Conservation of Biodiversity in the Central Zagros Landscape Conservation Zone

The GEF Project Objective is the conservation of the biodiversity and the landscape within the Central Zagros Landscape Conservation Zone. In order to achieve this Objective, the project will stimulate changes in village-level practices, at the provincial level, and in national agencies. Hence, Project Outcomes and Activities focus into these three levels. The project is based on the following principles: (I) ·Developing new visions for development, in a participatory and consensual manner; (ii) ·Building partnerships across sectors, between national and local actors, across provinces, and between government and non-government agencies (including the media and the private sector); (iii) ·Raising awareness at all levels, by advocating to decision-makers and through path-breaking social communication with communities; (iv) Founding biodiversity conservation on sound economics, starting with the determination and monetisation of the values of the biodiversity to the many stakeholders; (v) Nurturing business-oriented approaches to biodiversity conservation and livelihood development; (vi) Mobilisation of existing capacity. This ranges from traditional knowledge, to financial capacity, to expert capacity, all of which are currently under-exploited. Indicators of the overall success of the project include: the percentage of the Zone under a management regime that specifically addresses biodiversity; the population of free-range livestock in the Zone; levels of soil erosion; and; the population of key wild species.