Conservation Action Planning - Tool Bridging Science and Stewardship

Conservation Action Planning Cycle

(courtesy D. Salzer, TNC)

Last week I joined more than 150 conservation coaches from around the world to share knowledge and discuss the current state of practice of conservation planning at the 2010 Conservation Coaches Rally in Santa Cruz, CA. The 2010 rally was the fourth gathering of coaches. I had the privilege to join the previous two in 2006 and 2008. This year was the first since the conservation coaches network strategic plan was completed – it was great to see a process that I had been so actively involved in just two short years earlier flourish and take shape!

The Conservation Coaches Network is an organized and supported network of peers that spans six continents and 25 organizations. The mission of the network is to catalyze effective conservation across lands and waters worldwide through supporting sound action planning, coaching, knowledge sharing and innovation. (see http://conserveonline.org/workspaces/cbdgateway/cap/efroymson_network/index_html)

While much of my experience with the network was based on my previous experience leading and coaching Conservation Action Planning teams in The Nature Conservancy, since assuming my new role at the Alaska SeaLife Center in late 2008, I have also been involved in teaching Federal, University, industry and fellow non profit partners in Alaska about this process. Conservation Action Planning (and its related parallel systems such as the “Open Standards for Conservation”) are now widely used as the basis for species and area management and have even gained widespread use for cultural heritage conservation.
One of the most widely appreciated features of conservation action planning (CAP) is the systematic approach it provides. CAP enables scientists, communities, academics, resources managers, industry and business stakeholders to share their vision and work on strategies in a transparent manner. The knowledge generated can then be used to develop a project management plan that enables not only process milestones to be tracked, but which ultimately enables outcomes to be measured and strategies to be adapted/adjusted as the project team gains experience.

CAP has now evolved to a point where there are both “basic” and more sophisticated planning tools available and there are even common methodologies (see http://www.conservationmeasures.org/) and reporting systems (see http://conpro.tnc.org/) to enable organizations to share knowledge and experience easily. One of the most exciting developments in recent years has been the establishment of a dedicated new CAP software known as Miradi® which enables users to rapidly move between the various stages of CAP whilst using a common visual tool for framing strategies (see https://miradi.org/) .

CAP has many potential applications in the work we do here at the Alaska SeaLife Center and is increasingly of interest to our many research, education and stewardship partners. For that reason, I’ll be conducting a CAP orientation training here at the Center on Monday 13th December at 4pm as part of our monthly science lecture series – all are welcome to join! I’d be happy to repeat this workshop for our partners in other centers in Alaska also if there is demand.

Giving Blood - Giving Back

Last week our amazing AmeriCorps volunteers, Minna Abassi and Hannah Feltes worked with the Blood Bank of Alaska to coordinate a successful community blood drive.  The Bear Mountain conference room of the Alaska SeaLife Center  was temporarily comverted into a blood handling center and we had a steady stream of staff and community volunteers.  There is no permanent venue or system for blood donation in Seward and so the Blood Bank folks were delighted to once again travel down to secure these critical supplies.

Minna (l) and Hannah (r) - organizers and donors extraordinaire!

In all some 28 pints of blood were collected, which the Blood Bank calculates as having the potential to save up to 84 lives!  I was so moved by their efforts that I also stepped up... it has been a long time since I gave blood.  Back in October 2002, we were living in Indonesia and were asked to be emergency blood donors for victims of the Bali bombing.  I recall giving blood every 7-10 days for about three months as there was an acute shortage of my negative blood type.

Jen Curl - another satisfied donor!

I had forgotten how important those supplies are, but the Blood Bank of Alaska (a fellow charity organization) reminded us of the challenges of meeting demands for blood in Alaska and so I have now committed to joining many staff at the Center in offering to become a more regular donor... its great to give back!  And its great to see the Alaska SeaLife Center serve as a true community resource for a great cause.

I encourage all of you to do check out how you can support organizatons such as the Blood Bank of Alaska to continue their vital work in our community.

De-Oiling Marine Mammals - Improving the State of Practice

How does one de-oil a marine mammal? That is more than just a fascinating animal husbandry question. As we learned from the Exxon Valdez oil spill incident, when some 2,500 sea otters were affected by oil, it is critical for all involved in oil spill response to be prepared and know what to do when the animal “patients” start being admitted for cleaning and care.

 

Workshop participants discussing priorities for increasing response effectiveness

Using experience gathered from the Exxon Valdez spill, other global oil spill incidents and research and from experience gleaned in our ongoing marine mammal and seabird strandings program, the Alaska SeaLife Center is uniquely positioned to provide guidance on how to de-oil and rehabilitate marine mammals. However, our experience with some marine mammals is limited (e.g. there have only been a few instances of polar bear treatment after oiling) and there are still key gaps in our knowledge of best treatment protocols (e.g. which method of de-oiling is most efficient in various treatment stages).

Pat Lampi (AK Zoo), Brett Long (ASLC and Pam Yochem (SeaWorld) reviewing the finer points of sea otter treatment

Last week, with the support of Alaska Clean Seas, WWF and BP and with the assistance of experts, Dr Pam Yochem and Bill Winhall from SeaWorld, ASLC Vets Drs Pam Tuomi and Carrie Goertz and Catherine Berg and Susan Miller from the US Fish and Wildlife Service, we convened a workshop of more than 30 first responders to share knowledge about de-oiling practice. Over two days we evaluated current practice standards and protocols, gained hand on experience in de-oiling marine mammals (our sea otter model has never been cleaner!) and evaluated what more we need to do to both build response capacity and address knowledge gaps.

Breakout group defining future training needs

The workshop was judged an outstanding success by all participants – not only did all involved gain new knowledge, they also built a network of contacts who will prove helpful in further response planning and/or in the event of an oil spill involving marine mammals in Alaskan waters. ASLC Husbandry Director, Brett Long is currently developing a workshop summary report and we shall be convening further trainings of this type in conjunction with our strandings meetings and our ongoing work with the oil industry. Please contact Brett if you would like further details (brettl@alaskasealife.org).

Ocean Zoning - a Useful New Book

I just acquired a copy  of Dr Tundi Agardy's new book "Ocean Zoning: Making Marine Management More Effective".  This is a very timely publication given the new US National Ocean Policy (see http://sealifeceo.blogspot.com/2010/07/new-national-ocean-policy-perfect.html) and given the initiative to establish a series of Regional Ocean Partnerships in nine regions of the USA (Alaska is one region) that will give effect to that policy (see http://www.csc.noaa.gov/funding/PDFs/noaa-nos-csc-2011-2002721-ffo-report.pdf).
Under the new National Ocean Policy, Coastal and Marine Spatial planning (CMSP) has been emphasized as "an important planning tool for regional ocean governance. CMSP is a comprehensive, adaptive, integrated, ecosystem-based, and transparent spatial planning process, based on sound science, for analyzing current and anticipated uses of ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes areas".

Agardy's book begins with an interesting discourse on how CMSP and ocean zoning differ (they are often confused by critics of ocean governance).  She uses her extensive knowledge of  global marine planning to tap into a network of experts and experiences to describe why a big picture approach to ocean management is needed.  She then systematically examines global experience with the application of zoning and CMSP from the small scale (e.g. Asinara Marine Park in Italy) to the large scale (e.g. the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park). 
Having spent several years in the early part of may career working on planning of the Great Barrier Reef and then tracked the evolution of governance there, it has proven to be a great case study of how the competing demands of different industries (tourism, fishing, shipping and conservation) can be met, whilst still protecting the ecological resources and services on which those industries depend.
I commend this book to anyone who would like to know more about CMSP and ocean zoning -  it serves as a great primer to the types of governance innovations that the new National Ocean Policy should generate and  could be used to "jump start"  new CMSP initiatives - there is, after all, little point reinventing a wheel that has been around for more than three decades!