USAID/COLOMBIA FUNDED CONSERVATION LANDSCAPES PROGRAM COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT AID-514-A-09-004 Photo: PPC / Santuario de Fauna Los Flamencos / Ma. Ximena Galeano Sixth Quarterly Report (October-December, 2010) February 2011 This report was produced by Patrimonio Natural – Fondo para la Biodiversidad y Áreas Protegidas, for review by the United States Agency for International Development 1 Prepared for the United States Agency for International Development, USAID – Patrimonio Natural Cooperative Agreement AID-514-A-09-00004 By: Patrimonio Natural – Fondo para la Biodiversidad y Áreas Protegidas Calle 72 No. 10 – 70, Edificio Centro Avenida Chile, Torre A. Oficina 1005 – 1006 Bogotá, D.C, Colombia Report prepared for the United States Agency for International Development – USAID 2 USAID/COLOMBIA FUNDED CONSERVATION LANDSCAPES PROGRAM COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT AID-514-A-09-00004 Sixth Quarterly Report (October-December, 2010) February 2011 DISCLAIMER The views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government 3 ABBREVIATIONS AATIS Traditional Indigenous Authorities Association AECID Spanish International Cooperation and Development Agency AEMAPPS Analysis of Management Effectiveness of Protected Areas with Social Participation ARD Associates in Rural Development, Inc. ASOCARS Colombian Association of Environmental Authorities CA Cooperative Agreement CAR Regional Environmental Authority CC Community Council CDB Convention on Biological Diversity CIPAV Sustainable Agricultural Production Systems Research Center CLP Conservation Landscapes Program COP Chief Of Party CTC Technical Consulting Committee FPN Patrimonio Natural - Fondo para la Biodiversidad y las Áreas Protegidas GEF Global Environmental Facility GHF Global Heritage Fund GIS Geographic Information System IAVH Instituto Alexander von Humboldt ICANH Instituto Colombiano de Antropología e Historia IDEAM Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies Institute INCODER Colombian Rural Development Institute INVEMAR Jose Benito Vives de Andreis Marine and Coastal Research Institute MAVDT Ministerio de Ambiente, Vivienda y Desarrollo Territorial MoU Memorandum of Understanding NGO Non Governmental Organization PA – SINAP SINAP Action Plan PAU Project Advisory Unit PIU Project Implementation Unit PMP Performance Monitoring Plan NNP National Natural Park NPU National Parks Unit NPS National Park Service (U.S.) POA Annual Operative Plan PMP Performance Monitoring Plan REM Special Management Regime RFA Request for Appraisal RFFRA Request for Final Revised Application RESNATUR Colombian Association of Civil Society Reserves SIAC Colombian Environmental Information System SIDAP Departmental Protected Areas System SILAP Local Protected Areas System SINA National Environmental System SINAP Sistema Nacional de Areas Protegidas SIRAP Sistema Regional de Areas Protegidas SNSM Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta STTA Short term technical assistance ToR Terms of Reference UAESPNN Unidad Administrativa Especial del Sistema de Parques Nacionales Naturales USFS United States Forest Service USG United States Government WB World Bank 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………6 2. SIGNIFICANT ACHIEVEMENTS DURING THE REPORTING PERIOD…………………………………………………………………………7 2.1. Ecotourism as an option for improved livelihoods and conservation………7 2.2 Improving livelihoods with sustainable production systems………………….13 3. CHALLENGES AND CONSTRAINTS……………………………………….16 3.1 Challenges met during the reporting period 3.2 Major constraints faced during the reporting period 3.3 Challenges expected for the next quarter 4. DETAILED PROGRAM ACTIVITIES DURING REPORTING PERIOD………………………………………………………………………….17 4.1 Grants process for local operators………….………………………………..17 4.2 Implementation of activities in the Conservation Landscapes..…………….17 4.3 Success stories……………………………………………………………….23 4.4 PMP report on CLP activities ……………………..………………………..29 5. LESSONS LEARNED DURING THIS REPORTING PERIOD……………..…35 6. LOOKING FORWARD: PROGRAM ACTIVITIES FOR THE NEXT QUARTER………………………36 Table No. 1 - Schedule of activities (January-March 2011) 5 1. INTRODUCTION A change in some sections of this report will be in effect, incorporating a selected topic in each report, in which some activities will be highlighted as the most important contributions of the Program within the Conservation Landscapes concept. These contributions will be selected according to significant advances for the NPU’s institutional strengthening, as well as relevant developments achieved by local operators for improving livelihoods or strengthening their participation and social capital through their activities. Over the last quarter, in which several proposals were approved and contracts signed with local operators, the perspective has been unfolding as to the abilities of these operators related to the possibilities that each landscape affords according to the natural resources, as well as the economic, social and cultural aspects. For this quarter, the topic is ecotourism. During the last year, the NPU conducted several meetings and analyses to consolidate ideas on this matter, to bring together several views and integrate a route which will allow better management of the Parks as a tourism attraction and the identification of allies for developing this strategy to its full growth. On the other hand, local operators have defined their contributions through proposals which incorporate an entrepreneurial stance, in which the whole value chain for this activity is established in order to improve its conditions for development. Ecotourism has the further advantage of covering a wide scope of elements that combined make up the Conservation Landscape, in which a development issue is how to avoid or minimize the impacts such development can generate so as to “leave no trace” as one methodology has proclaimed. It is expected that these efforts can induce more people to visit these areas, generating options for local people. Another change concerns the detailed activities section, organized by each cluster, taking into account that some local operators have begun the execution of approved proposals, complementing the activities which up to the fifth quarter were carried out mainly by the NPU personnel. The Performance Monitoring Plan Section has included some additional information concerning the relevance of some activities and the advances or delays observed in each one of the targets when compared with the total numbers which must be completed by 2012. 6 2. SIGNIFICANT ACHIEVEMENTS DURING THIS REPORTING PERIOD 2.1. Ecotourism as an option for improved livelihoods and conservation The potential for ecotourism in Park areas as a growing industry, in order to be consistent with the vulnerability of many destinations, has taken into account appropriate measures for preserving special places, such as the guidelines or principles designed by international organizations such as the United Nations Environment Programme, the Convention on Biological Diversity and the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). These global institutions and other NGOs have organized initiatives and tools to further develop ecotourism. Guided by these international examples, and beginning in 1999, when the tourists visiting the National Parks increased 96%, to more than 700.000 visitors yearly in 2009, the National Parks Unit has applied some elements of methodologies such as “tourism carrying capacity” and “limits of acceptable change”, in what they call a “Hybrid methodology” to control unwanted impacts in the Parks. Formal documents related to carrying capacity (Resoluciones) have been issued for Tayrona, Los Nevados, Gorgona and Vía Parque Isla Salamanca, according to the law by which maximum numbers of visitors have to be identified (Decreto 622/1977). Since 2004 some Parks which formerly had tourism infrastructure and services were given as concessions to private enterprises that could make the necessary investments and promotion for these tourism destinations. A parallel strategy was applied for community groups to provide ecotourism services in Corales del Rosario, Iguaque, Otún-Quimbaya, Flamencos, Cocuy and Utría, the last three of which participate in the Conservation Landscapes Program. (see Map of Parks with potential for ecotourism for both concessions and community ecotourism areas) The implementation of the institutional strengthening component of the CLP by the NPU has included the revision and analysis of the advantages and possible shortcomings of the “hybrid methodology”, with the technical support from the US Forest Service, through their agreement with USAID. The USFS experts had several meetings and workshops with the NPU, in which the carrying capacity measuring methods were examined, practical exercises conducted in groups, through a pilot application, where recommendations were issued regarding the Tayrona Park’s infrastructure and paths. The group including USFS and NPU experts concluded that the document for measuring carrying capacity and ecotourism impacts had a good technical approach, was easy to understand and apply. They concluded that this experience has been satisfactory and a continuation is desirable in the following aspects: 1. Capacity building in the “Leave No Trace” methodology 2. Workshop on the design and maintenance of paths 7 3. Workshop on the design and maintenance of sustainable infrastructure 4. Planing for the management of Protected Areas in relation to ecotourism 5. Technical assistance to