Enhancing the tractability of island nations as living laboratories for biodiversity conservation: Societal impacts of the UdM-Varuna project

The UdM-Varuna project is part of a multi-partner regional Varuna programme to enhance partnerships and local capabilities for biodiversity protection and conservation in the South West Indian Ocean (SWIO) region. The UdM-Varuna project aims to address the challenge of weak environmental governance in SWIO islands through human and institutional capacity development. It applies a Theory of Change premised on learning-by-doing in conjunction with scientific research, delivery of training to stakeholders (public, private, academia and non-profit organizations), and supporting evidence-based policy making. By building on the intermediate outcomes of four outputs, the project has produced changes at three levels, namely: (i) changes beyond the project – i.e. unanticipated institutional strengthening, (ii) changes in decision-making processes for mainstreaming biodiversity conservation using natural capital accounting (NCA), and (iii) changes in strategic planning at the national level to enhance the science-policy interface. The research tools and methodologies applied in Mauritius – reflecting a data-limited case typical of many islands – are transposable to other SWIO islands. To increase societal impacts, post-project sustainability approaches are developed to capitalize on the project outcomes. The project directly contributes to several Sustainable Development Goals – 3, 5, 11, 14, 15 and 17.