“The Sensing Clues platform allows us not only to collect data for patrols in the field, but also to document activities, which is invaluable for both our Biodiversity and Community sections.”

COMMUNITY-LED CONSERVATION
Written By Rebekka Stutz

Carbon Tanzania, Tanzania - Empowering communities to safeguard nature and wildlife with tailored data solutions

Carbon Tanzania is an impact-driven social enterprise dedicated to making forest protection valuable for both nature and local communities. Through the creation of verified carbon credits, they generate revenue that directly supports community livelihoods, healthcare, education, and land rights. This approach empowers communities to protect their forests and wildlife while contributing to global climate goals.

A partnership for protecting wildlife and empowering communities in Tanzania

At the heart of Tanzania’s remarkable landscapes lies the Ruvuma Corridor, a vital one-million-hectare link between protected areas in Mozambique and Tanzania. This ecological lifeline is crucial for wildlife movement and biodiversity conservation. Supporting the communities living in this corridor is equally essential – and that’s where Carbon Tanzania began using the Sensing Clues platform to collect and manage data to make a difference.

A streamlined approach to data management

Village Game Scouts in the Makame Savannah

In 2022, Sensing Clues developed an end-to-end solution to help monitor and evaluate community-led conservation activities. Around the same time, Carbon Tanzania needed a platform to centralise data for a new project in the Ruvuma Corridor. Since the project was newly established, implementation was straightforward. Using the Cluey data collection app, project officers and community carbon champions can now easily register training sessions, meetings, activities, and field reports – attaching notes, minutes, and PDF documents so everything is documented in one place. The fully integrated Community Work Reports from the Analytical Toolbox enable users to create high-quality reports with just a few clicks. This has improved reporting accuracy, fostered transparency, enhanced communication, and enabled more effective collaboration between field teams and the head office.

"Because it contained the space I always work in – the space for community data and biodiversity data – it was so easy to deploy on the ground. We adapted the Sensing Clues Community Work Reports and Biodiversity Reports for all our projects. We now have four projects in the Ruvuma Corridor, in the Ntakata Mountains in the Greater Mahale ecosystem, in Manyara, and in Arusha Regions," explains Mr. Chikambu Hassani, Monitoring Officer at Carbon Tanzania.

Train-the-trainer approach

Village Game Scouts in the Ntakata Mountains

The journey began with Sensing Clues training community project officers at Carbon Tanzania’s headquarters in Arusha, who then trained their teams – a successful ’train-the-trainer’ approach that has strengthened local capacity. Mr. Chikambu Hassani plays a key role in training teams and ensuring consistent, high-quality data flows back to the organisation. So far, he has trained an impressive number of people:

  • Ruvuma Wilderness REDD Project: 125 village game scouts, carbon champions, and community project officers.

  • Ntakata Mountains REDD Project: 103 Village Natural Resources Committee (VNRC) members.

  • Yaeda-Eyasi Landscape REDD Project: 148 village game scouts.

  • Makame Savannah REDD Project: 62 village game scouts and carbon champions, with additional training scheduled for April 2025.

Expanding capabilities

Over time, Carbon Tanzania’s teams began to fully appreciate the value of Cluey, expanding its use beyond Community Work Reports. For example, Carbon Tanzania is conducting occupancy modeling to estimate biodiversity distributions and behavior by analysing species occurrences. Teams annually record wildlife observations using Cluey, documenting animal dung, spoor, tracks, and animal sightings. These efforts have been highly productive, with over 2,000 observations collected in just four days. Additionally, the Makame Savannah project conducts ground counts annually, where teams observe and sight wildlife physically. These observations are also recorded via the Cluey data collection app. With centralised and instantly accessible data, rapid analysis and informed decision-making have become the norm.

Why Sensing Clues is the go-to platform for Carbon Tanzania

Mr. Chikambu Hassani highlights the advantages of using Sensing Clues: "I appreciate the Sensing Clues platform for many reasons. It allows us not only to collect data for patrols in the field but also to document activities, which is invaluable for both our Biodiversity and Community sections. The platform helps us centralise and access real-time data, enabling me to see who is in the field at any given time and when teams have completed their assignments. The visualisation tools in the Analytical Toolbox are excellent and save a great deal of time when retrieving the information I need. The customised maps make presentations and reports easy to create. I also like how I can create different groups and invite selected colleagues, just like in WhatsApp. Plus, the data is securely stored and cannot be lost. Finally, the platform is highly flexible, and the support from the Sensing Clues technical team has been outstanding – they customised many features according to our needs to ensure it works perfectly for us."

 

Rebekka Stutz
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