What We Offer
The Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management (BIOPAMA) Programme assists the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific countries to address their priorities for effective conservation and sustainable use of natural resources by providing tools, services and financial support.
Services
the Regional Observatories for Protected Areas and Biodiversity
The Regional Observatories for Protected Areas and Biodiversity are the central pillar of BIOPAMA’s work. They support data collection, analysis, monitoring and reporting, develop the capacities of staff and organisations to manage this information and provide policy guidance for better decision making on biodiversity conservation.
Mandated by well-established regional institutions, five Regional Observatories have been established during the first phase of the BIOPAMA programme (2011-2017) and others are being established under the second phase. These key regional partners include: the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), the University of the West Indies (UWI-CERMES) in the Caribbean, the Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD), the Observatory for Central African Forests (COMIFAC OFAC), the Centre de Suivi Ecologique (CSE) Consortium and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU).
BIOPAMA engages primarily with national and regional level agencies and institutions, with additional targeted interaction with protected area managers
Services of the BIOPAMA Observatories include:
Hosting data and information
The Reference Information Systems (RRIS) are a key feature of each Observatory. The RRIS is a tool that gathers in one place the information from the many knowledge products, projects, databases on protected areas, species and related information, in addition to the data uploaded, created and generated by the users themselves. The Joint Research Centre is responsible for the development of these tools, uploaded with the information collected through the functions of the Observatories. Currently there are nine instances of the Reference Information Systems. https://rris.biopama.org
Planning and decision making support
The provision of data, information and guidance can enhance the protected area decision-making and planning at regional, national and site levels. The Regional Observatories provide these services that allow planners and decision makers to access the most updated and comprehensive information on protected areas and natural resources management using the Reference Information Systems. The production of periodic status reports on biodiversity and other policy support materials, as well as the networking function of the Observatories benefit conservation planners and decision makers.
Assessment tools and their application
In order to support protected area planning and decision making, BIOPAMA is providing tools that respond to the specific requests in data collection, information management, governance assessments and others. The first tool developed is IMET, the Integrated Management Effectiveness Tool.
Capacity development
The capacity development actions of the BIOPAMA programme aim at building the capacity of staff in national administrations and other conservation actors to make effective use of the tools developed through BIOPAMA that lead to better informed decisions and actions for improved biodiversity conservation outcomes. One of the main objectives of the programme is to build the capacity of countries to make effective use of the RRIS, the Reference Information Systems, to report regularly to international conventions and agreements, such as the Convention on the Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Tools
Data and information management
Using the best available information to drive appropriate conservation actions and decisions is crucial for protected areas management and the livelihoods of people who depend on them. The Reference Information Systems (RIS) are a key feature of each Observatory. The RIS is a tool that gathers in one place the information from the many knowledge products, projects, databases on protected areas, species and related information, in addition to the data uploaded, created and generated by the users themselves. It is expected to be harmonised with other major global datasets and relevant information management platforms, including PANORAMA – Solutions for a Healthy Planet, and the IUCN Green List of Protected and Conserved Areas. This information can be used to support decision making for planning, designating and managing protected areas.
The Reference Information Systems (RIS)
The BIOPAMA Reference Information System (RRIS) uses the internet to gather information from different authoritative sources. A lot of this information is geospatial (maps and other data with a geographic reference), complemented with information on training, best practice, funding, literature and expertise. Typical information in the RRIS includes: Protected Areas boundaries, species and IUCN Red List data, land cover data; Important Bird Areas; extractive industries and resource exploitation population, infrastructure and settlements data; climate and meteorological data (source: JRC); Soil data (source: JRC); Satellite imagery (source: various); Training and capacity building opportunities.
Discover the Global RIS
Global SiteThe BIOPAMA RIS uses the services provided by DOPA at global level in combination with ad-hoc regional, national and site level data to provide a more complete picture of the situation in Protected Areas across the African, Caribbean and Pacific countries.
Discover the Regional RIS
Funding
Site-based Actions
BIOPAMA will support specific actions on the ground aimed at strengthening protected areas and natural resources management effectiveness and governance. The application of the BIOPAMA management and governance assessment tools will help identify where management action is necessary.
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SubscribeThe BIOPAMA community on Teams is open to all who have an interest in biodiversity and protected area management, especially in the African, Caribbean and Pacific regions. Click on "Join" to be added to the BIOPAMA Community on Teams. We will bulk import the addresses in Teams mid-February 2021, and after that we will add new members on a weekly basis.
