Participants at the Open Standards workshop in Kenya discuss the details of a results chain and brainstorm strategies. Photo by Felix Cybulla.
Stories from Nancy Chege (UNDP), Musa Cheruiyot (WWF-Africa), Elizabeth Ngoye (WWF-Africa), Felix Cybulla (Consultant), and Jens Odinga (Saba Conservation Foundation)
The CCNet Rally in Spain in 2015 was momentous. The Rally provided a unique opportunity to consolidate efforts to reach out to African franchises and led to a flurry of activity within the East and Southern African Franchise during the first half of 2016.
In March, the Biodiversity Management Programme (funded by the European Union) held a five-day training in Kenya to help their partner organizations use the Open Standards to conserve landscapes that lie on the boundaries of countries in the Horn of Africa. A post-workshop evaluation showed that all participants saw great opportunities for applying the knowledge and skills they gained. Joint work on shared issues allowed participants to coordinate programmes, protected area management, and large-scale species conservation across national boundaries.
Training participants will use the Open Standards to sustainably manage the Boma/Gambella Transboundary Landscape on the border between South Sudan and Ethiopia, Lac Abbé/Lower Awash Transboundary Landscape and Gulf of Tajourah Seascape between Djibouti and Ethiopia, and Tana Kipini Lag Badana Bush Bushle Transboundary Landscape and Seascape on the border of Kenya and Somalia. Everyone recognizes the benefits of all parties in a transboundary partnership sharing the same planning and management approach. The full workshop report can be downloaded here.
In Tanzania, the World Wildlife Foundation organized a workshop to teach the region’s conservation organizations how to apply the Open Standards. The workshop brought together 26 participants from Tanzania, Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Uganda.
In May, the WWF and CCNet co-hosted a New Coach Training workshop in Kenya. The trainers joined 21 participants who were keen to acquire the skills they need to coach teams through the Open Standards process. The group graduated on May 20, becoming the newest members of the East and Southern African Franchise and the global CCNet community. “Karibuni sana”—or welcome—to these new coaches.
Participants and facilitators of the basic Open Standards Training. The training was held at the Serena Manyara Hotel in Tanzania, adjacent to the charming and scenic Lake Manyara National Park, once described by Ernest Hemingway as “the loveliest I had seen in Africa.”
Participants and facilitators of the New Coaches Training held at Maanzoni Lodge along the Athi River in Kenya.
The workshops in Kenya and Tanzania were facilitated by CCNet coaches from within the region, and one coach from the Europe Franchise. The Tanzania training was funded by the participating conservation organisations. The New Coach Training was led by trainers John Morrison (WWF-US), Lydia Gaskell (WWF-UK), and Genevieve Pence (Independent Consultant).
