CHINA’S WETLANDS
RARE PROGRAM FOR SUSTAINABLE FISHING IN
SHARING
WETLANDS
AGREEMENTS TO MANAGE AND PROTECT CRITICAL
HABITAT FOR PEOPLE AND ENDANGERED SPECIES IN CHINA
1
DONG LEI
WETLANDS
HABITAT WORTH PROTECTING
Every continent in the world has wetlands except
Once covering 12 percent of the planet’s land area,
Antarctica. A wetland is defined as an area that is filled
half the world’s wetlands have disappeared in the past
or soaked with water for at least part of the year.
century. Studies estimate the economic value of flood
prevention and other ecological services provided by
Wetlands are like the kidneys of the Earth. This unique
wetlands at roughly $15,000 per hectare per year, more
habitat filters and cleans water, collects floodwaters
than any other type of habitat.
CAN NEVER
BE RETRIEVED.”
hydropower and mitigates the effects of climate
Wetlands support humans and nature with equal
— CHINESE PROVERB
change (wetlands retain 10 to 20 percent of the world’s
vigilance. No other ecosystem is as important to millions
terrestrial carbon). Although 70 percent of the Earth is
of migratory birds, fish, amphibians, insects, plants and
covered by water, only 2.5 percent is fresh water, and
trees, and yet also supports the livelihoods of millions
one acre of wetlands can hold up to one and a half
of people worldwide. Demand for the ecosystem
million gallons of fresh water.
services of wetlands will continue to intensify as human
and gradually releases them, reduces erosion, provides
populations increase and development accelerates.
2
2
“
WATER
SPILLED
RARE FACT: Draining a wetland releases 40 tons of carbon per hectare per year, contributing to global climate change.
CHINA
HANZHONG
CRESTED IBIS NR
In China’s Wetlands
People are the Promise
ANQING RIPARIAN
WATERBIRD NR
EAST DONGTING LAKE
FINLESS PORPOISE NR
ANHUI YANGTZE
ALLIGATOR NR
Yangtze
River
POYANG LAKE NR
EAST DONGTING
LAKE NR
In partnership with China’s State Forestry Administration Ramsar office, Rare has
launched a $3 million, three-year program to inspire wetlands protection at seven
key nature reserves in China. With training and support from Rare, local partners at
each site will:
HAINAN
DONGZHAIGANG NR
CHINA ENVIRONMENT
CULTURE PROMOTION
ASSOCIATION
NATURE RESERVE
OF CHINA
•Run marketing campaigns to raise community awareness of the importance of
local wetlands and build pride around their unique natural heritage
•Train local communities to participate in the management of their wetlands
through enhanced enforcement, governance and alternative fishing techniques
•Develop co-management agreements between communities and local
governments to sustainably manage the wetlands habitat and local fisheries
RARE’S PARTNERS AND SUPPORTERS
IN CHINA INCLUDE:
STATE FORESTRY
ADMINISTRATION, P.R. CHINA
China is home to one-fifth of the world’s population and 10 percent of the world’s
wetlands. These ecosystems sustain life for millions of people and some of the
world’s most endangered species. Rare and its partners in China are relying on the
fact that once people understand the human benefits wetlands provide, they will
become more invested in managing their own natural resources and take action
to protect them.
RAMSAR CONVENTION
IMPLEMENTING OFFICE, STATE
FORESTRY ADMINISTRATION,
P.R. CHINA
The projects aim to directly improve the health of at least 50,000 hectares of
wetlands and establish a network of informed local leaders and constituents. But
virtually limitless potential exists to replicate this model. With nearly two million
people living in, or around, the seven nature reserves in which Rare currently works,
this program offers an unprecedented opportunity to bring innovative win-win
solutions to the wetland communities of China.
“
WORKING WITH BOTH NATIONAL AND LOCAL LEADERS IN CHINA,
RARE IS DEVELOPING SOLUTIONS
ANHUI YANGTZE
ALLIGATOR NATIONAL
NATURE RESERVE
EAST DONGTING LAKE
NATIONAL RESERVE
HAINAN DONGZHAIGANG
NATIONAL NATURE RESERVE
THAT IMPROVE THE LIVES OF COMMUNITIES AND THE ABUNDANCE
OF NATURE AT THE SAME TIME.”
— WENDY AND HANK PAULSON
RARE FACT: China has 38 national wetland parks and more than 550 natural wetland reserves.
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GREENPEACE CHINA
© IVOR CLARKE
THE REEDS OF LIFE IN CHINA
The Yangtze River basin is home to one third of
communities become susceptible to water pollution,
China’s population, many of whom rely on the river
droughts, floods and food shortages.
and its tributaries for water to drink and fish to eat.
Rare’s wetlands project sites are primarily located
Aware of the economic and environmental risks,
along the powerful Yangtze River. In the past few
China is increasingly committed to wetlands
decades, industrial and agricultural expansion
protection. China’s State Forestry Administration
has replaced many of the wetlands in the basin.
recently committed to ensuring that 90 percent of
Algae blooms precipitated by pollution and the
Chinese wetlands receive protection by 2030; up
exploitation of natural resources are on the rise,
from 47 percent currently under varying degrees of
contaminating drinking water and wreaking havoc
protection. To accomplish this goal, they will need
on wildlife populations. On average, 20 lakes
strong support for change from local communities.
disappear every year in China and overfishing
Rare is proud to support the national government of
threatens 20 percent of marsh wetlands. As
China and its ambitious, yet critical, goal.
degradation continues on the remaining wetlands,
4
4
RARE FACT: One billion people globally depend on seafood as their primary source of protein.
“
PUBLIC
PARTICIPATION
IS THE KEY
TO SOLVING CHINA’S
ENVIRONMENTAL
ISSUES.”
— PAN YUE, VICE MINISTER FOR
THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION IN CHINA
Species Treading Water
The destruction of wetlands poses clear risks for the sustenance of an enormous
human population. Even more immediate peril faces ever-diminishing populations
of extremely endangered species. In 2006, the conservation community was
shocked by a survey that failed to find a single Yangtze River dolphin (Lipotes
vexillifer). Many scientists believe depletion of its habitat and food sources caused
the extinction of the species.
Other globally significant species such as the small remaining populations of the
finless porpoise (Neophocaena phocaenoides), the Asian crested ibis (Nipponia
nippon) and the Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis) face a fate similar to the river
dolphin if habitat degradation is not reversed.
CRITICALLY
ENDANGERED
Chinese alligator
(Alligator sinensis)
It is the most endangered
crocodilian. Fewer than 200
exist in the wild.
ENDANGERED
Asian crested ibis
(Nipponia nippon)
In 1981 there were
only seven birds left.
Conservation efforts have
increased the population
to about 500.
SPECIES PHOTOS (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP): WANG RENPING; DR. WANG DING AT THE INSTITUTE OF HYDROBIOLOGY IN WUHAN; KE LI, IBIS NR.
ENDANGERED
(in China)
Finless porpoise
(Neophocaena
phocaenoides)
Got its name because it
lacks a dorsal fin.
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A RARE APPROACH
REPLICATING SUCCESS FOR CONSERVATION AND COMMUNITY
Rare seeks out solutions to the world’s most pressing conservation challenges.
puppet shows to training workshops and engage everyone from children to
Rare identifies environmental threats that human actions can influence like
high-level politicians. To ensure that these methods work, Rare has developed
deforestation, overfishing, climate change and species extinction. Then Rare
sophisticated tools for monitoring social and behavioral change, while
and its partners mobilize a local community to change those behaviors. Before
leveraging a network of partners and specialists to track scientific data related
developing any program, Rare identifies proven solutions that have already
to the desired conservation result.
addressed the issue in question and builds a comprehensive strategy based
on methods that have previously led to success. The model is then replicated
To address wetlands conservation in China, Rare surfaced solutions from
across multiple sites and builds a lasting conservation ethic to sustain change.
conservation partners like World Wildlife Fund (see page 8) and nature reserve
leaders – all of which found inspired ways to resolve the seemingly competing
6
Effectively implementing a community-based solution means providing
needs of people and animals for fish. At each of Rare’s seven target sites, local
economic incentives, access to new tools and technologies, and training.
leaders will launch Rare’s signature Pride campaign – so named because it
Critical to the long-term success and sustainability of these projects is building
inspires people to take pride in the natural treasures that make their community
local support for new behaviors. Rare’s methodology borrows private sector
unique, while also providing alternatives to environmentally destructive
marketing tactics normally reserved to sell products like cars and toothpaste
practices. By the end of the three-year program, people will not only respect
to engage people in adopting more environmentally sustainable behaviors.
the role that wetlands play in their lives and the world at large, but more
Rare then offers practical training and financial opportunities to appeal to
importantly, they will respect the role that they themselves play in ensuring a
people’s concerns about their livelihoods. Campaign activities range from
better and more secure future for their community.
RARE FACT: The Yangtze River basin has a population density of 214 people per square kilometer. Around the Nile it is 44 and in the Amazon River basin it is only four.
PHOTOS COURTESY OF RARE; ADAM LIEBMAN.
While the tactics at each of the seven sites in China are slightly different, they all share a
common set of constraints, strategies and goals. All of the campaigns will target fishers and ask
them to form legally-binding agreements with government authorities to reduce their catch,
adhere to restrictions on where and when to fish, and eliminate destructive fishing techniques
— in exchange for exclusive rights to fish in parts of the reserves and other benefits. In each
of Rare’s seven sites the primary threat to endangered species is overfishing, and each of the
communities is struggling with unclear fishing rights and unsuccessful community management.
Rare will bring a new approach to rally enthusiasm around wetland conservation and assemble
a community-based infrastructure to manage and enforce sustainable fishing practices.
To design and orchestrate the campaigns, each of Rare’s seven partners has selected a local
leader, called a Rare Conservation Fellow, to enroll in Rare’s rigorous training program and
“
TELL ME, I’LL
FORGET; SHOW ME,
I MAY REMEMBER;
INVOLVE
ME, AND I’LL
UNDERSTAND.”
— CHINESE PROVERB
ultimately receive a master’s degree in communications with an emphasis on conservation. The
degree is globally accredited by The University of Texas at El Paso, a leader in social marketing,
and offered in four languages at university locations worldwide. The seven local leaders in the
China program receive academic training at Southwest Forestry University in Yunnan. However,
the vast majority of the training takes place in the field as Rare’s local partners implement Pride
campaigns at the community level and share learning across sites.
RARE FACT: China has more wetlands than any Asian country and is fourth in the world.
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PEOPLE PROSPER BY NURTURING NATURE
A COMMUNITY-BASED SOLUTION IN ACTION
In 1998 China’s State Forestry Administration established the
West Dongting Lake Reserve to help protect one of the last
strongholds of 200 bird species – and quickly administered
fishing limitations. The regulations backfired.
Nearly half a million residents felt that the birds threatened
their food supply and responded to restrictions with hostility
and violence. The reserve then partnered with World Wildlife
Fishers give up...
Fishing during the
height of the migratory
bird season
Fund (WWF) to reach out to local leaders and percolate a
message throughout the communities: habitat destruction
harms not only animals, but also people.
WWF and reserve officials demonstrated over six years
how, with well-planned regulations, fish stocks would
Destructive fishing
gear like fixed nets,
dynamite, electric
shock and poison
actually increase, as would overall wetland ecosystem
health — providing equal benefits to communities and
species. Reserve leaders engaged local people in planning
fishing activities based on seasonal migrations of birds and
banning destructive gear like fixed nets, dynamite and
poison. Fishers earned exclusive fishing rights to certain
areas by assisting with reserve patrols, and bird diversity
increased.
The Rare proposition requires sacrifices from
the fishers. But the short-term forfeitures have
long-term gains that outweigh any losses.
8
Fishing in certain areas
determined critical to
species survival
Active partnership
in the protection
and health of their
homeland
... fishers and the entire
community gain:
Rebounding fish populations
in the medium to long-term
Contribution to the
stabilization and salvation
of endangered species
Enhanced food security and
improvements in water quality
Involvement in patrol teams
Exclusive rights to fish in designated
areas resulting in increased incomes
99
HOW RARE
MEASURES SUCCESS
In China, Rare seeks to strengthen wetlands
protection in four ways:
Build a network of local conservation
leaders dedicated to wetlands protection
RARE
1
Seven local conservation leaders will have a replicable model
and toolkit that can be used to launch additional projects to
protect China’s wetlands — or train others to do so.
2
Strengthen community support for
wetlands protection
This program has the potential to positively change the behavior
of more than 50,000 fishers and 200,000 community members in
some of China’s most biodiverse wetland nature reserves.
“
LOCAL COMMUNITY SUPPORT
AND WILLINGNESS TO TAKE A PROACTIVE
ROLE IN SAFEGUARDING WETLANDS
IS CRITICAL TO OUR SUCCESS; AND RARE
BRINGS ONE OF THE BEST MODELS WE KNOW
FOR ACHIEVING THAT COMMUNITY SUPPORT.”
— WU YUSONG, WORLD WILDLIFE FUND IN CHINA
3
Protect critical wetlands habitat
Increase protection of more than 50,000 hectares of wetlands,
while stabilizing populations of some of the world’s most
endangered species and improving food security for 200,000
people.
4
Provide an effective model for replication
across China
partners could scale the approach to reach the full human
populations of its wetland reserves, numbering 250,000 fishers
and nearly 2,000,000 community members.
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RARE FACT: 2.6 percent of China’s entire land area is wetlands.
© SETIMINO
After the initial three years of Rare’s support, local and national
© CHINAFACE
Rare has run Pride campaigns in more than 50 countries, which have
built local capacity and support for better management of natural
resources in endangered wetlands, forests and coral reefs.
RARE FACT: 2.6 percent of China’s entire land? area is wetlands.
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PHOTOS COURTESY OF RARE
HOPE IN PRIDE
MOVING HEARTS AND MINDS
Widespread community support will accelerate the
interest women. All activities are reinforced with songs,
adoption of fishing agreements throughout China.
posters, mascots, radio spots and festivals.
The Pride campaign will encourage new behaviors
that not only stop harming the wetlands, but actually
There are nearly 3,000 nature reserves in China, many
contribute to their preservation. Shifting social norms
without strong support from the local communities
requires changing both hearts and minds. Pride
that live within or around them. The agreement Rare
campaigns target both. Rare leans on its local partners
has with China’s State Forestry Administration to begin
to help answer the questions: “What is the change we
training the seven Rare Conservation Fellows with the
are working toward and what needs to happen for
tools to engage communities in stewardship of natural
this change to become reality?” The answers to those
resources forms the beginning of a truly powerful
questions create the foundation of the three-year Pride
alliance.
campaign. The campaign targets various segments of
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the community through means most likely to change
Prior to this program, Rare ran nine successful
awareness and attitudes. For example, puppet shows
campaigns in China that reduced deforestation,
and art contests might be used to engage children,
habitat destruction and illegal poaching. Four
whereas cooking contests are often employed to
examples are highlighted on the next page.
RARE FACT: Rare has trained 205 local leaders in the world, whose programs have influenced more than 6.8 million people.
“
RARE HELPS US FIND
SOLUTIONS
TO WETLAND
CONSERVATION
THROUGH THE
PERSPECTIVE OF THE
COMMUNITY.”
— ZHU WENZHONG, DIRECTOR OF
ANQING NATURE RESERVE
Success Stories in China
Lang Jianmin
Duan Honglian
Lang Jianmin recognized that
poaching with illegal snares was
decreasing the population of prey for
Siberian tigers. During his campaign
he encouraged local restaurants
to stop serving wild game and
established patrol teams to remove
traps. The percentage of villagers
who ate wild game decreased from
56 percent to 17 percent.
Fuel wood collection leads to
deforestation and threatens the
habitat of the endangered Hoolock
gibbon. Duan instilled pride for the
simian mascot in her community and
at the same time changed community
behavior to use electric stoves. Since
her campaign began no new tree
stumps have been found in the forest.
Li Xiaohong
Dao Meibiao
Li Xiaohong advocated so successfully
for the use of energy-efficient stoves
in his community that the local
government has designated the village
as a pilot site for stove promotion. Li
received an alumni grant from Rare
to continue his work to meet a goal
of 70 percent stove conversion in his
community by 2015.
This campaign aimed to protect the
winter habitat of the Black-necked
crane in the wetlands of Dashanbao
by introducing grass-cutting techniques
to local farmers in order to reduce
over-grazing. Dao reports that his work
is not done; the local people still graze
livestock. However, 79 percent of
farmers now cut grass and carry it home
to their livestock, a drastic increase from
zero percent.
HUNCHUN NATURE RESERVE
YUHE NATURE RESERVE
GAOLIGONG MOUNTAIN
DASHANBAO NATURE RESERVE
PHOTOS COURTESY OF RARE; ADAM LIEBMAN.
RARE FACT: The IUCN estimates that only 18 to 22 Siberian tigers survive in China today.
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13
RARE
Rare Conservation Fellows
leading the Program for
Wetlands Protection in China.
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
SPARKING CONSERVATION CONVERSATIONS
Overall, Rare and its partners have the opportunity to significantly change
species travel between the sites. Improvement in just one of these reserves
the way Chinese nature reserves interact with local communities, and
would provide these species with a greater chance to avoid extinction;
to provide replicable examples of co-management. Launching seven
improvement in a network of reserves creates true synergy.
projects at sites all focused on wetlands conservation creates a powerful
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learning network. The shared governance among the sites could create a
Rare’s online conservation platform, RarePlanet, connects the Rare
broader co-management movement in local communities living along the
Conservation Fellows, wetlands experts and fishing management
Yangtze. Moreover, the communities are close enough to each other that
specialists around the world. They share stories, compare approaches
social marketing messages from the reserves are likely to spread. If larger
and refine methods for effectively implementing reciprocal agreements
province-wide or nation-wide media outlets are utilized by one campaign,
for wetlands management. RarePlanet also provides a real-time view into
other communities are likely to benefit, since the same threats, issues and
the progress of each of the Pride campaigns, offering donors and partners
approaches are addressed. Additionally, several highly endangered
one of the most transparent project management systems in conservation.
RARE FACT: In the last year, RarePlanet has experienced a four-fold increase in information shared.
DONG LEI
RARE FACT: xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
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RARE
1310 N. Courthouse Road, Suite 110
Arlington, VA 22201 USA
Tel: 703-522-5070
email: moreinfo@rareconservation.org
“
Nothing is softer or more
flexible than water, yet
nothing can resist it.”
— Lao Tzu, founder of Taoism
RARE PROGRAM FOR
WETLANDS
PRESERVATION
IN CHINA
FRONT COVER PHOTO: GARY L. FRIEDMAN WWW.FRIEDMANARCHIVES.COM
BACK COVER PHOTO: LIU JING
All data sources used in this publication are
available upon request.
www.rare.org