Archive for: Conservation


This article suggests that sexual and reproductive health and rights activists seeking to influence the post-2015 international development paradigm must work with sustainable development advocates concerned with a range of issues, including climate change, environmental issues, and food and water security, and that a way of building bridges with these communities is to demonstrate how sexual and reproductive health and rights are relevant for these issues. An understanding of population dynamics, including urbanization and migration, as well as population growth, can help to clarify these links. This article therefore suggests that whether or not sexual and reproductive health and rights activists can overcome resistance to discussing “population”, become more knowledgeable about other sustainable development issues, and work with others in those fields to advance the global sustainable development agenda are crucial questions for the coming months. The article also contends that it is possible to care about population dynamics (including ageing and problems faced by countries with a high proportion of young people) and care about human rights at the same time. It expresses concern that, if sexual and reproductive health and rights advocates do not participate in the population dynamics discourse, the field will be left free for those for whom respecting and protecting rights may be less of a priority.

Year: 2014

Source: Reproductive Health Matters

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    This report describes the results of a 2007 evaluation of WWF (World Wildlife Fund) PHE (Population, Health and Environment) projects sponsored by Johnson & Johnson and USAID (the U.S. Agency for International Development). The PHE sites were located in Africa and Asia, where human-environment interactions are in constant flux, human populations are growing rapidly, and they depend most directly on and affect most profoundly some of the richest forest and marine ecosystems on Earth. The PHE projects facilitated basic health care and RH (reproductive health) provision with the working thesis that improving human health and environmental conservation jointly adds value to each independently. The report also recommends future actions on sustainability and scale up of PHE approaches, improved data collection and monitoring and technical support.

    Year: 2008

    Source: World Wildlife Fund

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      This briefing paper makes the links between population dynamics (including population growth, density and migration) with biodiversity loss and demands for food, energy, land and other natural resources. The combination of increasing population growth and consumption levels is changing the planet’s ecosystems at an unprecedented rate and scale, resulting in rates of biodiversity loss that pose a major threat to human well-being.

      Integrated Population Health Environment (PHE) approaches combining conservation with reproductive health services can increase the effectiveness of biodiversity protection interventions and benefit both the health of local communities and the ecosystems upon which they depend.

      As human rights-based programmes can positively influence population dynamics by empowering women and advancing reproductive health, the conservation sector should take a stronger advocacy role in acknowledging and addressing population dynamics as a key driver of biodiversity loss, by working across sectors to embrace integrated strategies that benefit both people and the environment.

      Year: 2012

      Source: Population & Sustainability Network

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        These stories and photos are from policy makers and champions of an integrated approach to development known as Population, Health, and Environment (PHE), which focuses on the interconnectedness between human health and environmental health. PHE programs improve primary health care services such as family planning and reproductive health, while also helping communities conserve biodiversity, manage natural resources, and develop sustainable livelihoods. When these issues are addressed  simultaneously, communities thrive. This collection highlights the experiences of PHE stakeholders and champions in the Lake Victoria Basin.

        The stories are an inspiration to anyone struggling to understand why PHE is important. Any donor or development partner who is looking for reasons to invest in PHE can find answers right here. For program designers and developers of integrated PHE  approaches, this collection provides an overview of key components to consider while designing your package.

        Year: 2018

        Source: Lake Victoria Basin Commission and the Knowledge for Health (K4Health) Project

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          The global PHE community consists of organizations and individuals with a wealth of knowledge and hands-on experience in PHE policy advocacy, operations research and program design and execution. This 2008 document provides detailed information on 15 past projects involving PHE approaches. Each project description explains the development challenges and the approaches taken to address them.

          Year: 2008

          Source: United States Agency for International Development

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            USAID commissioned a team to review the SAGUN PHE project in Nepal. In this evaluation, the team identified gaps, opportunities, lessons, and practices specific to the PHE approach. The team gathered with Community Forest User Groups, the Ministry of Health, and various national and international NGOs to discuss these findings in an effort to create a PHE project that would best fit the needs of communities. This report builds off these findings and focuses on PHE recommendations for Nepal moving forward.

            Year: 2006

            Source: United States Agency for International Development

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              This report focuses on the results of a USAID/Nepal funded project, Strengthening Actions for Good Governance and Utilization of Natural Resources (SAGUN) in various forested regions of Nepal. An analysis was made of the lessons learned and best practices for applying user-group management to forest conservation. Despite the some political unrest in the country, the assessment group discovered many positive key findings that demonstrated how the Community Forest User Groups (CFUGs) approach works well from all perspectives: improved grassroots-level governance capacity; improved livelihoods empowering and building the capacity of excluded groups and the poor; increased coverage and quality of forests covered, and the biodiversity and organisms protected; and low cost and effectiveness. User groups in forest or buffer zones proved to be a great entry point for integrating forest conservation with other social issues. This report discusses the future of the user group approach, and possibilities of integrating it with PHE, community-based development, or community forest conservation.

              Year: 2006

              Source: United States Agency for International Development

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                For over a decade community-based projects linking family planning, health, and environment efforts were active in Fianarantsoa province, Madagascar. This brief explores the evolution of cross-sectoral approaches and projects in Fianarantsoa province. The early cross-sectoral initiatives recognized that conservation and management of natural resources could be undermined by high fertility rates, and that addressing health needs would lead to a connection between communities and development practitioners. Evaluations have demonstrated that these projects have reached new audiences, were efficient, and fostered greater community involvement.

                Year: 2006

                Source: Population Reference Bureau

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                  Population, health, and environment (PHE) programs link conservation, health, and family planning interventions. These programs are generally located in biodiversity hotspots, where population pressure may contribute to environmental degradation. This review describes the general structure of PHE programs and provides examples to highlight various aspects of this approach. It focuses on a case study from the Integrating Population and Health into Forestry Management Agendas program in Nepal that addressed deforestation from fuel-wood harvesting, indoor air pollution from wood fires, acute respiratory infections related to smoke inhalation, as well as family planning in communities in Nepal’s densely populated forest corridors. Keys to the success of the project included empowerment of community forest user groups with PHE program know-how and appropriate technology. Lessons learned highlight the critical role that nongovernmental organizations can play to catalyze cross-sectoral responses to complex development issues. The PHE approach can be effective for achieving sustainable development and meeting conservation and health objectives.

                  Year: 2011

                  Source: Mount Sinai Journal of Medicine

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                    This paper builds the evidence base for how implementers have integrated Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) and freshwater ecosystem conservation to date in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and documents lessons learned from projects that take a more holistic approach to conservation and development. After an extensive review of existing projects that integrate freshwater conservation and WASH appraoches, the report summarizes four projects that provide good models for future efforts in SSA. These projects are: The Rural Access to New Opportunities for Health and Water Resource Management (RANON’ALA) Project in Madagascar; Pangani Basin Environmental Flow Assessment in Tanzania; Working for Wetlands in South Africa; and the Sustainable Fisheries (Ba-Nafaa) Project in The Gambia and Senegal. The report also provides lessons learned from the review, as well as an analysis of opportunities and challenges with implementing integrated health and conservation projects.

                    Year: 2012

                    Source: Africa Biodiversity Collaborative Group | Conservation International

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