Project Detail

Project of Chinese Pangolin Habitat Protection and Community Education in Gaoli Village, Xiushui County, Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province

Baseline
1. environmental and social-economic conditions
As an important link in the ecological chain, pangolin's living state will directly affect the stability and health of the ecosystem, and is closely related to human production and life. A single pangolin can kill 50-80 million ants and termites every year and protect 13.34 hectares of forest from ant damage; Their excavations help aerate the soil and facilitate the dispersal of plant seeds, and their abandoned burrows can provide temporary shelter for other wildlife in the forest, serving as feeding grounds for many small animals. Pangolins play an important role in natural ecosystems and contribute greatly to regional biodiversity.
However, due to the gap in the market demand for food and medicine, a large number of pangolins are poached and illegally smuggled. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) estimates that at least one million pangolins have been captured by humans over the past few decades. Since

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the 1960s, the number of wild pangolins in China has decreased by 88.88% to 94.12%, and the Chinese pangolin, which was once widely distributed in more than a dozen provinces south of the Yangtze River, is now hard to find in the wild.
On July 29, 2014, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List changed the status of the Chinese pangolin from Endangered (EN) to Critically Endangered (CR). In June 2020, China upgraded all species of pangolin from national second-class protected wild animals to first-class. So far, only 142 confirmed pangolins have been collected in China's 11 provincial administrative regions. In Xiashui Gaoli Village, from 2019 to 2023, through comprehensive analysis of pangolin cave data and infrared camera images and direct counting statistics, 24 pangolin individuals have been monitored in the area, and 79 caves have been found, indicating that there is a healthy population of Chinese pangolin in the local area. Because this area is not the norm of nature reserves, there are still various risk factors such as poaching, logging and human activities, and it is urgent to strengthen protection work.

Problems
1. Community people have insufficient scientific understanding of pangolins, deviation of social and cultural concepts, and lack of practical support for conservation work.
2. The occurrence of poaching activities, man-made environmental pollution, production activities and other human factors may have adverse effects on the survival and reproduction of pangolin populations and destroy local biodiversity.
3. The infrastructure construction of pangolin guard stations and the work of pangolin population monitoring, habitat patrol and community education based on the guard stations need to be further improved.
4. In terms of long-term planning and systematic implementation of pangolin protection, there is a lack of clear co-management mechanisms and conventions, lack of effective communication and actions, and no clear consensus on goals with local governments and local communities.

Solutions
1. Organize education activities on the protection of pangolins for the public and specific groups, carry out education and training in schools and communities, strengthen cultural education and value guidance, promote public awareness of the cultural and ecological value of pangolins, and promote the change of social concepts. It also cooperates with newspapers, TV stations, portal websites and other media to provide publicity materials on multimedia and online platforms to widely publicize the importance, civic responsibility and legal obligation of protecting Chinese pangolins.
2. To combat poaching by establishing local population patrols, strengthening patrols and monitoring, combating illegal hunting, providing alternative livelihoods and educational opportunities, and reducing local populations' dependence on wildlife; Ecological cultivation is advocated to reduce pollution to the pangolin habitat and its food chain. Baselines for pangolin habitats, development and implementation of visitor codes of conduct and provision of research and conservation education and training, and restrictions on access to sensitive areas by tourists, photographers and explorers can cause disturbances to pangolin behaviour and habitat, leading to migration and dispersal of pangolin populations.
3. Actively apply for the local government's investment in the construction funds of the guard station; In order to ensure the normal operation of the guardian station, it is planned to recruit one full-time project staff and three part-time staff in the local area, because they are more familiar with the culture and community situation of the project place, and can better improve the implementation efficiency of the project and enhance the identity and participation of local community residents in the project implementation process. Full-time staff will be responsible for the daily management and coordination of the project, part-time staff is mainly composed of local community volunteers or forest rangers, after unified guidance and training, they have a certain knowledge and experience in wildlife protection, can assist in patrol and ecological monitoring work.
4. Establish a long-term protection mechanism for tripartite cooperation, coordination and supervision of the local government, local communities and social organizations, clarify the interests of all parties under the co-management mode, give play to the role of the local Wildlife Conservation Association of Xiushui County, regularly communicate with it on progress and jointly formulate protection strategies. Planning, execution, monitoring and evaluation of specific matters such as habitat and ecosystem management to ensure smooth implementation and long-term sustainable development of the project. At present, preliminary talks have been held with Huangsha Town government of Xiushui County and Xiagaoli Village Branch committees and villagers, and have been highly recognized by them. The local government and community expressed their willingness to provide necessary support and assistance including resource integration, policy advocacy, publicity and promotion, cooperation and co-management, so as to further enhance the effectiveness and influence of the protection work.
Maximizing the participation of local communities in pangolin conservation efforts to improve the sustainability and localization of conservation projects; Based on the natural ecological resources and cultural and historical resources of local communities, we will promote the development of sustainable biodiversity friendly projects such as local nature education with attractive nature conservation brands such as "Gaolihong Ecological Tea" and "Neishibei Ancient Village", so as to provide long-term and sustainable socio-economic and ecological benefits for pangolin protection and the development of its habitat.

Outcomes
1. Through the distribution of posters, brochures, and related science popularization videos, graphic and textual promotion, the social exposure rate of pangolins has been increased. The public's attention to pangolin protection issues and awareness of wildlife protection have been continuously enhanced, and more people are encouraged to actively participate in protection work; Radiation to primary and secondary school students, party and government agencies, employees of enterprise units, and community residents in the Changsha area and surrounding townships where the project is located, to develop a deep understanding of pangolin culture and ecological value, and promote a gradual transformation of social concepts; The attention of government departments and various sectors of society to the protection of pangolins has been effectively increased, and the brand influence of the project has been effectively enhanced.
2. The "Village Patrol Team" has been established and operated well, and the "Village Rules and Regulations" have been issued and operated well; The scientific and professional protection of pangolins and their habitats has been effectively improved; The protection awareness and community autonomy of local community residents have been improved, and the sustainability and localization of the project have gradually increased. The core patrol area is 1000 acres, approximately 66.7 hectares.
3. The basic usage functions of the guardian station have been improved and completed; The professional skills and protection knowledge level of volunteer data monitoring should be gradually improved; By defining baselines to clarify the responsibilities and interests of all parties, the efficiency of protecting and managing wildlife and their habitats has been improved. The rare wildlife resources and habitats, with Chinese pangolins as the flagship species, have been monitored and protected over an area of approximately 10 square kilometers; The innate cultural and social kinship advantages of local volunteers effectively enhance the sense of identification and participation of local community residents in the project; The brand effect of volunteer science popularization and communication work has expanded, and the pangolin guardian station has been built and operated, becoming a project base and a special volunteer incubation camp.
4. The development of scientific research routes and courses suitable for local protection has been completed, and the knowledge and management abilities of community residents in receiving scientific research ecotourism have been improved; The project ensures the ecological benefits of pangolin habitats and effectively increases the sustainable livelihood income of villagers through ecological planting and providing employment opportunities.

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Project Snapshot

Grantee:

Changsha Wildlife Conservation Association

Country:

China

Area Of Work:

Biodiversity

Operational Phase:

OP7 Y4 (July 23-June 24)

Grant Amount:

US$ 50,000.00

Co-Financing Cash:

US$ 2,781.64

Co-Financing in-Kind:

Project Number:

CPR/SGP/OP7/Y4/STAR/BD/2023/02

Start Date:

5/2024

End Date:

6/2026

Status:

Currently under execution

Project Characteristics and Results

Emphasis on Sustainable Livelihoods

Direct project beneficiaries disaggregated by gender (individual people);Number of direct beneficiaries with improved livelihoods and well-being

Promoting Public Awareness of Global Environment

In the implementation of the project, the Association will release pangolin conservation and popular science videos, nature class curriculum implementation plans and pangolin-related information articles on multimedia or network platforms, and provide online learning resources for a wide range of the public. Corresponding to the project activities [1.2], the output of knowledge products includes: 1 pangolin conservation science popularization video, (4) Pangolin theme series nature class activity implementation plan, no less than 40 pangolin living habits, conservation status, laws and regulations related information articles

Gender Focus

In the implementation, women, men, youth and other vulnerable groups have equal opportunities to participate in the project. Women often assume more responsibility for the training and education of the next generation, so as to subtly guide family members to establish correct ecological values and inherit folk languages, cultures, beliefs and other forms of cultural heritage; In terms of participation in the implementation of eco-friendly nature education and community management, government and partner resources can be integrated, focusing on capacity-building training for women; In the local ecological tea garden picking, making and other projects, women can give play to their gender and ability advantages.

Significant Participation of Indigenous Peoples

The project will use the participatory community development model, invite villagers to conduct public discussions, and jointly develop and implement the maintenance of forest patrol plan, resource management system and village regulations; Organize local community residents to conduct training and capacity building activities to enhance their awareness of the biodiversity value and service value of the ecosystem in the pangolin conservation project; Jointly promote the development of sustainable biodiversity friendly projects such as village nature education through attractive nature conservation brands such as "Gaolihong Ecological Tea" and "Neishibei Ancient Village" to provide long-term and sustainable socio-economic and ecological benefits for the development of project sites.

Inovative Financial Mechanisms

We will also invite conservation experts to conduct training on issues such as conservation awareness, pangolin patrol, monitoring and community protection, and build China's first demonstration and symbolic folk Chinese pangolin guard station, complete its functions such as science popularization, population monitoring and so on, and make it a base for the project and an incubation camp for special volunteers. And through Weibo, official website, wechat public platform, video and other channels to share with the public the pangolin and habitat wildlife monitoring statistics report and infrared image records taken in the field. Corresponding to project activities [3.3/3.4], the successful results of the output of knowledge products include: In the project area, there are no less than 30 monitoring and analysis data of rare wild animal and plant resources and habitats (about 10 square kilometers of area) with Chinese pangolin as the flagship species, 1 set of regional activity drawings for pangolin, and activity articles and videos of related activities progress and pangolin monitoring effectiveness. Since there are still some endangered wildlife habitat protection projects in China that are not included in nature reserves, systematic exchanges and mutual discussions will be conducted with other similar projects on the project results, tripartite co-management model, in-depth participation of local residents, economic development and ecological protection in the process of promoting the project. Corresponding to the project activity [2.1/2.2/2.3], the output of knowledge products includes: a village regulations and covenants that write pangolin protection into Xiagaoli Village, a record of the routine patrol of the village level patrol team, and an assessment report involving a core protection area of about 1,000 mu.

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