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Thinking Globally, Acting Locally: GEF Small Grants Programme Asia
Regional Workshop Field Visit
30 June 2008 – Although global in scale, environmental problems, such as climate change, affect communities on the local level. The ties between development and environmental management are salient, particularly because the degradation of natural resources and environmental quality undermines the ability of communities to generate income and attain food and energy security. Providing communities in developing countries with the financial and technical resources to manage natural resources, therefore, is an important component of development.
An important tool in assisting communities with managing natural resources sustainably is the GEF Small Grants Programme (SGP). The GEF SGP provides funding directly to community organisations and NGOs to implement environmental management projects. Although environmental management encompasses several sectors, the various kinds of projects are unified by their focus on local livelihoods. The site visit to the Chonburi Province in Thailand during the Asia Regional Workshop elucidated the many positive dividends of implementing projects through the SGP. The projects highlighted during the visit were the Crab Condominium to rehabilitate crab populations in the Sriracha municipality, the community waste management facility to promote composting and recycling in the Sattaheep Municpality, and mangrove restoration for integrated coastal management in the Angsila Municipality.
At the crab condominium, we had the opportunity to meet with local stakeholders ranging from community members and scientists 
who implemented projects to government officials. The project is tied to food security, particularly because seafood is an important component of local diet. Therefore, the project is important to maintaining the quality of life for local community members. At the waste management facility, there was a strong sense of solidarity amongst the groups of people that welcomed us to their municipality. The community-based waste management systems demonstrated the role of individual households in maintaining projects. We were able to observe the composting and recycling programmes in place, which have reduced stress on landfill sites. At the mangrove restoration site, the local government and community members displayed a strong sense of ownership of the project and its results, which consequently has improved the ability of local community members to manage their coastal ecosystem. Although it was high tide during our visit, we were shown the many activities put in place to reduce coastal erosion and safeguard the mangroves.
All of the participants were endeared by the hospitality of the individuals with whom we met at each municipality. In an increasingly “modernized” world, the SGP allows communities to retain traditional practices while managing natural resources. Since the projects work on the community level, activities can be shaped to fit local capacities and circumstances. Our field visit to the municipalities in Chonburi illuminated the ability of the SGP to yield palpable results in a relatively short time frame. For example, the fully operational crab condominium has already started to increase the availability of blue swimming crab in the area. The empowerment of communities facilitates the ability of local groups to exercise ownership over a project’s activities and results, as well as identify which kinds of projects would yield the greatest development dividends. The successful completion of projects serves as a launching pad for expanding projects regionally and integrating sustainable environmental management into long-term plans. Further, it better equips communities to address pertinent environmental problems such as climate change adaptation, especially in coastal regions.
The Crab Condominium
With a creative name like Crab Condoninum, all of the workshop participants were eager to see how the project worked. As we pulled in to the local government building, the open air fish and seafood market adjacent to the building reminded us of the importance of seafood to the local populations. The coastal Sriracha municipality, well-known for its hot sauce and seafood, has had to participate in implementing coastal management projects in order to maintain crab and mussel populations for the preservation of food security.
Clearly, coastal management was an important priority of the local governments. As we approached the pier and island on which the crab condominiums were managed, the strong ocean winds reinforced the importance of the ocean to the people of Sriracha. The “Crab Condominiums,” submerged under the ocean water, appeared to be working wonderfully, as evidenced by the many crabs in the basket pulled up. Pregnant or growing crabs are then released into the open sea to feed on mussels from the floating farms. Although the project itself involved increasing populations of crabs with the Crab Condominium, local officials expressed interest in supplementing the project with the promotion of sustainable management practices that reduce over-harvesting and prevent the harvesting of pregnant or young crabs. The Crab Condomium project has demonstrated success in increasing crab populations in the area and hopefully will assist with the implementation of integrated sustainable coastal management in the future, ensuring that the people of Sriracha will be able to enjoy a stable source of seafood and healthy ecosystems for years to come.
UNDP is the implementing agency of the GEF SGP, now operational in over 100 developing countries. The GEF Small Grants Programme Asia Regional Workshop was held in Bangkok on 30 June – 4 July 2008
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For more information, please contact:
Phansiri Winichagoon, Programme Manager, Environment Unit: phansiri.winichagoon; UNDP Thailand; 02 2881827 or
Poonsin Sreesangkom, National Coordinator, GEF SGP: poonsin.sreesangkom@undp.org; UNDP Thailand; 02 288 1820
