£73,666,020 invested in 673 projects in 148 countries since 1992
Darwin Initiative
Upcoming events
Darwin Initiative Regional Workshop 2009
The date for the Darwin Initiative Regional Workshop in Brazil has been confirmed by Defra. The date for the actual workshop is Wednesday 18 November 2009 and delegates are invited to arrive on Tuesday 17 November for dinner and a networking opportunity.
Below you will find details of:
- the general programme of events
- the financial support available
- the theme and objectives of the event
- opportunities for projects to present at the workshop
A registration form and an Excel file with a list of projects eligible for financial support can be downloaded:
A reimbursement form can be downloaded for claiming back expenses. Eligible delegates should bring it to the workshop completed and ready to hand over. Payments will be processed by bank transfer after the workshop:
The workshop is open to all who would like to attend, but financial support is limited to eligible projects and detailed below. If you or your colleagues plan to attend, please complete the registration form and return it by Friday 6th November.
We also currently have 6 slots available for presentations from the many Darwin Initiative projects that have been funded in Central and South America. Therefore we would welcome abstracts from potential speakers by Friday 6th November. Further details on the content of these presentations are given below.
Registration forms should be send to Eilidh Young at Darwin-Projects@ltsi.co.uk
Abstracts should be sent to Lesley Brown at Lesley-Brown@ltsi.co.uk
General Programme
Workshop delegates are expected to arrive in Teresopolis on Tuesday 17 November. Teresopolis is a town roughly an hour's drive from Rio de Janeiro-Galeão International Airport and details of transport arrangements from Rio will be confirmed shortly. There will be a dinner in Teresopolis the night before the event to allow delegates to meet with one another and network. The workshop itself will be hosted by the Chico Mendes Institute in the excellent setting of the Serra dos Orgaos National Park http://www.icmbio.gov.br/parnaso/. During the day of the workshop there will be opportunities for delegates to investigate some of the shorter nature trails in the park. A second nights accommodation in nearby Teresopolis will be available for those that require it, as will transport back to the airport. A summary programme is provided below.
Suggested Itinerary
| 17th November |
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| 18th November |
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| 19th November |
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Note: This is a suggested itinerary as we recognize individuals are travelling from many destinations which will dictate differing schedules.
Financial Support
There is a generous package of financial support available for eligible projects. A list of eligible projects is outlined in the excel sheet. Eligible projects include all current projects in Central and Southern America and any projects in this region that have completed since 2007.
The financial support is for 1 individual per project from the host country institution. Where there is more than 1 host country institution we ask the project team to nominate 1 individual to represent the project. Whilst we welcome project staff from the UK institutions we will not provide financial support for them.
Eligible delegates will be reimbursed for:
- 1 return standard class flight to Rio de Janeiro from nearest reasonable airport to home
- Transport to and from Rio Galeao airport to the workshop
Paid for separately by the Darwin Initiative is:
- Meals and accommodation for up to 2 nights in Teresopolis
- Return travel from Teresopolis to the National Park
Details of the reimbursement will be provided separately following registration.
Theme of workshop
We investigated the theme of partnerships in the African context during the Regional Workshop in 2008 and Defra are keen to continue with this theme, looking at the challenges and lessons learnt in the America's context. The objectives for the workshop are therefore:
- To develop stronger networks between South American and Central American Darwin Initiative funded projects
- To develop a greater understanding of the challenges facing Central and South American projects in developing and maintaining long-lasting, mutually beneficial partnerships with the UK
- To generate guidance intended for the rest of Darwin Community on how to establish and maintain, long-lasting mutually beneficial partnership in the form of short guidance notes
Speakers Presentations
We currently have 6 slots available for presentations from the many Darwin Initiative projects that have been funded in Central and South America. We would welcome abstracts from potential speakers by Friday 6th November. Abstracts should be a maximum of 300 words. Presentations are expected to be 15-20 minutes long with time after for discussion.
There are three general themes that we suggest presentations should take into consideration which are outlined below. These three themes will then be explored further in the afternoon's breakaway sessions using examples raised from the main presentations.
1.Establishing a mutually beneficial partnership
Some Darwin Initiative projects are delivered by groups for whom this is the first pairing. This group will investigate the challenges of establishing ‘new' partnerships and develop guidelines of how best to develop a mutually beneficial partnership.
Things to consider include:
- Pre-application
- Inception periods
- Remote working and communications
- Defining roles and responsibilities
- Developing management capacity from within
2.Long-distance project management
The Darwin Initiative requires projects to be managed in partnership between UK institutions and their overseas partners. This group will discuss the challenges faced by long-distance management and, through the experiences of those involved, develop guidelines to be shared with the wider Darwin community.
Issues to consider include:
- Monitoring of project progress
- Evaluation of impact
- Staff management
- Financial administration
- Roles and responsibilities of partners
3.The Evolution of the purpose of partnerships
The Darwin Initiative provides funding for the transfer of UK expertise to countries which are resource poor but biodiversity rich. Through these projects we recognise that the roles of those involved can change over time dependent on many factors including the capacity and skills of the partners involved, the biodiversity needs of the country, the type of institution involved (i.e. indigenous people, local communities, policy makers, general public, academic institution, private sector). We'd like to investigate how relationships can change and how best to adapt to these changes.
Issues to consider include:
- Intended audience of work
- Integration of research into policy
- Post-project partnerships
- Transfer of skills between partners
- Equality and mutuality of partnerships
Page last modified: Thursday, 22 October 2009
