APN proposal "Measuring biodiversity change in the Indochina region: implications for policy and sustainability"

Proposal summary
There are a variety of policy instruments for the sustainable use and protection of tropical forest biomes ranging from international conventions, protected areas, to local-based payments. However, the effectiveness of these policies is ambiguous and needs to be evaluated using an agreed set of biodiversity change measures that encompass biological, economic, social, cultural and spiritual aspects of biodiversity. This issue will be explored through a three-day workshop to be held in Siem Reap, Cambodia, January 2006, where policy-makers, stakeholders and both natural and social scientists from the region will work together to define a suite of measures appropriate for the management of trans-boundary biodiversity in tropical forests. A follow-up three-day workshop will be held in Pakse, Lao PDR, September 2006, to assess the effectiveness of policy instruments operating from international to local scales, using the agreed suite of measures. It will also identify elements of those instruments that perform best in this respect, along with those factors that mitigate against successful policy and likely impacts on society. This workshop will involve an extended representation of policy makers and the major stakeholders in the forest biome (e.g. timber producers and conservation agencies) and involve participants from funding organisations for further project development.

Once this approach has been validated for the tropical forest biome, it is intended to apply it to other biomes in the region over the next decade.

Summary of outputs
▪ To set up a web site for the project;
▪ To develop an agreed set of biodiversity change measures for tropical forests (first workshop) and recommend them to agencies within each country, a scientific synthesis paper (co-ordinated by bioSUSTAINABILITY);
▪ Communication of science-based recommendations to the community responsible for formulating policy in the form of a two-page policy brief, translated into the language of each region, and sent to government agencies and development agencies. Use this to create media interest in the region;
▪ To evaluate the effectiveness of current biodiversity policy instruments;
▪ To make recommendations about best practice when formulating new policy and implementing effective biodiversity management;
▪ To establish a network of biodiversity and policy scientists within the region with the aim of sharing information and developing long term collaborative activities at all levels within the region.