Module developer: Margaret Skutsch, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico

1. Module 2.4 Incorporating community based monitoring in national (or jurisdictional) REDD+ monitoring Module developer: Margaret Skutsch, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico Arturo Balderas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico Country example: VIETNAM V1, May 2015 Creative Commons License

2. Country examples: VIETNAM • Vietnam isone of thefewcountries in whichthere has beenexperience in theintegration of communitygenerated data intolargerinformationsystems (thoughnotyet at thenationalscale) • Herewepresentanoverview of 3 differentprojects: • TheSumernetproject • A researchproject led byWageningenUniversity • A pilotprojectassistedby SNV

3. Locations of the three projects described in this module Map courtesy of Wikipedia

4. TheSumernetproject • TheSumernetproject (whichalso has sites in Thailand and Laos) istrying to promoteintegration of local level and national/regional level data systems • The goal of this project is to research, develop and test methods to integrate community-based participatory carbon measurement and monitoring of above-ground biotic carbon with remote sensing, GIS and web-enabled reporting tools as a Measurement, Reporting and Verification (MRV) System for REDD+ and agroforestry carbon sequestration activities 

5. TheSumernetproject • Field activities in Vietnam are taking place in NaMucvillage, Van Minh Commune and in Tu Doocvillage, Lang San Commune, which are both in NaRiDistrict, Bac Kan Province, about 200 km north of Hanoi • Thesevillages are locatedclose to Kim HyForest Reserve; an 18,555 ha protectedareaestablished in 1997 • Tu Doocvillageis in theReserve’sofficial buffer zone • Bothcommunitieshave “Red Book” documentation (i.e. tenurerights) formanagingcommunityforests:  • NaMucvillage – 118.3 ha • DoocVillage – 45.1 ha

6. TheSumernetproject • An “MRV Guidebook for Integrating Participatory Community Carbon Measurement and Monitoring with Satellite Remote Sensing and GIS” will be developed as an output from this project  See also European Tropical Forest Research Network News issue 55 for project results: http://www.etfrn.org/index.php?id=1 • Activities have involved training local people to establish permanent sampling plots: • A total 32 plots in evergreen forest and 8 in other types of forest were set up in the two communities, in forest parcels which belong to individual members of the community • Biometric measurements were carried out by 5 community members; Handheld devices were not used in this exercise

7. TheSumernetproject Taking DBH measurements in Vietman

8. TheSumernetproject • The data wasthenentered into a secure on-line Forest MRV tool at http:/mrv.carbon2markets.org, forwhich a passwordisrequired (seewebsiteforinstructions) • Itincludes a carbon stock calculatorthatestimatesthecarbon stock at projectorstratumlevel, basedontheplotmeasurements • A default allometricequationfor tropical moistforestwasused, ratherthan individual allometricequationsforeachspeciestype • The default shoot-root ratio (0.20) wasused

9. TheSumernetproject • Remotesensing data fromlandsat TM and ETM+ (raster data) isused to create a vegetationindexwhichapproximatestreedensity; thresholdvalues are used to determine forest and non-forestareas • Linear regressionisused to calibratethecommunitygatheredplot data withtheindex, enablingmaps of carbondensity to be prepared

10. WageningenUniversityresearchproject • Anotherproject in Vietnam with similar aims (i.e. to combine communitygathered data withremotelysensed data at largerscales) used Android basedhandhelddevicesforcommunitymembers to record treemeasurements, similar to thesystemdescribed in themainpart of this module • Theprojectwas led byresearchersfromWageningenUniversity in theNetherlands, and waslocated in QuangNamprovince in central Vietnam, in theforest of TraBuicommune

11. WageningenUniversityresearchproject • Plots of 10m radiuswerelaidout in anarea of relativelyhomogeneousforest, and local monitorsweretrained to take DBH (using tapes) and heightmeasurements (usingclinometers), identifyingthespecies in each case • Theyenteredthe data in thehandhelddevice (Samsung Galaxy tab 7.0) butalsoon a paperform (so thattheircapacity to accurately input data intothehandheldcould be assessed) • Itwasfoundthat more than 60% of the local people use mobilephones so thistechnologyiswellknown to them

12. WageningenUniversityresearchproject • A majorproblemwasthelack of internet connectivitywithintheforest, so data had to be storedonthehandheldsduringtheday • Later, data fromthehandheldscould be uploaded to a local data base using USB connectionsor SMS, MMS or Bluetooth • Thehandhelddeviceshavelimitedbatterypower, butthiswassolvedusing solar chargers

13. WageningenUniversityresearchproject • Accuracy of measurementswascheckedbyexperts in a sample of theplotsmeasured, and carbon stock wascalculatedusing local allometricequations • Therewascloseagreement in local peoples´ and experts´ measurements, but local peopletooklonger to makethem • Itwasfoundthataccuracy of text data bycommunitymonitorswashigherifthescreendisplayed a choice of options (ratherthanself-typed responses), althoughnumerical data wasaccuratelytyped in • Thecost of data collectionbycommunitymemberswas $1.2 per ha, $3.2 per ha for local experts and $ 6.4 per ha fornational (university) experts

14. WageningenUniversityresearchproject • A time series of SPOT 5 images (2007-2011) wasused to determine areasthathadbeensubject to disturbance in thisperiod: Thisenabled a comparison of community data ondisturbanceareas • Therewasveryhighcorrelationbetweencommunityreportsonincidence and timing of small and mediumsizedforestdisturbanceswiththatshownonthe SPOT images, butcommunities tended to underestimatethearea of largeforestdisturbances • In addition, communitieswereable to identifyareas of selectiveloggingdisturbancewhichdoesnot show up in theremotesensing

15. WageningenUniversityresearchproject • Animportantfinding of thisstudyisthatevenhighresolutionimagery (SPOT 5) doesnot pick up alldisturbances; forthis, local, onthegroundinformationisessential • Thisunderlinestheneedforinformationsystemswhich combine locallygathered data withremotesensing • More informationonthisproject can be found in:Pratihast et al. (2013) Mobile devicesforcommunity-based REDD+ monitoring: a case studyfor Central Vietnam. Sensors 13, 21-38 (open access, available at http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/13/1/21)

16. A pilotprojectassistedbySNV • SNV has beencollaboratingwith local partners in Vietnam in developing a pilotparticipatory REDD+ monitoring. Theseinclude: • The Department of Agricultural and Rural Development • theCatTienNational Park • TheLocBacForestry Company • TheBao Lam Forestry Company • The Bao Lam District Forest Protection Unit • The Loc Lam, LocBac, LocBao communes of Bao Lam district • and The QuocOai commune of Da Teh district

17. A pilotprojectassistedby SNV • Thepilotprojectstarted in 2012 • 11 local monitoring teams and one provincial technical team were established • Each team consists of one technical staff of a state-owned forest company, the Cat Tien National Park, the District SFPD or the Commune People’s Committees and local people. • The teams cover four communes in two different districts in Lam Dong, a province in the Central Highlands of Vietnam

18. A monitoringteam

19. A pilotprojectassistedby SNV • The local monitoring teams were trained to use necessary equipment, to identify sampling plots, and to measure and record data • Each team is provided with data sheets, forest cover map, GPS receiver, clinometer, diameter tape, plot-setting cords, hammer and nails, tags, hammock, back bags, knife, etc., and a PCM manual which was especially written for the exercise and can be accessed at: http://www.snvworld.org/en/redd/publications/participatory-carbon-monitoring-manual-for-local-people • NOTE that this project did not use handheld electronic devices for data capture, in contrast with the others. • NOTE also that it did not attempt to link local data to data at higher levels through remote sensing

20. Mainfindings of thepilotproject • Sufficient training with practical, in-field exercises for all team members are always necessary • Participatory Carbon Management manuals are necessary and helpful for the team leaders • A team of 5 people (one team leader--technical person; and four team members—local people) is suitable in terms of workload and task allocation for plot data collection activities • Local people know the geogaphical settings of forest areas well, making movement through the forests faster and easier • The teams can independently manage to fulfil the task of identifying plots and collecting data on the plots; but it is too early to draw conclusions about the reliability of the data collected

21. Mainfindings of thepilotproject • Local people in the team, who usually have low educational levels and poor reading and writing skills, find it hard to use the GPS receiver and clinometer, to read maps, and to fill data sheets • Local people more suitable for manual work such as plot set-up, measuring of trees’ diameter; logistic preparation • The technical work of using GPS receivers, recording data using data sheets, are carried out by the team leader who has a technical background • Tough and large geographical conditions mean that the team has to stay overnight in the forests sometimes • Identifying trees species is difficult for most teams