Water and Wetlands: Supporting life and sustaining livelihoods

Short Documentary for the RAMSAR Convention / COP9

Proposal submitted to:

Beahrs Environmental Leadership Program

Small Grants Initiative for Alumni

14 December 2004

Wetlands International Africa Programme Office BP 8060 Dakar – Yoff, Senegal Tel: +221 820 6478 Fax: +221 820 6479

University of California 43 Mulford Hall Berkeley, CA 94720, USA Tel: +1 510 643 1042 Fax: +1 510 643 4483

The Ramsar Convention Secretariat Rue Mauverney 28 CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland Tel. +41 229 990 170 Fax +41 229 990 169

Problem Statement / Justification

Poverty and environment are related through a complex web of relationships. Various research projects aim at strengthening capacity in developing countries for carrying out research on economic, environment and development interactions to effectively address this wetland-related poverty-environment nexus.

To guarantee the maximum impact of the research findings, a partnership of the Ramsar Secretariat and NEPAD[1] in collaboration with various international NGOs (i.e. IUCN, WWF, Wetland International) and research organisations aim at disseminating the final results of scientific studies to a large audience in both developed and developing countries. Because these organisations host a large number of respected senior and junior environmental economists from around the world, many policy makers see this group as a reliable think-tank in the field of wetland-related poverty and environment.

Despite these positive characteristics, adoption of the recommendations of research by local and international decision makers is not guaranteed. This is partly due to the difficulty to communicate results in an effective manner. Therefore, the partnership is investigating the possibilities of designing a dissemination plan for each audience group. In doing so, it is believed that the combination of written material and visual tools can be extremely effective in conveying messages to wider audiences. To support the researchers in their efforts to influence decision-making in their countries, the partnership proposes to produce a documentary for various audiences to illustrate the importance of wetlands in the provision of sustainable livelihoods. The documentary will be first shown to the public during the Ramsar Conference of Parties, to be held in Uganda in November 2005.

Project Activities

The length of the documentary will depend on the amount of funding that can be raised. With the amount of funding requested from the ELP SGI fund, a documentary will be made about the trade-offs between dams and natural river-basin management in Mali. Recent research has shown that the different dams that were constructed in the past 40 years have had a more profound impact on the environment and riparian communities then previously thought.

For centuries, the Niger River swells after the rainy season and floods the Inner Niger Delta in Mali. This natural process provides a livelihood for many farmers, fishermen and cattle breeders. Increasing emphasis is placed by the national government as well as international organisations to capture the hydrological potential of the Niger River through the construction of dams. However, as shown in recent research, local wetland users in the Inner Niger Delta, most of which live below the extreme poverty level, are negatively affected by this in several ways. For example:

1. The maximum flood level is reduced due to the regulation of the water flow by the dams. This decreases the area of inundated land and thus the agricultural potential of the Inner Niger Delta.
2. Because of the obstruction of the waterway by dams, fish are not able to migrate freely between spawning and feeding areas, thus limiting their growth and reproduction.
3. Furthermore, the flood starts two weeks later then normal (before construction of the dams), so fish have two weeks less to grow and reproduce. Fish have adapted to this by switching to a shorter, annual reproduction cycle but this makes them more vulnerable to over fishing.

It is clear that the perturbation of the natural system has led to a decrease in production and biodiversity values in the Inner Niger Delta. The challenge is now to ensure optimal management of the different dams, based on hydrological and ecological models as well as incorporating various lessons learnt in the development plans for other dams. The documentary will elaborate on these and other issues surrounding the implementation of large-scale hydrological projects.

The following steps will be undertaken in the development of the documentary for Mali.

1. In a brainstorming session with the involved partners in the case study, the main issues that should be covered in the documentary are identified;
2. On the basis of the knowledge of local/regional researchers, the documentary makers will write a draft script for the documentary;
3. The local and international partners are invited to provide feedback on the script, after which the script is finalised;
4. The documentary maker and a local researcher will travel to the location to select scenes and seek support of the local communities;
5. In order to limit the costs, the cameraman will arrive as soon as the local team and the director has made all the preparations;
6. A local presenter can be hired to explain the background of the study in front of the camera;
7. The images will be transported to the Netherlands where, potentially in combination with narration of a professional presenter, they will be edited and presented to the RAMSAR / NEPAD initiative;
8. After approval, the documentary will be integrated into a dissemination package produced by the RAMSAR / NEPAD initiative. These will be disseminated to the various audiences; also, the video can be used as part of a toolkit in workshops and other organised meetings.
9. Efforts will be made to broadcast the documentaries on local and international television networks;
10. Further distribution will simultaneously occur through professional distribution channels such as the Television Thrust for the Environment (TVE).

The film crew is composed of professional filmmakers, staff members of the Vrije Universiteit (VU) and the Wetlands International Coordinator in Mali, the latter two are specialised in livelihood issues in the wetland context. The following parties will be involved:

· Producer and editor: Gert Jan Zwanikken

· Camera and sound: John Appel

· Research and coordination: Dr. Pieter van Beukering

· Local expert: Bakary Kone

· Presentation: To be selected

The camera crew to be hired has a vast experience in producing documentaries on both nature and development subjects. Together with the scientific input from NEPAD, Ramsar, WWF, IUCN, Wetlands International, UCB and the VU a high quality documentary can be put together.

Collaboration Statement

This project is initiated by Abou Bamba (ELP, 2003) and Pieter Terpstra (ELP, 2004). The University of California collaborator is Dr. Robin Marsh. At present, Abou Bamba is the Africa Coordinator of the Ramsar Convention. He will be responsible for monitoring the overall progress of the development of the documentary and organising the launch of the documentary during the next Ramsar Conference of Parties in Uganda. Pieter Terpstra is the Programme Development Officer for Wetlands International West Africa in Senegal. He will coordinate the input from NEPAD (also based in Senegal) and the Wetlands International Office in Mali. The Wetlands International project in Mali will be the subject of the documentary. Robin Marsh will provide expert input on poverty-environment linkages and bring in relevant wetlands conservation lessons or practices from other countries. She will contribute to the script in various iterations, and may call on other UCB experts to assist as well (e.g. Vince Resh, Dave Sunding).

The documentary will be launched during the first Ramsar CoP that is organised in an African country. As one of the high profile side-events, a meeting with the African Ministers for the Environment is planned. The documentary will be launched during this side-event. The proposed collaboration will contribute greatly to the success of the documentary and will have several advantageous spin-offs.

The expertise provided by Robin Marsh, together with other collaborators, will ensure that the documentary has a strong scientific basis and is relevant on a global level. This will strengthen the credibility of the documentary for audiences on the need to recognize linkages between poverty and environmental destruction, and to seriously consider the possible solutions that have evolved from local research. The launch of the documentary during this event will also raise the profile of the ELP and its students. It will show the commitment (and success) of UCB staff and ELP alumni to sustainable development.

Other collaborators include IUCN, WWF International and the Vrije Universiteit van Amsterdam (VU, Free University of Amsterdam). The VU will play an important role in coordinating the actual development of the documentary. IUCN and WWF will also provide input on the script and where possible collaborate in the field.

Connection with UCB Course

The documentary connects with the learning skills developed during the summer course at Berkeley as it focuses on the intricate link between population, poverty and the environment, and policy trade-offs involved in meeting environmental and economic goals. It is aimed at decision makers and wetland users to clearly understand the difficulties surrounding the construction and management of dams, the trade-offs between irrigation and natural production and the struggle for developing countries to sustainably use their natural resources.

Expected Results and Outputs

The documentary on Mali (as stand-alone or as part of a larger documentary) will be presented at the next Ramsar Conference of Parties in Uganda in November 2005. The outcome will be an increased understanding among high level decision makers on the issues surrounding wetland management and the link with poverty in African countries, with an in-depth case study of wetlands in Mali.

Timeline and Duration

The activities will start in February and will be finalised before the end of the year. Because the rainy season starts in Mali end of May / June, all field missions and filming on location must be finalised before June. During the rainy season the area is inaccessible.

No.

Task

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

1

Brainstorming session with involved partners

2

Draft script

3

Final script

4

Selection of communities, filming on location

5

Editing

6

Preparation of information package

7

Presentation at Ramsar CoP

8

Distribution

Budget

The funding from the SGI will only cover material costs and travel and local expenses of the UCB collaborator to attend the presentation of the final documentary during the Ramsar Conference of Parties in Uganda.

Detailed description of SGI contribution

2a – Equipment A camera and accessories will be rented for the purpose of the production of the documentary

2b – Ticket Air ticket USA – Uganda return

2c – Hotel Hotel costs for UCB collaborator in Uganda

2d – Daily expenses For UCB collaborator in Uganda

2e – Tapes Film tapes DV quality

2g – Music Licenses for music score

2h – Animations Animations to highlight effect of dams on hydrology

2i – Voice over Voice over in French and English

2j – Multiplication 500 copies of the documentary will be made

2k – Multiplication master Multiplication of master copy for distribution to television channels

2l – Production of info package Printing of information material for the Ramsar convention and distribution of the tapes after the convention

Risks

The proposed documentary on the impact of dams in Mali is only one module of the larger documentary, which includes subjects in Philippines (Management of Tropical Forests), Vietnam (Coral Reef Management), Uganda (Natural Resource Dependency of the Poor) and many more. At this moment not enough funding has been secured to develop the full scale documentary but instead, funding will be raised per module. The funding from the Small Grant Initiative will therefore be used as co-funding for the module on Mali. There is a risk however that not enough additional funding can be raised to finalise the documentary on Mali or the larger documentary. The following steps are undertaken to mitigate this risk:

1. If no funding can be raised for the larger documentary, only the modules for which funding is available will be used for presentation at the Ramsar Conference of Parties. Wetlands International is at this moment implementing a project in Mali on the management of dams and thus a lot of information is available on this subject, needed for an in depth documentary on poverty – environment links. This is the reason why this module has been proposed for funding by the SGI.

2. At this moment additional funding will still be needed to produce the Malian documentary. All partners involved in the project are committed to raise additional funds. All organisations involved have considerable amount of experience in raising funds and have a network of possible donors. It is believed that with a combined effort enough funding can be raised to produce the documentary. It is believed that the SGI funding will stimulate other donors to also support the documentary.

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[1] NEPAD stands for New Partnership for Africa’s Development. It is designed to address the current development challenges facing the African continent. Spearheaded by African leaders, the focus lies on escalating poverty levels and underdevelopment.