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ASSETS
19:44 minutes – Melissa Ong and Daniel Tay
This film introduces ASSETS (Arabuko-Sokoke Schools and Ecotourism Scheme) as a best practice holistic approach to tackling forest conservation. ASSETS aims to conserve Kenya’s Arabuko-Sokoke Forest (ASF) and Mida Creek by simultaneously contributing to meeting the needs of people who depend on it, ensuring they benefit directly from its conservation. It has been established by A Rocha Kenya through partnerships with government agencies, conservation NGOs, schools, community leaders and the local tourism industry.
Read more on the ASSETS website.
Wildlife Conservation benefiting Kenya’s Coastal poor
Low-income communities are dependent on a healthy environment for their most basic needs such as clean water, food, fuel and medicine. This video shows how families in one of the poorest communities in Kenya, who were over-exploiting their natural resources, are changing their practices and caring for their forests. Why? Because of ASSETS, an eco-bursary scheme which has enabled over 500 students to attend secondary school and involves them and their parents in environmental education. Colin Jackson, Conservation and Science Director of A Rocha Kenya, explains the origins and aims of ASSETS and its significance for some of the most wildlife-rich sites in all Africa.
Please donate now to help provide secondary school scholarships to needy young Kenyans, while promoting the conservation of two of Africa’s most important wildlife sites.
Citizen Science Monitoring
Advances in Ecological Research 59, 169–223 (2018)
Pocock, M.J.O.1, Chandler, M.2, Bonney, R.3, Thornhill, I.4,5, Albin, A.6, August, T.1, Bachman, S.7, Brown, P.M.J.8, Cunha, D.G.F.9, Grez, A.10, Jackson, C.11, Peters, M.12, Rabarijaon, N.R.13, Roy, H.E.1, Zaviezo, T.14 & Danielsen, F.6.
1* Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Wallingford, United Kingdom
2 Earthwatch Institute, Boston, MA, United States
3 Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, United States
4 Earthwatch Institute, Oxford, United Kingdom
5 College of Liberal Arts (CoLA), Bath Spa University, Bath, United Kingdom
6 NORDECO, Copenhagen, Denmark
7 Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, United Kingdom
8 Applied Ecology Research Group, Department of Biology, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, United Kingdom
9 Departamento de Hidráulica e Saneamento, Escola de Engenharia de São Carlos, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida Trabalhador São-Carlense, São Carlos, Brazil
10 Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias y Pecuarias, Universidad de Chile and Director of Kauyeken, Santiago, Chile
11 A Rocha Kenya, Watamu, Kenya
12 People + science, Hamilton, New Zealand
13 Kew Madagascar Conservation Center, Antananarivo, Madagascar
14 Facultad de Agronomía e Ingeniería Forestal, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
*and A Rocha International Advisory Council
Abstract
Global biodiversity monitoring is urgently needed across the world to assess the impacts of environmental change on biodiversity. One way to increase monitoring is through citizen science. ‘Citizen science’ is a term that we use in this chapter to describe the diverse approaches that involve people in monitoring in a voluntary capacity, thus including participatory monitoring in which people work collaboratively with scientists in developing monitoring. There is great unrealised potential for citizen science, especially in Asia and Africa. However, to fulfil this potential citizen science will need to meet local needs (for participants, communities and decision makers, including people’s own use of the data and their motivations to participate) and support global needs for biodiversity monitoring (including the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and the Aichi Biodiversity Targets). Activities should be feasible (for participants to provide scientifically rigorous data) and useful (for data users, from local to global scales). We use examples from across the world to demonstrate how monitoring can engage different types of participants, through different technologies, to record different variables according to different sampling approaches. Overall, these examples show how citizen science has the potential to provide a step change in our ability to monitor biodiversity—and hence respond to threats at all scales from local to global.
Paradise beneath the waves
A Rocha Kenya – come and visit Mwamba | 3:31 minutes | Tim Gordon
Enjoy the glorious underwater world of Watamu Marine National Park. ‘Paradise beneath the waves’ was filmed by Tim Gordon, a volunteer with A Rocha Kenya’s marine research team. The team, led by Dr Robert Sluka and Benjamin Cowburn, is currently focusing their efforts on cataloguing and assessing threats to marine wildlife in the park, as well as developing resources towards a Christian understanding of marine conservation and research. Come visit the park for a holiday, staying at our field study centre Mwamba or apply to join our research team for short or long term work.
Research and monitoring reports
The following are copies of reports from research and monitoring of birds, fish, plants and insects from in and around the Malindi area of West Kenya:
A Rocha Kenya report on theft of roseate tern eggs from watamu colony, Aug 2011
ARK Research & Monitoring Report for 2007
Marine research
Papers and book chapters
Cowburn, B., R. Sluka, J. Smith, and M.O.S. Mohamed. 2013. Tourism, Reef Condition and Visitor Satisfaction in Watamu Marine National Park Kenya. Western Indian Ocean Journal of Marine Science 12: 57-70.
Sindorf, V, B. Cowburn and R.D. Sluka. 2015. Rocky intertidal fish assemblage in the Watamu Marine National Park, Western Indian Ocean. Environmental Biology of Fishes DOI 10.1007/s10641-015-0397-1
Sluka, R. D. 2012. Hope for the Ocean: Marine Biodiversity, Poverty Alleviation and Blessing the Nations. Grove Books Limited, Cambridge. 28pp.
Sluka, R.D. and P. Simonin. 2014. Marine Capture Fisheries – a call to action in response to limits, unintended consequences and ethics. Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith 66:203-212.
A Rocha Kenya Conservation Research Reports
Colin Jackson, David Ngala, Wellington Kombe. 2000. Reconnaissance of Dakatcha Woodlands for Clarke’s Weaver Ploceus golandi, Malindi District, 11-13 August 2000 A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #1.0. 13pp
James J. Waters, Colin Jackson & Roni G. Jackson. 2007. Forest Cover Survey, Arabuko-Sokoke Forest, Kenya, 2006 A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #6. 25pp
Kristel S.S. van Houte-Howes. 2005. Macroinvertebrate communities in intertidal mudflats at the Sabaki River Estuary, Kenya: An important habitat for resident and migratory shore birds A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #7. 5pp
Simon Valle & Colin Jackson. 2006. Low Tide Counts of Water Birds at Sabaki River Mouth Malindi, Kenya A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #9. 21pp
Laban N. Njoroge. 2006 An Entomological survey of Sabaki River Mouth, Kenya A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #10. 25pp
Colin Jackson, Albert Baya, Rebecca Vande Griend, David Bruinsma. 2012. Surveys of the Amani Sunbird in Arabuko-Sokoke Forest, 2007-2011 A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #14. 4pp
Robert Sluka, Benjamin Cowburn, and Colin Jackson. 2012. The Impact of Watamu Marine National Park on Marine Biodiversity & Habitats. A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #24. 18pp.
Benjamin Cowburn and Robert D Sluka. 2012. Impact of snorkeling tourism on marine habitats of Watamu Marine National Park. A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #26. 22pp.
Benjamin Cowburn, Robert D Sluka and Joy Smith. 2013. Coral Reef Ecology and Biodiversity in Watamu Marine National Park, Kenya. A Rocha Kenya Conservation & Science Occasional Research Report #27. 14pp.
Hannah F R Hereward and Robert D Sluka. 2014. Testing ghost crab density as a useful indicator of human impacts on exposed sandy beaches. A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #29. 15pp.
Martine Koemans. 2014. Living on the Edge: The relationship between livelihood practises and the national reserves resources. A Rocha Kenya Occasional Research Report #32. 42pp.
Peter Musembi, Martine Koemans and Jack Kamire. 2014. Rockpool Tourism in Watamu Marine National Park. A Rocha Kenya Conservation & Science Occasional Research Report #33. 8pp.
Robert D Sluka, Peter Musembi, Benjamin Cowburn, Colin Jackson and Jaap Gijsbertsen. 2014. Marine Research and Conservation at A Rocha Kenya 2010-2014. A Rocha Kenya Science & Conservation Occasional Research Report #36. 20pp.
University Dissertations and Theses completed
using WMNP field data
Emma R. Bush. 2013. What’s the Catch? Mosquito Net Fishing in Coastal East Africa. A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science and the Diploma of Imperial College London.
Chloe Naylor. 2014. Investigation into echinoderm species richness and abundance within the rockpool habitats of the Watamu Marine National Park, Kenya. B.Sc. Dissertation University of Southampton.
Sarah Tyrrell. 2014. The Distribution and impact of Sea urchins on Coral reefs in Watamu, Kenya. BSc with Honours in Geography at the University of Exeter.
Presentations
Robert D. Sluka. 2011. Christians: opponents or partners in conserving marine biodiversity? World Conference on Marine Biodiversity, September 26-30, Aberdeen, Scotland.
Robert D Sluka. 2014, The Hidden Things of God in the Ocean. ASA/CIS/CSA Annual Conference, 25-28 July McMaster University, Hamilton Canada
Posters
Cassie Raker, Benjamin Cowburn, Victoria Sindorf, Peter Musembi, Benjamin Vanbaelenberghe, and Robert D Sluka. 2014. Anomastraea irregularis, a Vulnerable coral of the rocky intertidal zone of Watamu Marine National Park, Kenya. Reef Conservation UK meeting at Zoological Society of London, 6 Dec 2014, London, UK.
Cassie Raker, Benjamin Cowburn, Victoria Sindorf, Peter Musembi, Benjamin Vanbaelenberghe, and Robert D Sluka. 2014. Anomastraea irregularis, a Vulnerable coral of the rocky intertidal zone of Watamu Marine National Park, Kenya. The 43rd Annual Benthic Ecology Meeting, 19-22 March, Jacksonville, Florida, USA.
Victoria Sindorf and Benjamin Cowburn. 2014. Indian Ocean Rocky Intertidal Zone – An Important Nursery Habitat for Commercially Valuable Fish Species 2014 Ocean Sciences Meeting, 23-28 February, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.
Benjamin Cowburn, Victoria Sindorf, and Paul Simonin. 2013. Do minor bleaching events matter? Ecological observations from a localised event in Kenya, 2013. Reef Conservation UK meeting at Zoological Society of London, 7 Dec 2013, London, UK.
Tim Gordon and Benjamin Cowburn. 2013. Damselfish Territories and Juvenile Coral Density – A Previously Overlooked Association. Reef Conservation UK meeting at Zoological Society of London, 7 Dec 2013, London, UK.
Robert D Sluka, Benjamin Cowburn, Benjamin Van Baelenberghe, Chloe Naylor, Victoria Sindorf, and Mohamed O.S. Mohamed. 2013. Rockpools of Watamu Marine National Park Biodiversity, conservation, and education. Reef Conservation UK meeting at Zoological Society of London, 7 Dec 2013, London, UK.
Robert D Sluka, Benjamin Cowburn, Benjamin Van Baelenberghe, Chloe Naylor, Victoria Sindorf, and Mohamed O.S. Mohamed. 2013. Rockpools of Watamu Marine National Park: Biodiversity, conservation, and education. Biodiversity Institute Symposium on Biodiversity Resilience, 2-3 October, University of Oxford, UK.
Robert D. Sluka, Benjamin Cowburn, and Colin Jackson 2012. Marine Conservation, Poverty Alleviation, and Blessing the Nations: a New Project at A Rocha Kenya. Christians in Science Conference, July 13-16, University of Cambridge, England.