ENGAGEMENT TERM: March 2023 - February 2024 (one year)

WORK WITH: Technical Consultant (GIS/Infra), WWF-PH GIS unit, WWF-US, WWF-US national and subnational consultants (SPRINGS), NGAs (NEDA), CARAGA LGUs, and stakeholders

BACKGROUND 

This consultancy is in support of  WWF's objectives under the larger project,  Sustainable Infrastructure in Asia Program  (SIPA), led by the  Organization for  Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and in cooperation with multiple partners to support countries in Central and Southeast  Asia in meeting their objectives under the  Paris  Agreement through sustainable infrastructure planning and development. WWF contributes to the specific objective of "improving capacity in the target regions for upstream strategic infrastructure planning to ensure that investment projects are situated within broader long-term sustainable development pathways (incorporating low-carbon  transition  and  climate  resilience  goals)."  WWF is working collaboratively with government partners and key stakeholders through WWF country offices in Indonesia and the Philippines to identify areas of natural capital and the ecosystem benefits they contribute to climate resilience for communities and infrastructure: for example, forests that reduce flooding or prevent soil erosion, wetlands that absorb floodwaters, or coastal mangroves that provide protection against extreme storms, also known as nature-based solutions (NbS). 

The  IUCN has  defined  NbS  as "actions  to protect,  sustainably  manage, and  restore natural or modified  ecosystems,  that  address  societal  challenges  (i.e.  climate  change)  effectively  and adaptively,  simultaneously  providing  human  well-being  and biodiversity benefits".  Nature-Based Solutions  are  an  umbrella  concept  that  can  encompass  concepts  such  as  ecosystem-based adaptation, "natural infrastructure" (intact ecosystems), and green infrastructure. Ecosystems and their services are a central component of climate-resilient infrastructure. They provide options to mainstream resilience in infrastructure planning from development to operations cycles. 

For the Philippines, the consultant will conduct a policy review of key policies linked to NbS and assess their effectiveness, further inclusion and promotion of NbS. The consultant is also tasked with  evaluating  ecosystem  services  and  options  for  the  use  of  nature-based  approaches  in infrastructure for decision-making to selected government entities. Working with the GIS consultant, the NbS consultant will determine parameters for the selection of hotspots to be included in the mapping. In order to spatially map ecosystem services/NbS and determine their economic values through stakeholder consultation and validation workshops, WWF and the consultant will collaborate with relevant government, academia, and NGO stakeholders in the Caraga region.

SPECIFIC DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

The consultant will generally provide technical support to the SIPA PH project in mainstreaming resilience into infrastructure planning,  particularly in undertaking collaborative,  participatory analysis of nature-based solutions for infrastructure planning and improving capacity for nature- based climate resilient infrastructure planning. In the end,  the consultant will contribute to the project's goal of quantifying and mapping the natural ecosystems and the resilience benefits they provide to support infrastructure planning at the national and subnational scales (i.e. Mindanao). 

Specifically, the consultant will conduct the following: 

1. Review key policies and strategies that are closely linked to NbS for climate-resilience/adaptation, ecosystem-based approaches, and conservation, both national and local legislation, to assess NbS inclusivity and analyze its potential for further promotion of NbS
2. Gather baseline data on biodiversity and ecological information about key ecosystem area on  subnational  scales  (Caraga,  Mindanao),  including status, threats, and drivers  of change
3. Identify the various ecosystem services / NbS in the subnational scales (Caraga, Mindanao) and assess the economic values and  other parameters,  particularly services related  t climate adaptation, mitigation, water resources, food security, health, livelihoods, and recreational and cultural value/significance.
4. Work with the GIS infra consultant in the mapping, spatial analysis, and determination of the parameters and selection of hotspots.
5. Design and facilitate the technical workshop, in coordination with the SIPA Team and its technical consultants, aimed to identify the NbS parameters, data sources
6. Assess options for the use of nature-based approaches to issues, including climate change adaptation  and  mitigation,  disaster  risk  management,  and  water  management,  including options such as ecosystem protection and restoration, in relation to infrastructure planning
7. Work with other SIPA consultants to assess technically feasible and cost-effective options for  nature-based  approaches,  and  their  integration/mainstreaming  into  infrastructure planning
8. Document  NbS  best  practices  in  the  management  of  natural  resources  with  a focus  on infrastructure planning
9. Present the project output and report back to the critical stakeholders on the results of the analysis to elicit additional feedback during the multi-stakeholder consultation forum
10. Offer recommendations that will be considered in the decision-making for the selection and development of linear infrastructure projects.
11. Working with the SIPA team and other consultants, guide and influence the consideration of NbS in  local spatial  land use planning, taking into account investments in transportation infrastructure as well as in ecosystem protection and conservation.
12. Develop and prepare training program and modules on NbS and deliver the same.

FINAL REPORTS / DELIVERABLES

1. Inception Report and Workplan
2. Assessment report document
3. Technical Reports
4. Policy brief  showing relevant policies on NbS  inclusivity to  be  used  in  advocating NbS approaches  for  the  conservation  of  natural  resources  and  mainstreaming  of  climate resilience, particularly in infrastructure planning
5. Training program manual, modules on NbS integration with infrastructure planning

WORKPLAN EXAMPLE