The campaign aims to produce and broadcast interactive programme on biodiversity conservation, land use planning and climate change resilience featuring practitioners / experts working on the ground and at the policy level and local communities as well. The production of the radio program, accompanied by video recording, involves site visits, conducting key informant / expert interviews (in the studio), and moderating Q&A sessions (in the studio) between practitioners and communities.  The program are broad cast either live or as recorded.  

During this phase, site visits were undertaken in Lwafi Game Reserve to witness illegal activities taking place there, and to Vikonge Village, one of the few villages to conserve biodiversity, notably forest resources, through village land use plans.

Interviews conducted involved Geofrey Sima, Communications Director - National Land Use Planning Commission (land use planning); Asubuhi Tharo, Manager – Lwafi Game Reserve (biodiversity);  Passian Assenga, Nkasi District Land and Natural Resource Officer (land use planning); and Kuyi Zengo, Acting Tanganyika District Land and Natural Resource Officer (land use planning). Others interviees were Jonathan Kwiyega, Project Manager - Landscape and Conservation Mentors Organization (climate resilience) and Richard Maige, Tanganyika Game Officer (biodiversity).

This awareness campaign is undertaken by Integrated Planning to Implement the CBD Strategic Plan and Increase Ecosystem Resilience to Climate Change Project, a global project being implemented by the Environmental Law Center of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), IUCN’s Global Protected Area Programme and three IUCN Regional Offices. It is funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU).

The overall objective of the project is to increase capacity to optimize planning to support biodiversity and climate change adaptation objectives, including through the effective engagement of protected area systems. The project focuses on integrating climate change and biodiversity concerns into spatial planning frameworks. It works in four districts of Lake Tanganyika ecosystem: Mpanda (subsequently renamed Tanganyika) and Nkasi Districts in Tanzania; and Nsama and Mpulungu Districts in Zambia.

Next steps and actions include producing additional radio programs for Tanzania and launching a similar programe in Zambia. Deliverables from this programe (audio-visual ILUP documentary) will be packaged into DVDs and be availed to our stakeholders to be used as awareness / educational materials. The shorter versions of the documentary will be aired in selected TV stations in coming months.

Contact: Doyi.Mazenzele@iucn.org