Galapagos invasive species:
Regional planning
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Planning the future: Advances in the drafting process of the new Galapagos National park management plan
Background
The New Management Plan (NMP) of the Galapagos National Park (GNP) is conceived as a strategic institutional process, dynamic, adaptive and progressive, which uses the plan
document as a methodological tool to express the objectives, principles, directives and execution strategy of the
management programmes. In summary, the NMP promotes:
- A new conservation policy for the archipelago, based on the improvement of interdisciplinary scientific understanding of the Galapagos socio-ecosystem;
- Support for basic sustainable development in the rational use of goods and services generated by the marine and terrestrial ecosystems of the archipelago.
Within this vision, the NMP is perceived as both a process and a product, but never as an end in itself, the same attention being given to the
product (the plan document) as to the participative process which has led to its production. As part of this process, a series of participative events have been carried
out on two fronts:
- Within the GNP, the Technical Group of the NMP and Strategic Partners
- To the Galapagos community, with the aim of ensuring their commitment by a gradual process of involvement.
The technical group consists of technical staff responsible for processes or management units in the national park offices, together with the permanent advise of two scientists, one an expert in natural sciences
(systems ecology) and the other in social sciences (regional geographical analysis and land use planning).
Strategic partners consist of representatives of regional and sectoral
organisations which the Ministry of the Environment and Galapagos National Park consider crucial for the implementation of the
NMP. This includes representatives of the Galapagos National Institute (INGALA),
consortium of municipalities and the Charles Darwin Foundation.
The process consists of three ambitious sequential phases:
- Drafting the basic management plan document.
- Socialising the conceptual framework and management programmes;
- Validation of the plan.
Activities carried out
By
the end of 2004 the following activities were carried out and their collective products
comprise the core document:
- Evaluation study of the effectiveness of the management of the GNP. Internal workshops were carried out together with the technical council of the GNP and the Galapagos community, on Floreana, Isabela, Santa Cruz and San Cristóbal.
- Re-activation of the Technical Group and involvement of the GNP
Technical Council in the drafting process of the NMP.
- Definition of the general structure (skeleton) of the plan document.
- Definition of the shared vision which fosters the management plan
in the conceptual framework, given the name “Galapagos 21”.
- Definition of the action strategy for execution of the management programmes, necessary in order to attain the vision of Galapagos in the 21st century.
- Incorporation of the strategic partners in the drafting process and validation of the NMP.
- Production and internal discussion by the technical group of the document “Pact for the conservation and sustainable development of Galapagos”.
- Organisation and execution of internal work sessions on the management plan. The
Technical Council of the GNP participated in these events.
- Organization and execution of the bi-institutional workshop on the role of science in Galapagos, between the GNP and the Charles Darwin Foundation. This activity included the presentation of the research programme and management plan.
- Communication and extension campaigns for the launching of the drafting process of the NMP in the Galapagos community.
- Start of the consultancies to up-date terrestrial zoning and evaluation of the tourist management system in the GNP.
- Production of the draft management programmes.
- Minuting of all the formal events of the technical group, strategic partners and internal sessions.
- Consolidation and editing of the first management plan core document.
- Definition of the work strategy for socialising the core document in each of the inhabited islands (Floreana, Isabela, Santa Cruz and San Cristóbal).
- Organisation and discussion specifically on the programme of
organisational development of the management plan, in an internal session of the technical council of the GNP.
- Eight meetings to present and discuss work documents with the strategic partners
(Galapagos 21, the pact for Galapagos, directives, principles, action strategy, basic objectives and management programmes).
- Socialisation of the core document of the management plan in Floreana Isabela, Santa Cruz and San Cristóbal
- Organisation and debate specifically on the environmental education, public use and sustainable tourism programmes, in an internal in an internal session of the technical council of the GNP.
- Work meetings with the Conservation International consultants on the studies on zoning, and evaluation of tourist management in GNP.
- Revision of the first draft of the document on zoning in the GNP produced by Conservation International.
- Design and implementation of the management plan web site www.planmanejogalapagos.info
It should be noted that every document produced systematises and summarises the results of the debates which took place during the meetings of the technical group and strategic partners, with the intention of
categorising, defining and prioritising the key points, such as the basic achievable objectives, together with the management programmes which are
recognised as being necessary in order to conserve the natural capital of the islands.
Currently, the writing process of the new management plan is entering its final phase of
socialisation and approval by the GNP Technical Council, the technical and planning committee of INGALA and, finally, the Ministry of the Environment. It is estimated, that according to the work programme, by January 2005 the GNP will have
completed this management tool, which will guide the institutional steps for at least the next 10 years.
Source: Galapagos National Park.
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This
website was created on 25 October 2004 by PT and JK