Understanding the resilience and security of a territory of life: A dedicated tool

Resilience and security are crucial aspects of the overall ‘health’ of territories of life. Resilience concerns its capacity to recover from shocks and damage. Security concerns the likelihood that the territory of life will continue to exist and thrive. 

The ICCA Consortium has developed a simple tool to help communities self-assess the resilience and security of a territory of life, based on five essential elements or ‘building blocks’:

  • the strength of the custodian community; 
  • the connection between the community and its territory;
  • the functioning of the governance institution; 
  • the territory’s conservation status; and
  • the livelihoods and wellbeing of the community. 

This dedicated tool can be used as questionnaire to guide one or more grassroots discussions.

The facilitation team may fill the form electronically (here) and save the information. To use during a meeting, however, printing the pdf version of the tool (here) may be more practical.

The collected information will be important for understanding the current situation and for monitoring progress towards the community’s desired future. For that, indicators of the building blocks of the resilience and security of the territory of life should be identified and monitored through time (see #Review & Renew).  

Note

Always keep in mind the need for free, prior and informed consent and ethical use of the community’s information!