INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON LOCAL MANAGEMENT OF AGRICULTURAL BIODIVERSITY CALL FOR INTEREST AND FEEDBACK

Bread for the World, Centro Internazionale Crocevia, Genetic Resources Action International, Swedish Society for Nature Conservation

January  2000

This paper highlights a proposal to hold an international workshop,  following a regionally oriented preparatory process, to share, evaluate,  and help strengthen concrete experiences with local management of agricultural biodiversity.  Over the past decade, numerous initiatives have sprouted in this area, ranging from the setting up of basic community seed banks to all encompassing approaches to biodiversity and agro-ecosystem management.  Our idea is to facilitate a broad discussion on the current status of local agricultural biodiversity management, take stock of where we are, identify problems and bottlenecks, and draw lessons for the future.

Rather than a one-off meeting,  the initiators of this proposal are thinking of a one/two year process to allow for a regionally-driven  'bottom up' approach involving a broad range of local experiences. During this period, the participants in the process will be identified, preparatory discussions will start at national and regional levels, some experiences documented, bottlenecks highlighted, etc. The meeting itself – to be held somewhere in the year 2001 - will provide for the opportunity to bring the different national and regional experiences together, discuss differences and commonalities, and formulate recommendations and follow up.

The initiators of this proposal, Bread for the World, Crocevia, GRAIN and SSNC, are all NGOs that have  long been supporting on-farm approaches to agricultural biodiversity management, be it through policy research, advocacy work or direct project support.  We believe that this  workshop process could help to develop new strategies that would improve and strengthen the work at the local level as well as help influence the directions and decisions  taken by policy makers and donor agencies. This 'Call for interest and feedback' is meant to launch the initiative and to identify potential groups & organisations interested to participate in this project.

Over the past decade it has become widely accepted that development programmes affecting biodiversity for food, agriculture and livelihood systems should take the role and input of  rural communities as a central starting point. Calls for support to approaches that build upon local biodiversity management have trickled up into international agreements where the rights of farmers, fisherfolk, herbalists and indigenous peoples are now undergoing various forms of recognition and formalisation. The donor community at large is earmarking special funds for on-farm biodiversity management strategies. Even the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, the institution behind the Green Revolution,  is trying to incorporate on-farm methods into its otherwise top-down research strategies.

At the same time, however, governments are increasingly reshaping policies to give way to international  trade pressure with potentially disastrous implications for locally-controlled management of natural resources, community rights and food security. In addition, a new wave of concentration trends within the agricultural supply industries, coupled with the privatisation of genetic resources through intellectual property and bioprospecting, and the push for the development and use of transgenic crops and animals, is already undermining the capacity of local communities to further develop local biodiversity management systems.  The role and capacity of the public research system in many countries to effectively support community approaches to biodiversity management is now in doubt, as the lure of corporate funding and high-tech agendas seem to take public science even further away from the people. All of this tremendously affects the capacity of local communities – and the groups working with them – to continue building sustainable livelihood systems based on biodiversity.

Of course, at the local level the management of biodiversity has been going on continuously, and long before the international institutions 'discovered' its importance and value. Yet just as the pressures against it get worse, multiple initiatives, experiences and new approaches have mushroomed over the past decade. It is not only the international donor community who has put biodiversity management on its agenda, but also many national and local NGOs and people's organisations are increasingly incorporating it into their day to day activities and plans. Such initiatives vary widely in scope, approach, focus and content. While some focus on the conservation and development of a specific crop such as rice or potatoes, others deal with the broader livelihood systems and take into account the wider agro-ecology. While some are more technical in approach, others take in the wider socio-economic and political dimensions. While some are essentially local in their focus, others are linked internationally. And while some pay lip service to  the new donor agenda, others continue to fundamentally question equity and control issues at the local level in relation to biodiversity management.

The proposed project has three distinct and equally important objectives:

1.   To provide a platform for discussion and sharing of experiences among groups involved in the local management of biodiversity in order to learn from such experiences, identify bottlenecks, and to articulate new strategies and approaches.

2.   Through this process of sharing and learning, to contribute to the empowerment and strengthening of the groups involved.

3.   Through its outputs and follow-up, increase awareness on the central importance of biodiversity in rural livelihood systems and promote the incorporation of local biodiversity management systems in a broader spectrum of rural development approaches, programmes and policies.

The focus of the project is on the local management of agricultural biodiversity in its broadest sense: that part of biodiversity that sustains, nurtures and feeds people. It would include experiences with domesticated plant and animal diversity, but also the "hidden" (wild) diversity which is such an important source of food and health for many people. Overall, it includes that diversity that sustains livelihood systems. Clearly, the experiences to to emphasise through this process should not be limited to those that focus on specific crops, but also those that integrate agro-forestry, livestock and aquatics.

In selecting the experiences to involve in this process, we would aim to focus on those that have as a guiding principle the strengthening of community control over biodiversity. Approaches with a primarily technical or genetic focus to conserve and develop diversity are of less interest than the ones which tackle power issues directly. Within that context we foresee the participation of a broad range of people: Farmers and other Peoples Organisations, NGOs working with them, scientists aiming to support them, etc.

More than the simple organisation of a seminar, we see this exercise as a two year process to achieve the objectives mentioned above. The international workshop itself is envisaged to be held mid or late 2001. The aim is that the preparatory process is nationally & regionally driven, and the focus will be very much oriented at that level. Preparation will include a process of identification of participants; working through a process of consultation, assessment, and documentation in selected countries and regionally; and if appropriate, the production of case studies and other papers.

After a first consultative process through this 'Call for Interest and Feedback' amongst a broad selection of interested NGOs, POs and other groups, the project will be reassessed and adjusted early in the year 2000. In this period also the funding possibilities will be assessed.

For the organisation of the preparatory process and the workshop, we have appointed a part-time Coordinator to manage the project. The Coordinator will work with a Steering Committee composed of people active in this work in the respective regions. Together, the Coordinator and the Steering Committee are responsible for the preparatory process: identifying participants, documenting experiences, conducting work sessions with different groups in the regions and formulating strategy ideas to the take to the international workshop.

Final participation will result from a consultative process amongst selected NGOs and peoples organisations, but we envisage some 40-50 participants, mostly from developing countries and with direct and relevant experience in local management of biodiversity.

These are just starting ideas. We welcome all comments and contributions. We especially would appreciate ideas about specific topics and issues that you think should be addressed, and information about people and/or organisations with relevant experiences in this field, whom you know of and think should be involved. Also, we would appreciate if you want to share any documents and other materials on experiences with local management of agricultural biodiversity you might be involved in or aware of.

Reactions to this 'Call for feedback and interest' should be directed to the Steering Committee member from your Region (for contact details: see below), or to the Overall Coordinator if your region is not listed. If possible, we prefer communication by Email, but you can also use normal mail, phone and fax.

 Thank you very much for your attention, and hoping to hear from you soon,
 Mr. Henk Hobbelink, GRAIN, Genetic Resources Action International, Barcelona, Spain
Ms. Pernilla Malmer, Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, Stockholm, Sweden
Mr. Peter Rottach, Bread For the World, Stuttgart, Germany 
Mr. Antonio Onorati, Centro Internazionale Crocevia, Roma, Italy

Asia – Regional Coordinator

Oscar Zamorra
Agronomy Department   UP at los Baños
College, Laguna 4031
PHILLIPINES
Phone: (63-49) 536 2466 - Fax: (63-49) 536 2468
E-mail:  obz@mozcom.com

Africa:

North Africa – Regional Coordinator: 

Robert Ali Brac de la Perriere
47, place du Millénaire
34000 Montpellier - FRANCE
Phone/Fax : (33 – 4) 67 65 45 12
E-mail : dombrac@mnet.fr

 

West Africa – Regional Coordinator :

Jeanne Zoundjihekpon
06 BP 2083 – Cotonou  BENIN
Phone./Fax : 229 33 79 15
E-mail: jzoundjihekpon@firstnet.bj

 

Southern and Eastern Africa – Regional Coordinator

Mutizwa Mukute
PELUM Association Regional Desk
Box MP 1059 - Mt Pleasant Harare, Zimbabwe
Phone: 263-4-744509/744237/744117        Fax: 263-4-744470 
E-mail: pelum@ecoweb.co.zw

Latin America – Regional Coordinator:

German Velez
C/o: Programa Semillas - Fundación Swissaid
A.A. 241662 Bogotá - COLOMBIA
Phone: (57-1) 334 44 73 - Fax: (57-1) 336 39 86
E-mail : cultibiodivlat@hotmail.com

Overal Coordinator

Angela Cordeiro
CP 10185  Florianópolis – SC  88062-970 BRASIL
Phone: (55-48) 232 14 48 - Fax: (55-48) 232 9027
E-mail: :  bioworkshop@brasilnet.net