other Funders                  $  5,000
--------------------------------------
TOTAL                            $46,000

Personnel - MAP Staff & Volunteers Involved  

Roy R. "Robin" Lewis III-- Workshop Leader and Restoration Expert

Robin is a Certified Professional Wetland Scientist and President, Lewis Environmental Services, Inc., Tampa , Florida , USA , has more than three decades of experience in marine wetland research, publishing more than 70 scientific papers on mangrove and seagrass restoration, and has worked in eleven foreign countries on mangrove restoration projects, including Nigeria , Vietnam , Hong Kong , Thailand , Cuba , Mexico , and Costa Rica . LESrrl3@aol.com  

Jim Enright-- MAP's SE Asia Coordinator and IHOF #11 Main Coordinator--

Jim has been the main organizer and facilitator of MAP's "In the Hands of the Fishers" (IHOF) program, starting with the first workshop in Trang , Thailand in 1999.  Since then, MAP has led ten regional "fisherfolk to fisherfolk" workshops in Asia, Africa, and Latin America .  Jim also oversees MAP's field projects with partners in Cambodia .  Before joining MAP, he spent seven years working with coastal resource issues in Thailand , as a national park interpreter in Khao Sam Roi Yot, Thailand 's first coastal national park, and with the Thai NGO Yadfon Association, which promotes community-based coastal resource management (CBCRM) with coastal fishing communities in Trang.  Jim has an honors degree in Environment Resource Studies with a speciality in international development.  He is based in Trang, southern Thailand , and speaks conversational Thai. E-mail: mapasia@loxinfo.co.th  

Alfredo Quarto, MAP Executive Director and Co-founder, Assistant Coordinator for the IHOF #11 Workshop.  Alfredo  is a veteran campaigner with over 22 years of experience in organizing and writing on the environment and human rights issues.  Formerly an aerospace engineer, his experiences range over many different countries and several environmental organizations, with a long-term focus on forestry, indigenous cultures, and human rights.  Prior to MAP, he was the executive director of the Ancient Forest Chautauqua, a multi-media traveling forum with events in 30 West Coast cities on behalf of old-growth forests and indigenous dwellers.  Alfredo has published numerous popular articles, book chapters, and conference papers on mangrove forest ecology, community-managed sustainable development, and shrimp aquaculture.  

Ben Brown , Indonesia Coordinator, Advisor and Possible Assistant During the IHOF #11 Workshop.  Ben has worked for seven years in Indonesia as a community organizer and environmental educator, in addition to eight years of work internationally in the fields of watershed management, environmental education, community development, and marine biology.  As coordinator of MAP's Indonesia Program, Ben has overseen the development of three coastal community resource centers, as well as several mangrove restoration and alternative sustainable livelihood projects.  He prepares technical reports, documentation and has published an action research curriculum in his time at MAP as well.  He is fluent in Bahasa Indonesian and lives in Yogyakarta , Java. E-mail: map-indo@dps.centrin.net.id  

Eliah Gowri, Project Manager of Coastal Community Development Programme (CCDP) in AP, India and Workshop Co-Coordinator, who is handling local logistics and site preparation for the workshop.  Eliah has several years experience in mangrove restoration work, utilizing what is termed the "channeling technique" for establishing mangrove wetlands.  

Dr. (Ms) Oswin D. Stanley is currently employed as Director of Eco-Balance Consultancy

Vadodara , Gujarat .    She is holding the responsibility of conservation and restoration of mangroves in an area of 5,000 ha in Gulfs of Kachchh and Khambhat, west coast of India with  community participatory mode.  An Alumna of CAS in Marine Biology, Annamalai University , Tamil Nadu, India , Dr. Oswin's interest varies from assessment of Mangrove Biodiversity to Mangrove Restoration.  

Dr. Ravi Shankar, Associate Director, Principal Scientist and Mangrove Ecologist at the M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) in Chennai , India .  Dr. Shankar has many years of practical experience in mangrove restoration, having worked previously in consulting on a restoration project that will be used as a demonstration site during the IHOF #11 workshop.

Infrastructure – Meeting Room for Workshop

Needed Equipment and vehicles for Workshop:
  -power-point projector and screen
  -laptop computer
  -overhead projector for vellums
  -audio visual--VCR
  -cam-cord video equipment
  -copy machine
  -cell phones for field communications
  -bus or two mini-vans
  -boats to reach mangrove restoration sites for field trip 

Monitoring – Monitoring will commence before the workshop at pre-selected demonstration sites for restoration follow-up work by the participants themselves. The main workshop coordinators will monitor and  assess their own sites that will be used as demo sites during the IHOF #11 workshop. All post-workshop restoration projects will be monitored by the local participants and their trained volunteers from the local communities, by MAP staff and advisors involved in this project, and by Drs. Oswin and Shankar who will be "roving consultants" visiting the sites in question and advising on the works in progress at these sites.  

Management -

Robin Lewis, MAP Chief Technical Consultant on Mangrove Ecology and Restoration, Leader of Workshop and Advisor on Post-workshop Restoration Projects, 30 years experience in Mangrove Restoration and Designer of Ecological Restoration Methodology.  

Jim Enright, MAP SE Asia Coordinator and Workshop Coordinator, Has over 13 years experience in Southeast Asia mangrove areas and a MAP staff person for several years based in Thailand .  

Alfredo Quarto, MAP Executive Director and Co-founder, Assistant Coordinator for the IHOF #11 Workshop, 22 years NGO organizing experience  

Ben Brown, Indonesia Coordinator, Advisor and Possible Assistant During the IHOF #11 Workshop, several years with MAP, experienced in mangrove restoration efforts  

Eliah Gowri, Project Manager of CCDP in AP, India and Local Workshop Coordinator, who is handling local logistics and site preparation for the workshop. Eliah has several years experience in mangrove restoration work, utilizing what is termed the "channeling tecxhnique" for establishing mangrove wetlands.  

Dr. (Ms.) Oswin D. Stanley, mangrove ecologist in India responsible for mangrove restoration follow-up projects and monitoring.  Dr. Oswin is currently employed as Director of Eco-Balance Consultancy in Vadodara , Gujarat .  

Dr. Ravi Shankar, will be responsible for mangrove restoration follow-up projects and monitoring.   Dr. Shankar is Associate Director, Principal Scientist and Mangrove Ecologist at the M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) in Chennai , India .   

Documents – list of further documents available.  

IHOF #11 Draft Budget, MAP Statement of Qualifications, MAP's Proof of Non-Profit Status, Financial Report for 2004, Annual Report for 2004, MAP Brochure, MAP electronic newsletters. In preparation: Illustrated Mangrove Restoration Guide