The document discusses a community centre that CERCOPAN has constructed in Iko Esai village. It describes a sensitization workshop held to explain the purpose and benefits of the centre to community members. Guest speakers discussed how their village utilizes a similar centre. The workshop aimed to generate ideas for effective use of the new building and highlighted opportunities it provides for education, training, community collaboration and income generation.

1. CERCO‐NEWS
VOLUME 3, ISSUE 5 J U N E 2 0 1 1
INSIDE THIS
ISSUE:
Beeb, Beeb! Incoming grant!
Beeb, Beeb! 1
Incoming grant!
Nature programmes on allow us to:
the BBC have inspired ‐ Sustain existing incentives
viewers for over 50 years, that have successfully
From the 2 and you'd be hard‐pressed promoted environmental
Director to find a wildlife conservation by Iko Esai to
conservationist in the field date.
Time out for 2 who did not acknowledge a ‐Strengthen t h e
students formative influence from conservation by‐laws in Iko
these programmes in their Esai and extend these to 3
Talking ‘bout my 2 youth. Many more neighbouring communities.
generator individuals have been able ‐ Expand forest patrol Amy with advisors (right) and
to give back to nature activities to further enforce seedlings (left) at IITA
Centre of 3 instead through donations the by‐laws.
excellence to the BBC Wildlife Fund ‐ Restore degraded forested information and forestry
which raises awareness and areas through a tree‐ expertise, IITA members
funds to help save planting programme. were the ideal advisors for
No time to lose 4 threatened wildlife and ‐ Gain support for the Iko the beginning of our own
places. Esai forest conservation project.
In the 2010/11 Grant model in 3 neighbouring The trip gave us the
Growing the 4 cycle, the BBC Wildlife Fund communities. opportunity to follow all of
business raised and disbursed £1.2 ‐ Facilitate international the processes undertaken,
Million to 12 UK and 25 REDD+ engagement with the from initial seed collection,
Transfer season 5 International projects, and region. through germination and re‐
CERCOPAN is absolutely Extension of the Rhoko potting, to final restoration
delighted to announce that conservation model to planting.
we are one of those 25 neighbouring communities is Information w a s
Improved market 5 special recipients. The BBC's hoped to give the critical recorded on the ideal
conditions funding will underwrite our mass to attract REDD+ species to begin with: those
field‐based operation in Iko funding for a multi‐ native to our region which
Want to be a part 6 Esai's Rhoko forest for a community conservation are fast growing and light
of it ? year, which together with programme in the longer‐ tolerant. These provide
grants that support efforts in term. shade for other seedlings of
the neighbouring villages will The tree planting varieties that are less
programme is a new activity tolerant to high light levels.
for us. In preparation for this Lists of the most successful
venture, our Administration species to germinate at IITA
Find out more at and Operations Mgr, Amy will also be used as a guide
www.bbc.co.uk/wild/
Baxter, visited the when choosing those to
International Institute of grow in Iko Esai.
Tropical Agriculture (IITA), a Techniques used to
world renowned research speed up the germination
centre in Ibadan in the process, and to ensure
southwest of Nigeria. They minimal stress during re‐
are one year into a tree potting will help CERCOPAN
planting programme of their achieve our goal: 3,000
own, and with access to a seedlings grown and planted
wealth of botanical in the forest in a year.

2. PAGE 2
From the Director
In January, the omen of and finishings phase, and ultimate generator in terms
a yellow butterfly I’m more than happy with of reliability and power
apparently promised me a the results this year! output for our needs ‐ the
happy 2011. At the mid‐ Back in Calabar, our one pictured below?!
year point, it’s a good time electricity mains supply And the BBC Wildlife
to assess my mood. can be unavailable for 3‐4 Fund grant featured as our
Well, as I write, the days, sometimes weeks, at lead article is a strong
final coat of paint is drying a time. Just in the past 12 candidate for my highlight
on the Iko Esai Community months, we’ve had three of the year. I love BBC
Centre (see next page) as of our back‐up generators wildlife programmes, I love
we complete the fail terminally from over‐ their p r o ‐ a c t i v e
construction phase. use, leaving us with no conservation initiative, and
Bringing in the building options left. It’s wearing I love the fact that our
Claire Coulson supplies and skilled on our effectiveness, and programme competes on
CERCOPAN resources to such a eventually our morale, the global stage.
remote location, while when even the basics of Happy? Yes ‐ and
keeping to budget, taxed charged phones and light apparently there are six
me remorselessly for over to read by are down for months more to come!
two years. With the walls days or even weeks at a
and roof completed, I then time for want of power.
carefully chose a project Am I happy with the
manager for the utilities recent arrival of the
“….we rarely
turn down a
Time out for students
chance to educate This month we hosted Our Education Officer conservation biology,
the next two groups of students provided field lectures on reserve design, and social
from the University of a variety of topics related theories related to human
generation of
Ibadan studying Wildlife to primate conservation conservation behaviours.
professionals in Management. and tropical forest The undergraduates
the practices of Although it means ecology, while visiting also had a chance to visit
environmental taking time away from researchers Sagan and our host village of Iko Esai.
conservation” important operational Carrie acted as guest We were thrilled to have
needs, we rarely turn lecturers. Sagan gave talks these students visit Rhoko
down a chance to educate on primate re‐ and see first hand the
the next generation of introduction, parasite e n v i r o n m e n t a l
professionals in the communities, and meta‐ conservation work that
practices of environmental population dynamics. CERCOPAN is doing in
Our newest source conservation. Carrie lectured on Cross River State.
of electricity
Talking ‘bout my generator
Superficially it may look accommodation building in absence of mains electricity
like an espresso machine Calabar, plus cycles to (the norm for more than 20
with its own desktop spare to run even a hours every day). And while
lighting, but t h e welding machine at the running, this one charges up
photograph does not do the same time. It took the the inverters in both
justice that this bad boy strength of 6 full‐grown buildings that save the
deserves. men to land it in place! excess power for later use.
This is in fact a 13.5kVA We have never before So, thanks to our donor,
Perkins Generator which been in the position where for the first time we now
provides sufficient power we have had sufficient have 24x7 cost‐effective
for the needs of both the power to run our total energy available for all vital
office and o u r Calabar operation in the operational services.

3. VOLUME 3, ISSUE 5 PAGE 3
Centre of excellence
The Community Centre village, Abi LGA). Project
that we have been Supervisor, Cross Umoh,
constructing in Iko Esai is who has been assisting
now at last within just days CERCOPAN with the
of completion. It’s an construction of the project
important time, therefore, also spoke.
to build momentum within Using a large fabric
the village towards making poster of the centre’s floor
the most effective use of plan, C E R C O P A N
the building once it is ready. representatives and guest
There are many social and speakers highlighted each
economic opportunities that separate room within the
such an asset can bring to community centre and
the community, but these explained their functions,
have to be prioritised and available resources, and CCDC ( C o m m u n i t y The meeting hall will be
organised. community benefits. This Conservation a n d used for education and
To this end we held a also gave the opportunity Development Committee) training
sensitisation workshop at for an in‐depth question and on using the Centre as a
the site to remind the answer session. Leslie base for NGO’s working
village of the Community explained how his village within the community, and
Centre’s purpose and the utilised their centre and also as a base to collaborate
benefits it brings to the how it generated income for with n e i g h b o u r i n g
village. All members of the the village, as well as Community B a s e d
community were invited to provided essential facilities Organisations on projects of
attend, with the Chiefs’ to promote education, common i n t e r e s t .
Council and representatives training, and community Additionally discussions
from the leading village unity. centred on the opportunity
interest groups especially The workshop ended on to raise funds for
encouraged. a high note, with a tour of maintenance of the centre Esso Exploration &
We were fortunate to be the building, ending in the by hiring out the hall for Production Nigeria Ltd.
able to bring in guest kitchen where refreshments social functions, and the provided the main grant to
speakers with experience on were served. All members of accommodation to tourists. build the centre
the subject. In particular we the community who
welcomed Leslie Eni Elemi attended were excited
who is the Manager of the about the possibilities that
Community Centre in the came with the opening of
village of Liyel Imoke, the centre.
Governor of Cross River There was much talk
State Governor (Itigidi from groups such as the
Front and side view of the
Community Centre as it receives
the finishing touches to the
building stage

4. PAGE 4
No time to lose
In June we submitted our opportunity to make a 30‐ to use alternative livelihoods
final report on the Building minute presentation. options as a climate change
Nigeria’s Response to Government reps from adaptation strategy (in Iko
Climate Change (BNRCC) various ministries, including Esai and Ago). Many of the
project. Aiming to develop Education, and Health, were projects implemented
and assess adaptation in attendance to field similar types o f
strategies to Climate Change questions from the groups. programmes, such as
through pilot projects, It was a wonderful beekeeping and fuel‐
CERCOPAN was selected opportunity for the pilot efficient stoves.
from candidates in the project groups to voice their We now wait to see if
rainforest zone of Nigeria. concerns directly, and for there will be a scaled‐up
Six other pilot projects government representatives response from Government
across the full diversity of to understand the critical or International agencies (or
Nigeria's biogeographical issues effecting Nigeria. both) to implement the
regions ran in parallel with It was also instructive to successes of the pilots, since
our own. hear from other pilot there is no question that
At the close of the project partners as we both Adaptation and
project, a symposium was shared the successful and Mitigation strategies to
called in Abuja for all the challenging aspects of our address Climate Change are
partners. E a c h projects. CERCOPAN's the highest of priorities in
representative had an strategy in this project was the immediate‐term.
Growing the business
The forest that we help logging and primate hunting making note of important
protect in partnership with there have motivated assets and resources. They
Iko Esai is part of a very CERCOPAN to take our were then asked to map
large and globally important environmental educational their surrounding forest
forested area. We have long workshops and alternative area providing key
desired to work with the livelihoods projects to Owai. information about primary
neighbouring communities Community Conser‐ forest, secondary forest,
to Iko Esai in order to vation Manager BenJee hunting sheds and farmland
expand the total forest area Cascio and Community expansion. A seasonal
under protection. Liaison and Education calendar was formed to
Amongst these Officer Mike Ekpe recently help CERCOPAN understand
communities is began their work in Owai yearly social, economic and
Owai. One of with a needs assessment natural resource cycles.
the smaller workshop. The two were We plan to continue
villages, Owai is well received by the village needs assessment
located three Chiefs and community workshops as well as
hours south on members. Representatives educational campaigns for
foot by road, from the Hunters’ Group, the Chiefs’ Council, Hunters’
though if you Cocoa Farmers’ group, Groups and general
are feeling Youth Group and Chiefs’ population. If the success of
adventurous you Council were all in the first workshop was any
can walk attendance and actively indication to go by, work
through the involved in the mapping, with Owai looks to be an
forest and reach and seasonal calendar important and effective
BenJee guiding Owai in a similar amount of exercises. step in increasing the
the mapping time. Participants were asked likelihood of conservation of
exercises Reports of illegal to map their communities, the area’s forests.

5. VOLUME 3, ISSUE 5 PAGE 5
Transfer season
One of our successes in conformance of the new
2010 was to map the farms to the stipulated zones.
boundary between forest So the skill transfer is not only
and farmland across Iko in respect of the technology
Esai’s land for the first time. being used, but also in respect
From that exercise the of bringing the village up to
village, in the form of the speed in managing its forest
Surveillance Team, gained by itself, for itself.
the ability to monitor and Technology transfer has
enforce a Land Use continued with our Research
Management Plan (LUMP) Assistants receiving computer
that was agreed on back in and data‐entry training.
2003 and which zones Sylvain, CERCOPAN’s Mona
farming to particular areas. Research Coordinator, taught
We have continued our three of the assistants how to Managbey researcher, also had The Surveillance Team
practical training and properly process pictures of multiple sessions with her honing their GPS skills
mentoring of the the fruits and flowers sampled assistant on entering the
Surveillance Team members every month during behavioural data into Excel
with two separate 5‐hour phenology data acquisition. spreadsheets. And finally our
hands‐on sessions with the Knowledge on data entry other visiting researcher, “So the skill
GPS units. The goal of the was also provided. They Carrie, trained two more staff
excursions was to complete seemed to enjoy the members on interview and
transfer is not
mapping of the new farming Photoshop lecture the most, survey techniques, bringing the only in respect of
areas that were opened up learning how to import, re‐ total up to nine staff that can the technology
in the 2011 clearing season, size, label, and store the independently collect survey/ being used, but
and accordingly update the phenology pictures. Sagan, interview data in support of her also in respect of
LUMP and confirm our visiting Red‐Capped project.
bringing the
village up to
Improved market conditions speed in
managing its
The C o m m u n i t y foundation. location for local sellers on non‐ forest by itself,
Conservation a n d The improved market market days. for itself.”
Development Committee square will provide daily use The central location helps
(CCDC) has completed the for those wishing to sell a expose sellers to buyers,
renovation of the market variety of goods from their reducing the amount of door‐
square in Iko Esai, with farms. At the moment, maize to‐door sales, and also keeps
financial assistance from and pear (a smaller version of everyone out of the hot sun. So
CERCOPAN. Regular readers avocado) are plentiful. The next time you find yourself in
will recall that the CCDC is a usual foods are also available Iko Esai, feel free to stop by the
democratically‐elected body such as dried fish, rice, beans beautiful new market square
that works to develop the and bananas. and pick up a dozen bananas, a
village for the benefit of its On Friday, the main couple of ears of corn and your The new market
inhabitants. The CCDC also market day, this area is authentic Nigerian cloth! ready for trade
promotes and enforces bustling with activity
environmental conser‐ attracting sellers far and wide
vation, and in return bringing such goods as
CERCOPAN provides a clothes, decorative posters,
quarterly grant to the cloth, pots and pans, etc. that
committee. aren’t regularly available in
This long‐overdue the village. Although a larger
renovation has replaced the market square is planned, this
leaky roof and cracked initial development will assist
pavement with new in attracting sellers and
corrugated zinc and a fresh helping provide a stable

6. WANT TO BE A PART OF IT? • Undertake a sponsored event to raise funds for
CERCOPAN. Use the Fundraising Pack on our
• Stay in touch with our on‐going programme by web site to help you.
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• Make a cash donation to CERCOPAN via our
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CERCOPAN orphan monkeys ‐ called in the
• Volunteer for CERCOPAN in either Nigeria or
catalogue 'A‐peeling Monkeys' for only £20!
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The price of the gift is passed on to CERCOPAN.
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So, it is an excellent way of solving your gift
everyone! Visit our website volunteer
problems, and supporting our work!
section for further details.
Alternatively visit the CERCOPAN gift shop on
• Help CERCOPAN attain corporate funding. If our website today.
you work for a corporate sponsor who may be
• Donate useful goods and equipment such as
interested in funding CERCOPAN please
building and fencing materials, veterinary
contact claire.coulson@cercopan.org
medicines, old laptop computers etc. or
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All photos in this newsletter were taken at CERCOPAN or Iko Esai
by staff, volunteers and visitors.
Photo Credits:
© Copyright CERCOPAN 2011
Design & Layout by Claire Coulson; Written by Claire Coulson, Amy Baxter, Carrie Vath, & BenJee Cascio
Edited by Claire Coulson