Equipment: $ 600Total: $11,900Food $ 500Total: $4,400GRAND TOTAL: $16,300Ginny LeikamStephanie OtisTristan RaymondNicole SielkenTom SweeneyCrooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary, Belize: An Assessment of the Co-Management Plan betweenthe Belize Audubon Society and Buffer Zone CommunitiesThe Belize Audubon Society (BAS) is charged with the management of eight protected areas inBelize. Until recently, the management of these areas has been conducted in collaboration with theGovernment of Belize (GOB); however, little public participation efforts have been initiated with localcommunities. This traditional norm of government or NGO run conservation areas is changing inBelize. Local communities within Belize have been calling for more self-determination within theirnative areas. A previous UM Masters project group recommended that BAS implement co-management plans as a way to satisfy this call for more public participation in the management ofprotected areas. Since then, BAS has received funds from the European Union to begin theimplementation of these co-management plans in two protected areas, Cockscomb Basin WildlifeSanctuary and Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary. This plan directly involves both the Belize AudubonSociety and the buffer zone communities in the management of these ecosystems. The GOB playsonly a marginal role. The main themes of the project are capacity building, resource managementtraining, and public education. The overarching goal of this plan remains the preservation of thebiological diversity of the area. The purpose of this Master’s project is to build upon the previous Master’s projects to conductan assessment of the co-management plan at four buffer zone communities at the Crooked TreeWildlife Sanctuary. This Master’s project proposes to examine and answer the following questions: - How has the implementation of the management plan affected the surrounding buffercommunities? Conversely, how have the surrounding buffer zone communities affectedthe implementation of the management plan?- How are the surrounding communities benefiting from the management plan? How arethey impacted by the management plan?- How have the communities been involved? What is their role/participation? - How do the BAS, GOB, and national/international NGOs view the community’sinvolvement in the management plan? How do the communities view the BAS, GOB,and NGOs involvement with managing the resources?- Has the training/sustainability education/mechanisms of community involvement beenadequate/effective in reaching the management objectives?- How has the management plan been implemented? What changes should be made?What should remain the same?This Master’s Project will look specifically at the following:I. The Background of protected areas (PAs) within Belizea. Traditional managementb. The emergence of the co-management systemII. Attitudes Towards the Current Management Practicesa. Officials with the BASb. Community perception1c. GOB officialsIII. Behavior Specific Changes of Buffer Zone Community Membersa. Impact of Sustainability Education Program and Public Education CampaignIV. Biological integrity: to what extent has the co-management plan effectively increasedthe health of the PA ecosystem?V. An Overall Assessment of the Success of the Co-Management PlanVI. A Cost/Benefit Analysis to Compare Co-Management with more Traditional Models.VII. Policy Recommendations for the GOB and BAS, as well as Local Community Bi-LawsMethodology:To examine the effectiveness of the management plan and the communityattitudes/participation in the plan, we will interview members of the buffer zone communities, BelizeAudubon Society staff, and government officials involved in the management of the protected areas.Other possible interviewees may include other NGO organizations involved. We will also comparerecent and older records of the flora and fauna in the area to determine the extent to which the co-management plan has fulfilled its primary objective of protecting biological diversity. Timeline: February 7, 2003: Finalize Project Team MembersMarch 3, 2003: Proposal FinalizedMarch 2003: Secure Funding for researchMid-March – April 2003: Extensive Literature ReviewEnd June – August 2003: Conduct Survey Research in BelizeSeptember – December 2003: Data Analysis and preliminary writingJanuary – April 2004: Finalize Report and publish findings. Prepare synopsis report for communities.February 2004: Present findings to GOB, BAS and Crooked Tree and other buffer zone communities.Budget:Travel Expenses (summer research):5 Roundtrip tickets (Detroit – Belize City) 5 X $600 = $ 3000Rental Vehicle to get to research sites: 10 weeks = $3,500Gas for vehicle: $ 300Lodging, (5 people for 10 weeks) $ 3000Translator $ 500Food $ 1000Equipment: $ 600 Total: $11,900Travel expenses (present findings to GOB, BAS, and communities Feb. 2004):5 Roundtrip tickets (Detroit – Belize City) 5 X $600 = $ 3000In-country travel expenses: $ 150Lodging, (5 people for 1 week) $ 750Food $ 500 Total: $4,400GRAND TOTAL: $16,3002Anticipated Findings: Given that the buffer zone communities have the most direct contact with the PA, it is criticalthat the government and NGO’s involve them in the day-to-day activities of PA management. Also,their knowledge of both the biological and cultural diversity of the area cannot be underestimated. Webelieve that our finding will demonstrate that, over the long term, involving the local people in themanagement of the PA, educating them about the importance of maintaining the ecological diversityfound therein will have positive results. However, since this project is only a few years old, thosebenefits may not have yet revealed themselves. Also, though ideally the idea of co-management issound, the actual implementation of it may prove otherwise. Hence, there is definite need for anassessment of the co-management plan.References:Belize Audubon Society: www.belizeaudubon.orgBelize Audubon Society’s proposal submitted to the European UnionBAS Newsletter, Volume 34, #1, August-September 2000.Examining the Belize Audubon Society’s Management of Protected Areas in Belize. (UM MastersProject) 2000 Christopher Botnick, Jesse Buff, Laura Congdon, Jeff Manternach,
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