Small Grants Programme Global Indigenous Peoples Fellowship Initiative – Ethiopia

Deadline: 15-Aug-2024

The GEF Small Grants Office (SGP) Ethiopia is calling for nominations for the Operational Phanse 7 (OP7) Small Grants Programme (SGP) Indigenous Peoples Fellowship Initiative Programme.

The programme will host one fellow in the SGP Ethiopia Office where the successful nominee will work alongside the SGP and Youth focal points in UNDP regional hubs in Africa – Addis Ababa.  SGP Ethiopia office has been selected to host this 18-month programme for the Africa Region.

The OP7 Indigenous Fellowship programm aims to support the SGP and UNDP Nature, Climate and Energy (NCE) Local Action focusing on:

• Protecting vulnerable Indigenous Peoples communities and networks, including for the safeguard of environmental human rights defenders (EHRDs)
• Increasing advocacy efforts for nature and climate justice as a contribution to the UN Secretary General’s Call to Action on Human Rights (C2A)
• Implementing UNDP ‘Climate Promise’ programme towards the full and effective involvement of IPs in the implementation of the UNFCCC nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and post-2020 CBD Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).

Areas of Work

• Biodiversity
  • The United Nations has called upon its specialized agencies, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, and civil society everywhere to act to protect biodiversity as the natural wealth that exists in life on Earth. For UNDP, one of the foundations for sustainable human development is by acknowledging the importance biodiversity and ecosystems play in sustaining the livelihoods of local communities. This can be achieved by demonstrating the crucial services provided by ecosystems, and in making a social and economic case for investing in and maintaining these vital services.
  • Eligible SGP activities are restricted to in situ conservation of species, and cannot support ex situ initiatives outside their natural habitats (i.e. botanical gardens, zoos, or museums). All SGP biodiversity projects are expected to be located in geographic areas that contain globally significant biodiversity, and/or have focused on reducing threats to biodiversity identified within the SGP Country Programme Strategy which address the following key questions:
    • Does the target ecosystem, landscape, or habitat have exceptional concentrations of species unique to the area? Is there a significant presence of endemic species?
    • Is the target area recognized under international treaties, laws, agreements or conventions such as, among others, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, IUCN Red List of threatened species, Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar Convention), Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, or Man and the Biosphere (MAB) programme?
    • Does the target area or landscape contain habitats that are important to migratory species?
    • Is the target ecosystem, landscape, habitat or constituent species threatened or at risk? Is the area a priority area of focus for the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action plan?
    • Does the target intervention address in situ conservation activities with address agro-biodiversity, local cultivars, landraces, traditional crop varieties, soil/invertebrate biodiversity, wild and/or relatives of domesticated species?
    • Does the target area represent a good example of an indigenous and community conserved area (ICCAs), such as a sacred natural site (SNS), locally managed marine areas (LMMAs) or a community ‘no-take zone’ as a reservoir of biodiversity?
• Climate Change
  • The effects of climate change undermine development efforts and most severely impact the poor, who are relying on natural resources for their livelihoods. In order to actively cope with these challenges, the GEF SGP helps countries to mitigate the negative effects of the Climate Change and to contribute to the overall objectives of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
  • GEF SGP supports community and non-governmental organizations in providing access to clean energy, sustainable transport, improving energy efficiency and land use practices. In addition to reducing emission and achieving global environmental benefits, GEF SGP climate change interventions help develop capacity of local communities and improve their livelihoods, empowering them to become more resilient to severe climate events and variability.
  • The projects in GEF SGP climate change portfolio include the following initiatives:
    • Cost-effective renewable energy such as solar panels, solar heaters, micro hydropower plants, biodigestors and biomass generators.
    • Energy efficient technologies for houses, buildings, and industry, including fuel wood-efficient stoves.
    • Local sustainable transport solutions promoting mass transit, non-motorized transport, emissions monitoring and reduction, and liquid bio-fuels.
    • Carbon storage, such as reforestation, cultivation and compost creation initiatives.
  • Community Based Adaptation
    • The Community Based Adaptation (CBA) is an important component of the larger picture of management and avoidance of Climate Change impacts and pressures by local people. It provides information and concrete examples on potential impacts of climate change and mitigative measures which are location specific and community managed. CBA also provides information needs which can be shared and replicated in an appropriate format and manner acceptable by communities. The need for information on adaptation by incorporating and building upon existing coping strategies of communities can be articulated and demonstrated through CBA projects.
    • Information providers mainly researchers and academics must be ready to learn from local communities and work with them to come up with adaptation solutions and actions that are both truly useful and have a strong chance of being adopted and owned by people on the ground. The key outcome and priority of the CBA is to reduce vulnerability and increasing adaptive capacity of communities to manage the additional risks of climate change and its variability.
    • GEF SGP will position and transform its strategies for mitigating climate change impacts at local levels to fully embrace all types of responses, including adapting to climate Change impacts at the most vulnerable localities and with the less resourced actors—communities themselves. In view of the above needs, SGP CBA objectives revolves around: i) focusing and supporting poor and vulnerable communities adapt to Climate Change; ii) providing a delivery support system that international aid can use to reach the vulnerable communities; iii) focusing on management of production processes and optimization of ecosystem services; and iv) combining expertise and knowledge from focal area work to address in an integrated manner, issues to do with water, biodiversity, land management and forestry, to meet community resiliency objectives.
    • Types of projects supported by SGP
      • To focus community adaptation efforts, it is useful to have an overall picture of the key development sectors that are impacted by climate change induced pressures in a locality. In addition, efforts should also focus on more vulnerable sections of society including, for instance, the poor, youth, indigenous communities, women and children, and HIV/AID’s impacted populations. While it is recognized that SGP is already working in these sectors, pooling resources will guarantee a more coordinated and effective response to Climate change impacts on vulnerable communities and ecosystems.
      • The types of projects promoted include: i) Agricultural and food security– Strengthening resilience which can range from adopting practices to protect existing livelihood systems, diversifying sources of income, to changing livelihood strategies, ii) Water resources management- In many locations, water management cannot satisfactorily cope even with current climate variability, resulting in flood and drought damages. As a first step, typical projects should aim at improved incorporation of information about current climate variability into water-related management activities so that communities can adapt to longer-term climate change impacts, iii) Coastal management-Projects in this category would come from the general area of : salt water intrusion management, protection of coastal defenses to storm surges, reduction of sedimentation and sediment loads, rehabilitation of coastal vegetative resources, infrastructural support, provision of household water supply, management of coastal river delta basins, ecotourism activities aimed at reducing pressures on natural resources in the hinterlands, fisheries and marine conservation, important bird areas management, iv) Disaster management and risks reduction- Disaster Risk Reduction &Recovery projects would coalesce around, early warning and preparedness. Typical disasters that affect communities for which CBA projects should aim at includes landslides, floods, invasion of pests, drought, and insecurity and disease outbreaks and, v) Public health and sanitation-Management of pest using biologically friendly and environmentally degradable solutions, proposing the utilization of flood waters, proper hygiene and sanitation provision for crowded dwelling places like in urban centers comprise common project types in this area.
• Land Degradation
  • Land degradation focal area of the GEF SGP is informed by the previous activities of the millennium ecosystems assessments and specifically targets directly the realization of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Indirectly, this focal area also helps in the realization of the Non legal binding instrument of the convention on all forests types of the United Nations forum on forests (UNFF). Desertification and deforestation remains the main priority of the GEF SGP in this focal area and it aims at improving agro-ecosystems and forest landscapes where deterioration of ecosystems services and goods undermines the livelihoods of many people. A majority of these people are the very poor. This problem manifests itself prominently in the dryland ecosystems where climate change impacts further exacerbates the predicaments of the rural poor.
  • The key strategic priorities of the focal area are three of which the GEF SGP aims at supporting the realization of the two. These are: i) maintaining and improving services coming out of ecosystems that help in sustaining local communities livelihoods, and ii) support in the reduction of pressures on natural resources that are contributed by natural or manmade actors in the areas where degradation impacts their daily needs. The third strategic priority, which by default is also addressed, although much more specifically in the drylands zones, includes sustaining the livelihoods of forest dependent peoples who eke their living from goods and services provided by the forests themselves and other animals therein.
  • Types of projects supported by SGP
    • The types of projects that GEF SGP typically supports within the strategic priority on improving and maintaining ecosystem functions aims at capacity development of the local communities to improve their rational use and to make better decisions on the management of such landscapes so that ultimately, the community’s livelihoods can be improved. Further, the programme aims at implementing integrated approaches to enhance soil fertility, management of water resources, crops and livestock within a farm household. In rangeland ecosystems, the projects that are targeted will aim at regulating livestock pressure on rangeland resources and encouraging rotational grazing systems. Conversely, for the sustainable priority on reduction of pressures from landscapes, the projects encouraged will include: improvement of agricultural activities near protected areas systems, management of watershed lands, working with communities to avoid deforestation and degradation of forest lands while generally building capacity of communities to maintain continual provision of services and goods from their local environment.
• Sustainable Forest Management
  • The focal area will endeavor to pursue SFM in the context of increasing forest and non timber forest resources, climate change mitigation within productive landscapes where communities reside, while pursuing multiple benefits to all actors and ensuring sustainable livelihoods. Efforts will be made to link the activities with other SGP GEF focal areas to benefit from the synergies from the existing biodiversity and climate change focal areas. Specifically, sustainable land use, land use change, and forestry management interventions will be adopted at the community level for forest and non‐forest land‐use types to ensure connectivity between ecosystems and restorative activities. These efforts will aim at up‐scaling and replicating at local levels, good practices and lessons that will be generated through the activities that reduces pressures on forest resources and provides sustainable flows of forest ecosystems.
  • Types of projects supported by SGP
    • These will include activities in support of: forest rehabilitation, forest protection and socio economic functions. The rehabilitative activities will include reforestation, raising tree seedlings, tree planting, enrichment planting, woodlots establishments, social forestry approaches such as hedge row and boundary plantings, woodlots and home gardens, and the conventional agroforestry. The protective functions will include watershed management, soil &water conservation, sand dune stabilization, avalanche control, desertification control, coastal areas protection, conservation area protection, natural regeneration support/afforestation, use of traditional tree management techniques for tree crop management, occupancy management of forest, and communal tree farms establishments. While, the socio-economic functions activities will include management of communal forests for: recreation, tourism, education and conservation of spiritual and cultural heritage and general provision of social services.
    • The objective is fulfilled through a number of activities that includes fire management, conflict resolution approaches, local based industrial/agricultural technologies that reduce the pressures on forests, increasing ecological connectivity through restorative activities in forest gaps, buffer zone managements and protected areas corridors. This focal area also champions the need for promoting community and small holder forestry. In addition, the activities on agricultural landscapes such as pollarding, tree surgeries and other harvesting technologies will be promoted.
• International Waters
  • The GEF International Waters (IW) focal area addresses sustainable development challenges faced by countries sharing transboundary surface, groundwater, and marine systems. 70 percent of the World is covered by Ocean, and 60 percent of the land lies in transboundary surface and groundwater basins. Most water systems are connected and transboundary, hence are under the coverage of GEF IW mandate. These water systems know no national boundaries and generate ecosystem services and products for human beings, generally serving as transbdounary lifelines. These waterbodies have suffered a trend of environmental degradation, in terms of water quality, ecosystem sustainability and environmental services and goods. The world is calling for effective actions to reverse this trend.
  • Project Types
    • SGP’s IW portfolio promotes sustainable international waters management through regionally connected community-based activities. In GEF-5, SGP will focus its IW activities on freshwater surface waterbodies such as rivers and lakes, as well as regional seas and coastal areas. SGP may also pilot community-based underground water management in partnership with other programs and initiatives. Eligible activities for SGP funding may include:
      • Conservation and rehabilitation of coastal habitats (mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass and other types of wetlands)
      • Fresh water resource use and management;
      • Land-based pollution prevention and reduction;
      • Sustainable fisheries management;
      • Protection and sustainably use of ecosystem services and goods;
      • Protection of forests and reforestation in river basins;
      • Creation of alternative livelihoods to reduce pressure on fisheries and other natural resources;
      • Capacity development and knowledge sharing among communities on water management
• Chemicals
  • The GEF-5 strategy for chemicals sets to consolidate the persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and ozone layer depletion focal areas, as well as to broaden the scope of GEF’s engagement with the sound management of chemicals and to initiate work on mercury. The goal of the GEF’s chemicals focal area is:
    • to promote the sound management of chemicals throughout their life-cycle in ways that lead to the minimization of significant adverse effects on human health and the global environment
  • Project Types and Priority Issues
    • SGP chemicals portfolio has gained considerable experiences in the following types of activities (examples and good cases on the following types of activities can be found at SGP POPs Training Module):
      • Promote environmentally friendly waste management to avoid open burning of waste to avoid unintentional releases of POPs;
      • Identify, manage and dispose obsolete community pesticide stockpiles;
      • Promote organic and sustainable agriculture to avoid illegal community uses of POPs pesticides and reduce land degradation;
      • Elimination, handling and environmentally sound disposal of PCB
      • Improve communities’ awareness and understanding of POPs toxicity and impact on human and ecological health;
      • Develop civil society organizations (CSOs) and communities capacity addressing POPs.
    • In GEF-5, SGP will pilot activities on chemicals and heavy metals as well as chemicals in products with direct and visible impact and relevance to community life. DDT alternatives to control malaria, e-waste, mercury use and exposure in small scale gold mining, lead in paint, and chemicals in products are appropriate areas where SGP can make a tangible impact on.
    • DDT. DDT is still legally and widely used in some 17 countries for malaria vector control. SGP should pilot activities to:
      • develop and pilot alternatives to DDT in malaria vector control
      • consolidate and disseminate local and traditional experiences and knowledge in malaria vector control
      • Raise awareness on the toxicity of DDT
    • E-waste. E-waste is one of the fastest growing segments of waste streams in Asia and the Pacific as well as in other parts of the world. For example, approximately 4 million personal computers (PCs) are discarded every year in China alone. E-waste valued at $1.5 billion was generated in India in 2006. SGP can undertake the following activities:
      • define the problem of E-waste at the community level
      • identify and raise awareness regarding toxic constituents in end-of-life electric and electronic equipment
      • develop pilot projects on successful collection schemes
      • develop infrastructure to be able locally to recycle such used and end-of-life equipment.
    • Mercury. SGP can demonstrate mercury reduction activities through:
      • reducing mercury use and exposure in Artisanal and Small- scale Gold Mining (ASGM)
      • increase local awareness and
      • develop alternative methods to gold mining without mercury
      • enhance capacity for safe storage
      • reduce atmospheric emissions of mercury; and manage contaminated community sites
    • Lead in paint. Lead is a heavy metal with known impacts on health, especially on children’s health. Paints are sold with added lead in developing countries and countries with economies in transition. SGP could pilot the following activities:
      • support awareness raising on the toxicity of lead and on alternatives
      • identify potential lead exposure
      • reduce exposure to lead in paint
      • in collaboration with businesses, pilot alternatives to lead in paint
    • Chemicals in products. Knowledge and information are fundamental to the sound management of chemicals. Chemicals are widely used in products, and some chemicals are harmful and toxic in products where communities have no knowledge about. SGP can pilot activities to identify harmful chemicals in products at the communities, raise awareness regarding the toxicity, and develop alternatives or provide solutions to handle these products.

Funding Information

• Grant allocation for this initiative is US$75,000, and an 18-month project (fellowship) duration.

Activities

• The GEF SGP OP7 Indigenous Peoples Fellowship Initiative Programme aims to provide proactive mentoring and capacity-building for Indigenous fellows to work with SGP and youth regional focal points. Proposed activities for the IP fellows include:
  • improved SGP grant-making in line with the international best practices of rights-based approaches as recognized by the CBD, UNFCCC, UNCCD, and vertical funds (GEF, GCF)
  • Facilitating access by Indigenous Peoples to international climate finance
  • strengthening connection and partnerships between the SGP, UNDP, and relevant regional and/or international Indigenous networks, foundations, and NGOs.

Eligibility Criteria

• Any local CSOs, NGOs or community-based groups interested in conserving and restoring the environment while enhancing people’s livelihoods and well-being.
• Priority is given to indigenous youth below the age of 35 years; grounded and accountable to a specific community and have contributed to efforts to support the Pastoralist indigenous ways of life.
• Advantage to those organizations already advocating on Indigenous communities’ natural resources management, building indigenous communities ‘capacities in sustainable development, environment protection, and or climate change.

Terms and Conditions

• The 2024 Africa Region Fellow is required to fulfil the following terms and conditions:
  • 12–18-month fellowship (may extend t2-years and will be determined in consultation with the IP fellows as part of the development of an individual workplan.)
  • Support the full and effective involvement of IPs in the implementation of the UNFCCC’s nationally determined contributions (NDCs)
  • Access by Indigenous peoples to international climate finance, such as the Green Climate Fund (GCF), and the implementation of the UNFCCC 2015 Paris Accord
  • Establishing national networks of Indigenous peoples and community conserved areas and territories (ICCAs)
  • Promoting Indigenous peoples’ partnerships through the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030)
  • Refining methodologies for monitoring and evaluation (M&E), including free, prior and informed consent (FPIC)for Community-Based REDD+ (CBR+)
  • Participation of Indigenous Peoples in the negotiations and implementation of the CBD post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF)
  • Engagement with National Adaptation Programmes of Action (NAPAs regarding the role of Indigenous peoples s land governance in adapting to climate change
  • Implementation of National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs)
  • Engagement with the Inter-governmental Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) regarding the incorporation of traditional knowledge (TK)Partnership and programme for Indigenous Peoples as part of the UN Decade on Water and Global Conference (2023)
  • Support for nomadic peoples in arid and semi-arid areas, as well as transhumant peoples in mountainous conditions, including for Community-Based Adaptation (CBA)
  • Developing Indigenous and community engagement with the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS)
  • Support indigenous and customary fisher-folk who live across national boundaries
  • Sharing national experiences with normative and legal frameworks, including the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) and UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP)
  • Strengthen the network between SGP and the Indigenous Peoples network in Ethiopia and in the African region.
• Note: Post-fellowship support will also be provided to ensure that the capacity gained by the fellow is effectively utilized towards concrete actions to meet the advocacy needs of the targeted networks and communities.

For more information, visit UNDP.