ECOSYSTEM INSIDER The Ecosystem Insider brings you news from the Commission on Ecosystem Management

September 2017- Edition 3

Dear CEM member,

We are pleased to bring you the Third issue of

the IUCN Commission on Ecosystem

Management (CEM) Newsletter for 2017.

Follow us for more news and updates

CEM HIGHLIGHT

Steering Committee meeting in Cartagena

Our 45th Steering Committee took place from the 31st

July to August 4th in Cartagena, Colombia. We advanced

in the discussions about Strategic Planning of the

Commission,its organizational development and fund

raising, the role of innovation in ecosystem

management, and enhancing business engagement.

You can access the summary records, documents and

presentations through the IUCN Portal in CEM´s main

page.

We had time to visit El Palomar, a dry forest ecosystem regional reserve, guided by Humboldt Institute and Ecosistemas Secos de Colombia Foundation. Dry forests are among the most endangered ecosystems in Colombia. Institutional representatives (CRA, regional government of Atlántico), regional academia (UniNorte) and local community members accompanied us.

We held a joint session with the Species Survival Commission (SSC). We worked on “Red listing ecosystems and threatened species” and “Ecosystems, species and nature-based solutions”. There were discussion groups to set priorities on A: Biofuels and Systemic Pesticides, Ecosystem Restoration and Rewilding; B: Governance; Culture and Ecosystem Management and UN SD Goals and Aichi Targets.

RLE PRESENCE IN ICCB 2017;

Symposium: New tools for ecosystem assessment and

monitoring (July 24th) This symposium focused on new tools for tracking the status of

ecosystems, including indicators of ecosystem collapse (Jess

Rowland) and a global typological framework for ecosystems (David

Keith) and conceptual models at multiple spatial scales (Eren Turak).

Case studies examined the synthesis of multiple lines of evidence in

ecosystem risk assessment of the Meso-American Reef and

assessments of input data quality for applying Red List criteria in Chile

(Alberto Alaniz). A discussion panel addressed how these advances

promise an evidence-based monitoring process for ecosystems that

will further enhance our ability to assess progress towards Aichi targets

and support ecosystem conservation.

Workshop: “Innovative Tools and Approaches for Ecosystem

Risk Assessment in Latin America” (July 27th) A brief overview of currently available tools relevant for ecosystem risk

assessments was followed by group discussions to identify some of

the main challenges that assessors have faced, as well as identify

which additional tools could prove to be the most useful in facilitating

RLE assessments in the future. These include: tools to facilitate the

construction of appropriate ecosystem typologies, constructing

conceptual models of ecosystem functioning, and identifying key

indicators/variables for assessing the functional criteria, as well as

platforms to facilitate data sharing.

RLE in Latin America Planning meeting On Friday July 28th members of the RLE core team, CEM leaders and assessors from RLE national assessments had

the opportunity to meet in order to learn more details about the RLE and CEM strategic plans as well as ongoing and

planned initiatives taking place in Latin America. The group identified four key focal points to guide work in the near

future: 1) a diagnostic of achievements (available data, capacities and RLE impact) in countries that have completed

assessments, 2) further training and capacity building (incorporating new spaces and actors), 3) improved

communication and outreach, 4) need to address policy and ecosystem management directly, work collaboratively with

other IUCN commissions.

For more information on the International Congress for Conservation Biology (ICCB), please Click Here>>

LEADERSHIP CORNER

Forum on Biodiversity and Global Forest Restoration (Aug. 27th) Cara Nelson (Restoration TGL and former vice-chair of the Society for Ecological Restoration - SER) and Steve Edwards (chair’s advisor) organized the Forum that addressed the themes: 1) Assessing and Setting Priorities, 2) International Restoration Standards, and 3) Policy/Governance Needs. The key conclusions of the Forum frame a Plan of Action to Improve Biodiversity Conservation in Forest Restoration. The final edition of the Plan will provide the road map to initiate steps to ensure that biodiversity conservation is an integral part of forest restoration

THEMATIC AREAS

NbS meeting at IUCN Washington D.C.

On September 7-8, CEM organised a kick-off meeting

for the development of the Nature-based Solutions

operational framework, at the IUCN office in Washington

DC, USA. Several CEM thematic group leads (NbS,

Ecosystem Restoration, Eco-DRR, Resilience,

Ecosystem Services, EbA & EbM) and a few people from

the IUCN Secretariat working on NbS in the Gland and

Washington offices, were invited to this brainstorming

workshop. NbS is a priority for IUCN, we are seeking for

stronger working links with academia on its conceptual

development, and we are now constructing a working

agenda.

Invasive Species

Congratulations to member Dr Emilie Ens who, along with Ngandi

Cherry Wulumirr Daniels, led the Ngukurr Wi Stadi Kantri (We study

country) Research Team which won the Australian 2017 Eureka Prize

for Innovation in Citizen Science, conferred by the Department of

Industry, Innovation and Science. More on the Award>>

Judy Fisher (TGL) attended the British Ecological Society’s Symposium at Durham University in July 2017: The Macro ecology of Alien Species: Patterns, Drivers and Consequences of Global Biotic Exchange. Exploring the major drivers behind the mixing of the world’s biotas and the consequences for conservation of biodiversity. Members of the Thematic Group including Jonathan Jeschke, Robert Tanner and Franz Ezzl gave outstanding presentations. The Thematic Group is extending connections with many others who attended the meeting. The Thematic Group is establishing a Partnership with the University of Western Australia’s Ocean’s institute as a key approach in strengthening our involvement in the Marine Environment (2017-2020).

See here for more information>>

Resilience Thematic Group

The Resilience Thematic Group launched a new blog focused on the

practice of cultivating resilient landscapes through collaboration; it can

be found at RTG BLOG. In coming months the blog will include guest

entries from RTG members.

Mike Jones led an introductory workshop on Resilience and Systems

Thinking for Biodiversity Conservation at ICCB in Cartagena.

Participants were introduced to the key concepts and then worked in

groups analyzing a case of connectivity conservation: “Connectivity

conservation of the Great Green Macaw’s and landscape resilience in

Costa Rica and Nicaragua (1994-2016) (Chassot & Monge Arias).

Mike Jones led a Capacity Building Workshop on Cultivating Landscape Resilience in South East Asia at the

Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, China. Several CEM leaders participated

with case studies and components such as: Wicked problems, making sense of systems, differences between simple

and complex systems; resilience assessment as a sustainability assessment tool; discussion of the social-ecological

assessment tool illustrating concepts with examples. The 5-day workshop included a practical exercise day to apply

the framework to systems represented in the botanical garden and surrounding area.

RLE Colombia

The Red List of Ecosystems of Colombia was launched

the 16th of August in Bogotá. Javeriana University and

Conservation International –Colombia led this national

level assessment, with support from CEM-IUCN,

Humboldt Institute-Colombia, INVEMAR (both institutes

are part of the National Environmental System), Provita

(Venezuela) and the Moore Foundation. This assessment

suggests that 46% of Colombian ecosystems are in

categories of Critical Danger (CR) and Endangered (EN)

threat, where Tropical Dry Forests, Deserts, and

Wetlands are among some of the most critically

endangered.

The results show these ecosystems are poorly

represented in the Protected Areas National System. The

assessment will serve to prioritize ecosystem restoration

actions and focus research initiatives on the degradation

of ecological processes and integrity state of ecosystems.

For more information contact Rebecca Miller

RLE Madagascar Progress toward a Red List of Ecosystems in

Madagascar

Several CEM members led a validation workshop for the

Madagascar Red List of Ecosystems (RLE) in

Antananarivo, Madagascar, from 24-28 July 2017. IUCN,

through the CEM-RLE TG and GEMP, is currently

working with the Madagascar Ministry of the

Environment, Ecology and Forests, several international

and national NGOs, and the University of Antananarivo,

to conduct a risk assessment of Madagascar’s marine

and terrestrial ecosystems.

This pilot project will produce a preliminary classification

of Madagascar’s ecosystems and broad ecosystem risk

assessments under RLE criteria A and B (the spatial

component of RLE assessments), which will lay the

foundation for doing a comprehensive and systematic

assessment of the risk to Madagascar’s ecosystems in

future. It is also examining how to use integrated

biodiversity datasets to aid decision-making, national

reporting and implementation of biodiversity policy.

SUME: Cholpon Ata, Kyrgyzstan

Falconry originated in the steppes of Central Asia,

possibly 4,000 years ago, hunting with golden eagles -

like the one carried by this young man;

Today, eagles and Saker Falcons on the open steppes

have to be careful not to perch on medium-voltage

power-lines, which kill thousands of these avian top

predators of semi-arid ecosystems. This reduces

predation pressure on species like Brandt’s vole, which

can become common enough to be damaging to

agriculture as well as over-grazed native vegetation. To

make matters worse, rodenticides used to fight voles can

kill even more raptors. Intensification of steppe

agriculture is also worrying for the future of Sakers.

However, the Saker Falcon is a valuable resource for

falconers in the Middle East, who are therefore funding

restoration work, both by modifying power lines to make

them raptor-safe, and also by creating new breeding

areas (which are in short supply) by installing artificial

nest boxes.

Thanks to a kind invitation from the International

Association for Falconry and Conservation of Birds of

Prey (IAF) SUME TG held a meeting in the Central Asian

Region in Cholpon Ata, Kyrgyzstan, on 7 Sept. 2017

parallel to a conference on the Saker Falcon. Members

of CEM-SUME have been working also with IUCN's

specialist group on Sustainable Use and Livelihoods

(SULi), towards sustainable trade in this species, which

should in the long-term lead to conservation of its

important steppe ecosystems. Previous CEM Chair Piet

Wit gave the keynote talk where he presented the

Ecosystem Approach and explained how it is relevant to

falconry in landscapes across the world.

The outcome of the work by SULi and SUME will be

increasingly linked with sites for practitioners and for

scientists involved in IAF's cooperation with UNEP-CMS

for managing the Saker Falcon. SUME is helping IAF to

encourage conservation of areas for Saker Falcons

Plans for more systems are being taken to the next SUME

meeting, in South America. Join us for interesting talks

and planning in Lima during 26-27 October More

information here>>

Please contact Robert Kenward

Drylands

Integrated approaches for multi-functional landscapes: connecting LDN, biodiversity and climate change.

This side event was held at the UNCCD COP13 in Ordos, China. Co-

organised by the IUCN (Global Drylands and CEM) and the World

Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), the event focused in the ongoing

challenges of balancing the multiple demands on land for food, water,

climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation. Graciela

Metternicht (CEM Dryland SG) discussed the importance of building

on management and policy commitments to restoration, rehabilitation

and sustainable land management to achieve Land Degradation

Neutrality (LDN).

A panel discussion followed touching on the synergy between global

environmental goals and actions and national programmes;

opportunities to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of responses,

and the role of public policy in achieving multifunctional land use and

the experience of LDN target setting in China. The event highlighted

that holistic, cross-sector actions are needed to promote

multifunctional land use and to ensure that the competing needs of

society are effectively addressed with the finite land resources

available. This presents a unique challenge for both land policies and

land information: two critical factors for sustainable land use planning

and management according to the LDN Conceptual Framework

published by the UNCCD Science Policy interface.

From left to right: Jorge Luis Rodriguez Garcia (Conafor, Mexico); Lehman Lindeque (UNDP, Africa), Graciela Metternicht (IUCN CEM); Ermias Betemariam (ICRAF); Annette Cowie (GEF STAP); Jonathan Davies (IUCN Global Drylands); Prof Zhang Kebin (China). Credit: Andrew Stevenson (ICRAF)

Click here for more Information >>

REGIONAL NEWS

South East Asia Region

Planting indigenous fruit trees as a means for ecological

restoration and sustainable livelihood in Son Kim 1

commune, Huong Son district, Ha Tinh province, northern

central region of Vietnam With seed funds from CEM, the CEM SEA Regional Group initiated a small project of planting indigenous fruit trees in Son Kim 1 commune through the collaboration with Community Entrepreneur Development Institute (CENDI) of Vietnam. This project aims to restore the deteriorating habitat while enhancing the local sustainable livelihood. With the kind assistance of the local authorities and the Farmers Field School of Human Ecology Preservation Area (FFS-HEPA), land was prepared for planting. The indigenous fruit species included the local pomelo (buoi Phuc Trach variety), orange (two varieties), and another smaller citrus. To date, 113 tree seedlings had already been planted covering an estimated land area of 2 ha. Subsequent to preparing the land for planting, a mini workshop was held on 13th Aug 2017 to socialize the farm-holders with the CEM project and the

technical guidance (e.g., the distance between two trees) for planting the fruit trees.

North East Asia Region

North east Asia IUCN-CEM formed a network of

researchers, educators, and practitioners in ecosystem

management in Northeast Asia to support CEM's on-

ground activities and education for sustainable

development. The region co-chaired a “Xiang Shang

Forum” (the top level academic form in China) on Eco-

environment Protection and Sustainable Development.

This CEM region also co-sponsored an International

Workshop and Training on Innovative Learning and

Teaching Approaches for Global Seminar Course. This

conference brought together environmental educators to

share their experiences and ideas about innovative

teaching on sustainable development and provided a

good platform to foster and support meaningful working

relationships among the global educators who are

interested in teaching global seminar course.

North America Region

During the North American Summer season the

Inaugural meeting of IUCN U.S. National Committee

took place in Washington D.C. (June 14-15) and

nominations were opened for executive committee

members.

Nominations are open for CEM members to serve as

advisors for the North American & Caribbean region. If

you have an expertise with broad regional application

and have some time to give, please let us know. Contact

Darwin Horning

If you are interested in helping to coordinate CEM’s

regional online communications, the Regional CEM

group is looking for a volunteer

to grow the regional Facebook activity and help produce

the online newsletter with news and events from the Arctic

to the Caribbean. For details, contact Regional Chair

Charlotte Moser

SPOTLIGHT ON ECOSYSTEMS

Wetlands The Parana-Paraguay Corridor: A new project for a

unique system

Wetlands International is starting in 2018 a new project

called The Blue Corridor: Connecting People, Nature

and Economies along the Parana-Paraguay River

System in order to preserve the corridor connectivity,

ecological integrity and livelihoods related to water

resources. Such project will include different local and

partners from abroad and has the overall goal to

influence on policy makers about the need to preserve

the ecological integrity of the corridor by promoting a

sustainable development. The main axis of the project

will be: a) to implement policies and plans at local,

national and regional levels to safeguard the free/flowing

and connectivity and to assure that development do not

impact on wetlands values; b) to apply innovative

approaches and measures for sustainable livelihoods

strengthening local stakeholders capacity and involving

in management decision and policy making;

c) to acquire key knowledge about the values, opportunities and threats facing wetlands along the corridor as a basis for improving wetland management and maintaining its connectivity, and c) to involve key civil society, government and private actors to use knowledge and apply best practice to influence policy, investment and management.

Read more on the ecological conditions and context of the Pantanal here »

Wetland Restoration in Australia

Read more on wetlands and their management here »

Science evaluation of wetland system repair projects in the Great Barrier Reef catchments (Nathan Waltham)

The Australian Government recently funded (2017 –

2019) through the National Environmental Science

Programme (NESP) Tropical Water Quality Hub a

scientific evaluation of wetland restoration sites, in an

attempt to capture data and assist with future planned

restoration projects. With the limited success of the

chemical weed control strategy it was decided to

investigate a more natural form of weed control using

tidal ingress of seawater by removing the earth bund

which restricted tidal intrusion into the wetland. The

current round of Commonwealth of Australia research

funding will be used to continue gathering water quality

and ecological data to more fully understand the success

of this bund wall removal program in the GBR

catchments

YOUTH SECTION

2030 Agenda: The role of youth in peace, security

and sustainability

Dr. Nidhi Nagabhatla CEM member talks about the

strategies to improve agri-food research and innovation

towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals at

the event of UN FAO hosted network – The Global

Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR), while pitching

that youth and youth issues are schematically included

in development related deliberations.

See here for more information>>

WHAT'S ON THE CALENDAR?

i) Cultural Practices and Ecosystem Management brainstorming workshop

The CPEM TG will be organizing a workshop in Nov. 2017 to meet in person for an

intensive brainstorming workshop to develop key criteria and indicators to guide the

group’s main anticipated work plan output for the next years: a compendium of case

studies of cultural practice in ecosystem management and publication of guidelines

and criteria for best practices in recognizing and incorporating cultural practices, to

be published in 2020. The work of compiling the eventual guidelines will come from

the collection of a series of case studies of cultural practices developed by CPEM

members. Our workshop will be held at the University of Maryland-College Park on

Nov. 29. CPEM members and other CEM members who have related interests in

attending should indicate interest in attending to Pam McElwee no later than Sept 30

so that we can get a preliminary headcount for the workshop.

We will also be able to include members via Skype for the day as well. Please note that we do not have funding for

members to travel to DC so this will need to be in-kind contributions from members’ institutions (some people may be

coming to DC for the American Anthropological Association meetings which begin on the evening of Nov 29). We will

provide support for transport within DC to the university, as well as breakfast and lunch at the workshop, thanks to

funding from CEM. Please get in touch with Pam or Minna Hsu, co-Thematic Group lead of CPEM, for any other

questions about the workshop.

ii) The next Ecosystem Services Partnership (ESP-9) World

Conference will be held in Shenzen-China. Dec. 11-15. With the

main theme: Ecosystem Services for Eco-civilization. Restoring

connections between people & landscapes through nature-based

solutions.

The Ecosystem Services Partnership (ESP) connects over 3000

ecosystem services professionals from science, policy and practice

worldwide. Through our platform (www.es-partnership.org) members

share knowledge and collaborate in numerous working groups,

projects and other activities. See here for more information>>

iii) We are back! It’s the MOOC you have all been waiting for: Disasters and Ecosystems - Resilience in a Changing Climate (Round 2)

After our smashing success in 2015, we are back thanks to popular demand!

This is what you will learn with this MOOC: Defines basic concepts of disasters, disaster risk reduction, climate

change adaptation and resilience; Recognizes key linkages between ecosystems, disaster risk reduction and climate

change adaptation; Approaches how ecosystems contribute to reducing impacts pre- and post- disasters; managing

resilience and transformation.

We’ve transferred to a new platform. We’ve recorded new interviews with world leaders, and refreshed some

materials but all the essentials on Ecosystem-based Disaster Risk Reduction are there!

You will have access to 6 units of the leadership track and our certificate upon completion.

We went live on Sept. 18, 2017, 2 pm (UTC +1)

We launch our expert track on November 20, 2017 live from Bali, Indonesia.

We invite you to Pre-register here>>

To receive our newsletter with updates>>

For more information, see here>>

PUBLICATIONS

This brief seeks to present the

lessons learned, and general

1. Adaptation to Coastal Storms in Atlantic Canada. (L. Vasseur, M.J.

Thornbush & S. PLante) Springer Briefs in Geography. 1st ed. 2018, VIII,

91.In late 2010 and early January 2011, Atlantic Canada experienced a series

of severe winter storms that caused important damage in several coastal

communities due to storm surges and elevated waves. Some people

experienced flooding, while others coastal erosion. Subsequently, in 2011, a

large multi-site longitudinal project was initiated to (1) better understand

people’s experiences with storms and (2) define with targeted communities’

adaptation plans for the future. Interviews were conducted in 2011-2012 and

again in 2014 as a follow-up and to examine their changes in perception.

Based on in-depth interviews and focus groups in 10 studied communities of

Quebec and New Brunswick, it was discovered that people felt resilient, but

elements that should be considered

when researchers collaborate with

communities to define adaptation and

resilience strategies. It makes an

important contribution to the

application of PAR as an integrated

(social-ecological) approach to

resilience and how such an approach

can be adapted also to other

communities.

at the same time vulnerable to storms and other extreme events. The hazards

that occurred were associated with storm surge, high waves, coastal erosion,

and flooding. The analysis covered a large multisite longitudinal project,

where a participatory action research (PAR) approach was used to

understand how people in 10 coastal communities perceive and experience

extreme weather events and to enhance their capacity to adapt and improve

their resilience.

2. Coastal and Resilience article

Goussard J.J. & M. Ducrocq. 2017. Facing the future: Conservation as a precursor for building coastal

territorial cohesion and resilience. Aquatic Conserv: Mar Freshw Ecosyst. 1–11.

The paper highlights the main factors that characterize current coastal dynamics, and then briefly presents three future‐oriented pilot operations, implemented in Western Africa at different scales. It uses the Nexus approach, promoted by

CEM’s Coastal SG, to place marine and coastal spatial planning as a key integrative element linking conservation,

adaptation to climate change and coastal risk reduction, as a part of no‐regret adaptation strategies.

3. Wetlands in Food Security

Rahman, A.M., Kang, S., Nagabhatla, N., and Macnee,

R. 2017. Impacts of temperature and rainfall variation on

rice productivity in major ecosystems of Bangladesh.

Agriculture & Food Security, 6:10.

Full Text Available here>>

4. Scientific Conceptual Framework for Land Degradation Neutrality

Orr, B.J., A.L. Cowie, V.M. Castillo Sanchez, P. Chasek, N.D. Crossman, A. Erlewein, G. Louwagie, M. Maron,

G.I. Metternicht, S. Minelli, A.E. Tengberg, S. Walter, and S. Welton (2017). Scientific Conceptual Framework

for Land Degradation Neutrality.

What is the land degradation neutrality (LDN) conceptual framework?

The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 15.3 states: “By 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land

and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral

world”. The LDN conceptual framework focuses on the goal of LDN and the supporting processes required to deliver

this goal, including biophysical and socio-economic aspects, and their interactions. The conceptual framework is

applicable to all types of land degradation, so that it can be used by countries according to their individual

circumstances. Setting national targets for LDN is voluntary. Countries are invited to do so in accordance with their

specific national circumstances and development priorities. At present 111 countries are participating in the LDN Target

Setting Programme (TSP) that applies the LDN conceptual framework. This global programme is implemented in

cooperation with numerous partners, including the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the International Union for

Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

For more on the Science-Policy Interface, click here>>

5. Global Land Outlook - Working Paper

The first edition of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification’s (UNCCD) Global Land Outlook (GLO)

was launched on the 12th September 2017 at the UNCCD 13th Conference of the Parties. The GLO addresses the

future challenges and opportunities for the management and restoration of land resources in the context of sustainable

development, including: food, water and energy security; climate change and biodiversity conservation; urban, peri-

urban and infrastructure development; land tenure, governance and gender; and migration, conflict and human

security. It draws attention to the central importance of land quality to human well-being, assesses current trends in

land conversion, degradation and loss, identifies the driving factors and analyzes the impacts, and presents a new and

transformative vision for land management policy, planning and practice at global and national scales. Chapter 9 on

Biodiversity and Soils, highlights the relevance of soils and biodiversity for underpinning functioning ecosystems and

productive land-based natural capital.

The publication brought together a multi-disciplinary group of international experts and partners, including Professor

Graciela Metternicht, co-lead of the CEM’s Dryland Ecosystems Specialist Group, who wrote the background paper on

Land Use Planning. This working paper analyzes the role of land use and spatial planning tools, processes and

approaches to improve socio-economic opportunities through sustainable management of land resources (i.e., soil,

water, and biodiversity). The working papers are available here for download>>

The Journal of Threatened Taxa article available here>>

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