Building Blue Carbon Projects - An Introductory Guide

Carbon, such strategies are particularly important because the concepts are new and so are the projects themselves. The Communication and Outreach element ensures that policy makers, coastal managers and other stakeholders at the project site and nationally can be kept up to date and made fully aware of the project, its progress, and the value of Blue Carbon. Tasks can include the following: A Communication and Outreach strategy developed at the beginning of the project that identifies the sequence of information sharing from the planning through the implementation and monitoring phases, identifies spokespeople, and engages stakeholders and the general public; Assessment of the need for, and development of, different types of informational materials such as brochures, publications, press kits, and messaging to ensure regular, consistent communication with local and regional stakeholders, decision makers, experts, and community leaders; Development of presentations for relevant workshops, conferences, and other meetings to engage local, national and international stakeholders and potential proponents; and Creation and maintenance of a project website to support the Communication and Outreach strategy, help educate stakeholders and potential allies about Blue Carbon and the project in particular, and provide regular updates as to progress and outcomes over time. Information can be derived from formal science (such as carbon assessments) and from local and traditional knowledge as well. It is important that information flows back and forth from the stakeholders and any partners responsible for inter connected project elements – hence the need for continual measurement, assessment, and adaptation. Subsequent to the results of the Carbon Assessment, Policy and Management Assessment and other  project  activities,  it  is  essential  to  conduct  an  initial  assessment  of  a  project’s  potential  for   the value of Blue Carbon to be used and result in improved ecosystem management. The Blue Carbon Viability Assessment element represents a key decision point. This is the opportunity to take an open-minded, critical, and comprehensive look at the feasibility of a Blue Carbon project. It has to be clear during the exercise that a positive outcome cannot be assumed. In order to understand the feasibility for developing a Blue Carbon project, the outputs from the scientific teams, particularly the carbon accounting and data, need to be combined with other sectoral, legal, technical, market, and social analyses and presented in a format and structure that can be certified (such as a Project Design Document (PDD) or documents necessary for other mechanisms that use the value of Blue Carbon). Activities for the Blue Carbon Viability Assessment can include the following: Advising the scientific teams in their carbon assessments, with regard to carbon accounting and data gathered; Assessing and analysing the sectoral components and framework of a potential mechanism for utilizing Blue Carbon values, including the legal, technical, market, and social aspects; and Blue Carbon Viability Assessment

Building Blue Carbon Projects An Introductory Guide

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