Disseminating the SUCCESS Experience

• An improved understanding of the factors that lead to successful and not successful livelihood components of ICM initiatives. The learning agenda intends to take these findings to achieve another set of outcomes: • A set of recommended strategies are formulated that improve the probability of achieving successful livelihood activities as part of marine conservation and resource management initiatives. • Improved capacity built among our local partners for integrating successful livelihood strategies into on-going ICM initiatives. • Information, including a training module, is made available to donors and practitioners on how to design and implement better livelihood strategies. A second component of the SUCCESS learning agenda is to conduct biodiversity threats assessments for each of the SUCCESS field sites. Working with partners in the field, the assessments will identify existing and anticipated direct and indirect threats to biodiversity in each site and current biodiversity conservation efforts that are addressing these threats. This information will be used to recommend conservation goals and targets related to the priority threats, suggest investmentsactivities to fill gaps, and address the priority threats, and if necessary, recommend adaptations to the current SUCCESS goals and activities in each site. A third SUCCESS learning component is to revisit the governance baselines for Ecuador and Nicaragua. Although the baselines were completed for all sites in Year 2, they fall short of serving as models. For the purpose of creating model baselines that could be used to showcase the method, the decision was made to revise the Ecuador baseline and one of the Nicaragua baselines Estero Real. The Estero Real baseline is revised already and the Cojimies baseline will be finalized this year.

8.2 Report Period Accomplishments January 1 – March 31, 2007

8.2.1 Cross-Cutting

A research concept paper for the microenterprise learning agenda was drafted during the second half of 2006. This paper provided a basis for developing qualitative and quantitative case studies of the current microenterprise and micro credit initiatives that are managed through the SUCCESS program as well as the SUCCESS Tanzania and PEACE projects in Tanzania and the SUCCESS Thailand project. The microenterprises and beneficiaries in Thailand and Tanzania are studied in Year 3. In Nicaragua and Ecuador, where the microenterprises are less well developed, similar studies will be undertaken in Year 4. During quarter one of this year, a qualitative case study was conducted around the microenterprises in Tanzania, including interviews with beneficiaries and the micro credit institution, FINCA. The bulk of the field work was undertaken during the current reporting period including additional qualitative interviews and a quantitative survey, which was administered among beneficiaries in Thailand and Tanzania. Several hundred project and non-project beneficiaries were surveyed in each country along with dozens of key informants. During this reporting period, a draft biodiversity threats assessment was completed for Nicaragua. Preparations for the Ecuadorian assessment, which will be conducted in April and May 2007, were also undertaken. The Nicaragua assessment is based on a literature review of existing articles and reports as well as interviews conducted with NRM staff, SUCCESS managers, and resource user groups in the Nicaraguan field sites. The goal was to gather information on threats 42