Overview

The project seeks to formalize the experiences, lessons learned from previous GEF projects, as well as major non-GEF initiatives, involving coral reefs and associated ecosystems. The project aims to identify, analyze, and translate lessons into good practices and information resources, and then disseminate this information globally for use in future project design and development.

This project will help the GEF fulfill a major mandate to identify what has worked and what could be improved upon in supporting biodiversity conservation. In combination with other GEF projects, this effort will also help the GEF and other major non-GEF projects achieve improved return on investment for future projects involving coral reefs and associated ecosystems.

Objectives

The specific objectives are:

• To review completed GEF coral reef related projects and selected major non-GEF projects and summarize their principal outcomes, successes, failures and lost opportunities.
• To carry out a critical analysis of the projects in order to derive lessons learned, key factors for success, root causes of failures and identify ways to capture lost opportunities.
• To develop good practice guidelines, toolkits and information resources for use by other projects in developing and implementing their activities.
• To widely disseminate the above findings in print and electronic form, and through targeted learning workshops, exchanges, training programs and the establishment of a coral reefs learning and exchange peer network.
• To compile a knowledgebase of coral reef related projects which provide easy access to the above outputs, as well as primary resource material such as reports, presentations, contacts and images.

In addition, the work will compile an extremely valuable repository of knowledge and information in one place that can be browsed and searched for specific topics and/or specific locations. Unlike publications, an online repository can undergo frequent updating to reflect the current knowledge and take into account recent experiences and lessons learned.

Project Outputs

• A comprehensive database containing lessons learned (grouped by key management themes), Manager’s toolkits, metadata, project summary, commentaries by leading coral reef managers, relevant publications and etc.
• Establish detailed requirements, and specifications for Reef Manager’s toolkit and project sites through a synthesis and implementation workshop.
• A knowledgebase website for GEF Lessons Learned and good practices in the coral reef management.
• An interactive DVD-ROM on knowledgebase for lessons learned and good practices in the management of coral reefs for distribution among network partners, containing Reef Manager’s guide and toolkit, GEF Lessons Learned database and relevant documents.
• A web blog for information exchange and sharing.
• Create an interactive map showing sites location in ReefGIS, ReefBase's online Geographic Information System, with direct links to the online GEF Lessons Learned database.

Acknowledgements

We wish to thank the following agencies and individuals for their valuable input and effort, without which this project would not have been possible: The ReefBase Team (Moi Khim Tan, Stanley Tan, Lay Hoon Teh, Dave Walfoort, Shwu Jiau Teoh, Shabeen Mohd Ikbal), Tim McClanahan, Dr. Nyawira Muthiga, Dr. Richard Kenchington, Dr. Stuart Campbell, Dr. Robin Mahon, David Gill, Danielle Burnham, Kristin McLaughlin, Dr. Dann Sklarew, Kristian Teleki, Dr. Leah Bunce Karrer, Dr. Marea Hatziolos, Kate Newman, Colleen Corrigan, Andrew Bovarnick, Andy Hooten, GEF Secretariat, GEF Monitoring and Evaluation Office, Nicola Barnard, Dr. Sapta Putra Ginting, Dr. Thamasak Yeemin, Niphat Somkleeb, Dr. Robert Richmond, Dr. Alisdair Edwards, Dr. Laurie Raymundo, Dr. Andre Uychiaoco, Elizabeth McLeod, Dr. Andrew Smith, Dr. Rod Salm, Dr. Steven Jameson, Kathy MacKinnon, Dr. Melanie McField, Dr. Mike Pido, Mike Guilbeaux, Dr. Peter Sale.