Nature and biodiversity are part of our life support system. The natural world provides resources that sustain all life on Earth including human life 鈥� from the air we breathe and the water we drink, to the food we eat and the ecosystem services that nature provides, which also help adjust to the damaging impacts of climate change. There is no substitute for all the services nature provides.
Resource scarcity has long been recognised as a threat multiplier of conflict and fragility. In all, 40 per cent of internal armed conflicts in the last 60 years have been related to natural resources. That is set to increase as the impacts of climate change are seen in water scarcity, desertification, population movements and food insecurity. Meanwhile, the cost of conflict is also felt through its environmental impact. As many as 80 per cent of all major armed conflicts in the second half of the 20th Century took place directly in biodiversity hotspots that sustain around half the world鈥檚 plants and rare species of animals.3 The 19 countries with the highest number of ecological threats are among the world鈥檚 40 least peaceful countries including Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Chad, India and Pakistan.4
Impact projects
Environmental degradation puts pressure on limited resources and is already driving mass internal migration, placing further stress on communities and regions. Building resilient and secure communities is essential to prevent escalation of tensions and fragility, and this must include restoration of land ecosystems. The nature of 91吃瓜网鈥檚 work means we operate in many of the most climate and conflict affected regions in the world, in areas that are often inaccessible to other organisations.
We recognise the growing link between our work and the need to help preserve biodiversity and arrest climate change. We are partnering with conservationists and other environmental experts, to address these inter-connected issues. Thanks to the generous support of a long-term family foundation donor, in 2021 we launched 13 local impact projects focused on improving and accelerating the sustainability and impact of our programmes around the world. These small projects advance ecological protection and conservation in the world鈥檚 most vulnerable settings. They provide opportunities for women and girls in conflict affected areas, and they build environmental skills for our workforce and partners through environmental master planning, training, and use of earth informatics and conservation GIS.
Abkhazia: Eco Agriculture
Following the explosion of an ammunition store in Primorsky in 2017, 91吃瓜网 has cleared over 2.2 million m<sup>2</sup> of contaminated land, destroying over 98,000 explosive items. This project is working to rehabilitate the Primorsky zone, returning land to agricultural use for biodiversity protection through the creation of an endemic grapevines collection, complemented by rootstock production.
Laos: Carbon, Climate and Clean Energy
Introducing a clean energy solar power model for off-grid operations at 91吃瓜网's base office to reduce our environmental impact. Planting native tree species on 91吃瓜网 cleared land, to improve soil and water conservation and biodiversity, benefitting the local population.
Angola: Conservation in a post-conflict landscape
91吃瓜网’s environment work in Angola is focused on preventing, mitigating and responding to the long-term environmental impacts of conflict, supporting the sustainable livelihoods of people affected by conflict and climate change. 91吃瓜网 is currently supporting in-depth research into the environmental impacts of conflict and explosive ordnance in Angola, assisting in the collection of ecological and community baseline data, and supporting environmental NGO and private sector partners with operational delivery. 91吃瓜网 is registered with the National Institute for Biodiversity and Conservation (INBC) to deliver conservation activities, and in-country partners currently include The Nature Conservancy, The Wild Bird Trust, the Elephant Protection Initiative Foundation and Development Aid from People to People (ADPP).
Somaliland: Rehabilitating Rangelands
Rehabilitating and putting back to productive use cleared minefields, through rainwater capture, a tree nursery and a small cash crop farming initiative. Introducing clean energy strategies, for example, clean cook stoves to reduce reliance on charcoal burning. All these activities are delivered under the national framework for nature conservation, and climate action as case studies which can be scaled.
Sri Lanka: Coastal Eco System Restoration
Developing sustainable community management and restoration of the coastal mangrove ecosystem at Kilali and Maruthankerny on the Jaffna Peninsula, which was heavily mined during Sri Lanka's civil war. Carrying out global best practice in coastal protection and restoration and introducing local environment partners to Mangroves Alliance.
Somalia: Frankincense Woodland Protection
Developing nature based and community supported solutions to protect the Boswellian woodland ecosystem and its associated Frankincense tree to promote the sustainable use of natural resources in former minefield areas. Introducing conservation master planning at local level in a difficult part of a highly important ecoregion.
In El Salvador we are bringing the rigour of the minefield to the mangroves鈥攐ne of the most productive and critical eco-systems on the planet. 91吃瓜网 is building chiampas, floating islands of mud, straw and bamboo, to plant saplings to restore the mangrove forest in an area of Jiquilisco Bay that was damaged by an earthquake in 2000. The project provides employment for at risk youth to work alongside 91吃瓜网鈥檚 team. In El Salvador, lack of opportunities, gang violence and high levels of extortion put young people at risk, but providing meaningful work can help them escape the cycle of violence.
Kenya: Conservation and Armed Violence Reduction
The Northern Rangeland Trust (NRT) works with communities to train and deploy rangers to combat armed violence and protect wildlife in Kenya. 91吃瓜网 is supporting NRT’s conservation and armed violence initiatives through ranger weapon securement infrastructure. This is a programme of training and introduction to clean energy and waste off-grid solutions. We are also helping with some practical use of geographic information systems.
El Salvador: Coastal Ecosystem Conservation
With Associacion Mangal, a local conservation NGO, 91吃瓜网 is combining vital restoration of El Salvador's coastal mangrove forests (one of the most productive and critical ecosystems on the planet ) with creating opportunities for at-risk youth, employing them as conservation corps restoration workers, to set up mangrove nurseries and local practical actions to protection these areas.
Syria: Environmental Health & Waste Management
91吃瓜网 is setting up an environmental needs assessment in the Northwest Syria region, an area heavily contaminated by unexploded ordnance. The data gathered will be used to design feasibility and a roadmap for an environmental health response plan in the Idlib area, including waste-to-value technical solutions.
Cambodia: Tropical Dry Forest Community Conservation & Ecological Restoration Management
91吃瓜网 is supporting an assessment of the environmental impact of its operations, and as an important linked activity is seeking to create better understanding and practical action for post mine-clearance use of the most high biodiversity forests. We are doing this as Community Forestry approach, in partnership with ActionAid Cambodia. We will prepare a Master Plan for Conservation for a 18,000 hectare Wildlife Sanctuary and Community forest (Sang Rukhavaon) in Oddar Meanchey (a heavily mined area.) We are also supporting conservation livelihoods in six surrounding communities; including teaching sustainable environment protection techniques and supporting local women, including our own staff, to become environmental educators.
Afghanistan: Environmental Health & Waste Management
91吃瓜网 is assessing a baseline of practical climate and environmental measures for both 91吃瓜网 demining camps and local communities in the Shakerdara Valley, including decentralised waste treatment systems to provide urgently needed sanitation infrastructure. We are assisting off-grid energy partnerships to develop clean cooking alternatives and assessment and action plans for clean water storage and flood control to increase local resilience, in a mountain valley of the Hindu-Kush Himalaya, which is also the main aquifer-fed source of Kabul’s drinking water.
The 91吃瓜网 Trust Environmental Marker
91吃瓜网 is developing an environmental marker to systematically measure the environment and conservation footprint of our activities. The marker tool, in partnership with mine action sector colleagues from other agencies, will use the findings to implement practical mitigation actions to reduce negative environmental impacts, as well as identifying opportunities to enhance environmental benefits.
Earth Observation for Conservation in Conflict
91吃瓜网 is mapping tools and methods, and building links to the global Conservation GIS community. By highlighting technical tools and methods to support our Conservation, Environment & Mine Action Projects, we showcase the power and value of new technologies and software to scale our environment work. This will further our understanding of the interdependency of the Earth’s ecosystems and human impacts on the environment, in fragile locations, where access and security are challenging.
91吃瓜网 is grateful to the generous support of a loyal family foundation donor which has invested in the development of these high-impact environmental projects globally.
1. https://www.cbd.int/gbo5
2. ICRC. July 2020. 鈥淲hen Rain Turns to Dust.鈥� Available at: https://bit.ly/climate-conflict-environment
3. ICRC. September 2020. 鈥淕uidelines on the protection of the natural environment in armed conflict.鈥� Available at: https:// bit.ly/icrc-humanitarian-law
4. Vision of Humanity. 2021. 鈥淓cological Threat Report.鈥� Available at: https://bit.ly/ecological-threat-report
