MacArthur Conservation and Development Project Workshop

Cat Tien National Park, Vietnam
18th to 22nd September, 2007

The Center for International Forestry Research would like to welcome you to the MacArthur Conservation and Development Project workshop in Cat Tien National Park, September 18th to 22nd 2007.

This workshop, facilitated by Terry Sunderland (CIFOR), Manuel Ruiz Perez (Universidad Autonoma de Madrid) and Luke Preece (Charles Darwin University), aims to gain a better understanding of the issues, synergies and tradeoffs of conservation and development at landscapes where a biodiversity conservation project is implemented. The workshop will bring together experienced personnel from conservation and development organisations and government departments working in five landscapes in Vietnam (Cat Tien National Park, Quang Nam Province, Bach Ma National Park, Tam Dao National Park and Haong Lien Son National Park) to compare landscapes, threats and strategies of implemented biodiversity conservation projects. We hope you will enjoy the experience and learn from others working in similar situations across Vietnam.

Below are the details of the workshop, including practical arrangements, the agenda and preparations to complete for the workshop.

Practical Arrangements

The workshop will take place at the Cat Tien National Park will be organised by CIFOR. The workshop costs, including course materials, transport and food and accommodation at Cat Tien National Park will be covered. Further details are below:

Landscape information:

Cat Tien National Park is 150 km from Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) , 4 hours by car. It protects one of the largest lowland evergreen and Dipterocarp forests in Vietnam and includes many species of charismatic megafauna. Being the wet-season, the temperature reaches 30-34oC and is relatively humid.

Transportation and pick up avenue:

You will need to organise your flights to and from Ho Chi Minh City.
To be reimbursed, please complete the Expense Claim form and return it to CIFOR with receipts.

To go from Ho Chi Minh City to Cat Tien National Park, you can either choose to go to Cat Tien by your own or with the shuttle buses. The trip will take about four hours drive.

There will be two buses provided at the pick up venue and the departure time is 13:00 pm on 18th September, 2007. The pick up venue is: the Sky Net Café, which is located in the Tan Son Nhat airport area, on the right handside out of the arrival hall (after check out and luggage claim).

Please confirm the latest by 14th September, 2007 if you wish to take the shuttle bus, otherwise we will consider you to go by your own.

Accommodation:

Expenses of accommodation and food at CTNP will be organised and covered by us. We will not cover alcohol, telephone or laundry costs.
Expenses in Ho Chi Minh City (ie. accommodation, taxi or food) are not covered.

Important things to bring:

• Mosquito and leech repellent
• Personal medicines
• Cash
• Rain coat
• Walking shoes
• Torch

Agenda

Tuesday 18 September
0900 - 1200 Arrival of participants in HCMC

Lunch

1300 Travel by minibus to Cat Tien National park
1700 Welcome, Orientation and Introduction to Cat Tien National Park

Wednesday 19 September

0800 Introduction to CIFOR and the project
0830 Summary of previous workshops and objectives of this workshop
0900 Conservation and Development – an overview and participatory session
1000 Discussion: ICDPs and the situation of Vietnam
Lunch
1400 Introduction to the research techniques and variables used
1500 Discussions on the variables and aims

Thursday 20 September

0800 Presentations by each landscape (30 – 40 minutes per landscape)

Lunch

1400 Visit to Cat Tien National Park

Friday 21 September

0800 Working groups by landscape; historical analysis
1000 Threats to the landscapes
1100 Project strategies for each landscape

Lunch

1400 Application of variables to landscapes
1500 Data collection and entry into matrix, including discussions
Evening: Night watching of animals in Cat Tien NP

Saturday 22 September

0800 Data analysis and cleaning
1000 Results: Synergies and tradeoffs of Conservation and Development
1100 Recommendations

Lunch

1400 Open discussions
1500 Future plans
1630 Close and farewell party

Sunday 23 September

0800 Travel back to Ho Chi Minh City

Information and Presentations

Prior information:

Could you please send a brief report, fact-sheet or up-to-date website address to us so we have some understanding of the current situation of the projects and the landscapes we are investigating? We would like this information prior to the workshop, if possible by Friday the 14th of September, or at the latest, Monday the 17th of September.

Preparations for the workshop:

At the workshop, we would like to collect information regarding each of the landscapes. This information includes cultural and biophysical aspects of the landscapes, threats faced and project strategies to achieve their goals. Could you please bring with you a couple of small reports or documents that will aid us in collating this information?

Presentations:

On the third day of the workshop, we would like you to give a brief presentation about the landscape you work in. This presentation should be 15 to 20 minutes and include:

• Geographic location
• Physical attributes
• Project aims
• Project strategies
• Project achievements
• Threats
• History of intervention

Contact

If you have any queries, please contact one of the facilitators:

Feby Litamahuputty (CIFOR)
email: f.litamahuputty@cgiar.org
Mobile: (+62) 812 105 4671

Mai Hoang Yen (ICRAF - CIFOR Vietnam)
email: maiyenny@yahoo.com
Mobile: (+84) 902 225 282

Pham Thu Thuy (ICRAF – CIFOR Vietnam)
email: brissiesugar@gmail.com
Mobile: (+84) 904 080 582

Luke Preece
email: lukepreece@gmail.com