Page 16 - Biodiversity and Conservation Framework

Biodiversity & Conservation Framework

Annex A ILM also supports integration across sectors and scales,
increasing coordination. Similarly, it ensures the harmonization of
planning, implementation, and monitoring processes at the
Tools and Solutions landscape, sub-national, and national levels. By coordinating
strategies and encouraging synergies between different levels of
Integrated Water Resources Management government, ILM can create cost efficiencies at multiple levels.
Given that ILM supports an inclusive, participatory process that
IWRM promotes the coordinated development and engages all stakeholders in collaborative decision-making and
management of water- and land-related resources to management, it can also empower local communities.
maximize economic and social welfare in an equitable
manner without compromising the sustainability of A wholescape approach²⁰ provides a framework that integrates
ecosystems. The process promotes the coordinated and supplements current practices so that they best support
development and management of water, land, and related conservation and restoration of freshwater biodiversity. A
resources to maximize economic and social welfare in an fundamental issue in management of transboundary waters and
equitable manner, without compromising the sustainability their biodiversity is ensuring connectivity between elements of the
of vital ecosystems and the environment. IWRM is a cross- land and water bodies from source to coast. This is vital to maintain
sectoral policy approach designed to replace the traditional, an appropriate flow of water, nutrients, and sediment that define
fragmented sectoral approach to water resources water resources, the migration and dispersal of species upstream
management that has led to poor services and and downstream, laterally with floodplains, vertically with
unsustainable resource use. IWRM is based on the groundwater, and over time. A second key issue is that while many
understanding that water resources are an integral ecosystems have a role in the hydrological cycle, the nature of this
component of the ecosystem, a natural resource, and a influence changes between ecosystems and with their location
social and economic public good.¹⁶ within the landscape. A wholescape approach should underpin
transboundary water strategies and projects, including the use of
Integrated Landscape Management / NBS and monitoring programs, and expose the dependencies and
Wholescape Approach provide cohesion between nations sharing water.
Transboundary natural resource management (TBNRM) is an Natural capital and nature-based solutions
important tool in broad landscape approaches to sustainable
natural resource management and biodiversity conservation. Natural capital can be defined as the world’s stock of natural
TBNRM is defined as any process of collaboration across assets, which include geology, soil, air, water, and all living beings
boundaries that increases the effectiveness of attaining natural and things. Humans derive a wide range of services, often called
resource management or biodiversity conservation goals.¹⁷ ecosystem services, from natural capital, which make human life
Ecological opportunities include maintaining or restoring possible. The most obvious ecosystem services include food,
linkages and ecosystems in ecological landscapes across water, plant materials used for fuel, building materials, and
borders, reducing transboundary threats to promote sustainable medicines. There are also many less visible ecosystem services
use of natural resources, renewal of cooperation and cultural such as the climate regulation and natural flood defenses
ties among communities severed by colonial borders, increased provided by forests, the billions of tons of carbon stored by
welfare and development opportunities for populations, the peatlands, and the pollination of crops by insects. Even less
development of a regional economic base through tourism, visible are cultural ecosystem services such as the inspiration
improved access and linkages, and economies of scale. taken from wildlife and the natural environment.²¹

Integrated Landscape Management (ILM) is an increasingly Poorly managed natural capital becomes not only an ecological
popular and innovative approach to land management that liability, but also a social and economic liability. Working against
reduces land-use conflicts, empowers communities, nature by overexploiting natural capital can be catastrophic not
addresses climate change, supports water and food security, just for biodiversity loss, but also for humans as ecosystem
and achieves development objectives at the landscape scale. productivity and resilience decline over time and some regions
ILM refers to long-term collaboration among different become more prone to extreme events such as floods and
groups of land managers and stakeholders to achieve the droughts. Ultimately, this makes it more difficult for communities
multiple objectives required from the landscape built on the to sustain themselves, particularly in already stressed
principles of participation, negotiation, and cooperation.¹⁸ ecosystems, potentially leading to hunger or starvation, conflict
ILM has the best chance of succeeding when policies, over resource scarcity, and displacement of populations.²²
markets, and financial conditions support it. Through long-
term collaboration among different groups of stakeholders, Nature-based solutions are often a cost-effective approach to
ILM supports the achievement of multiple objectives water resource management, disaster risk reduction, and climate
required from the landscape, such as agricultural change mitigation.²³ Although there is no internationally agreed
production; delivery of ecosystem services; provision of definition of NBS, the International Union for Conservation of
ecosystem services (e.g., water flow regulation and quality, Nature (IUCN) Global Standard for Nature-based Solutions is
pollination, climate change mitigation and adaptation, used here: “actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore
cultural values); protection of biodiversity, landscape natural or modified ecosystems that address societal challenges
beauty, identity, and recreation value; and inclusivity of effectively and adaptively, simultaneously providing human well-
local livelihoods, human health, and well-being.¹⁹ being and biodiversity benefits.”

¹⁶ https://www.unep.org/explore-topics/disasters-conflicts/where-we-work/sudan/what-integrated-water-resources-
management#:~:text=Integrated%20Water%20Resources%20Management%20(IWRM,the%20sustainability%20of%20vital%20ecosystems.
¹⁷ Ibid.
¹⁸ Thaxton, M., Shames, S., and Scherr, S.J. EcoAgriculture Partners. UNCCD. Global Land Outlook Working Paper. Integrated Landscape Management.
¹⁹ Scherr, S.J., Shames, S., and Friedman, R., EcoAgriculture Partners 2013. Defining Integrated Landscape Management for Policy Makers.
²⁰ https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/global-sustainability/article/resilient-rivers-and-connected-marine-systems-a-review-of-mutual-sustainability-
opportunities/925D17EE3A761A169549CE4FE17036A9
²¹ http://www.naturalcapitalforum.com/what-is-natural-capital
12 ²² Ibid.
²³ Browder et al., 2019.