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This toolkit has been written to assist community groups and restoration practitioners record details of their revegetation projects, assess their condition and monitor their outcomes for biodiversity and carbon sequestration. Additionally, the methods presented here can also be applied to other situations where there is a need to monitor and evaluate change in forest ecosystems, including assessment of the extent of degradation or recovery within remnant forest.

Participatory (collaborative, multiparty, citizen, volunteer) monitoring is a process that has been increasing in popularity and use in both developing and industrialized societies over the last several decades. It reflects the understanding that natural resource decisions are more effective and less controversial when stakeholders who have an interest in the results are involved in the process. An adequate number of such projects have now been organized, tried, and evaluated such that sufficient information exists to recommend a comprehensive approach to implementing such processes. This handbook was written for managers and scientists in the United States who are contemplating a participatory approach to monitoring biological resources, especially biodiversity. It is designed as a how-to manual with discussions of relevant topics, checklists of important considerations to address, and resources for further information. Worksheets for developing, implementing, and evaluating a monitoring plan are posted on a companion Web site. The subject matter is divided into 3 stages of a monitoring project encompassing a total of 22 topical modules. These modules can be used in any sequence on an ongoing basis. Stages and modules include (1) planning documentation, goals, indicators, collaboration, decisions, context, organization, participants, communication, incentives, design, and resources; (2) implementation—training, safety, fieldwork, sampling, data, and quality; and (3) followthrough—analysis, reporting, evaluation, and celebrations. Collaboration always involves colearning, so documenting choices, plans, and activities with the Web site worksheets is integral to the manual’s effectiveness.

New global forest restoration initiatives present an unparalleled opportunity to reverse the trend of deforestation and forest degradation in the coming years. This effort will require the collaboration of stakeholders at all levels, and most importantly, the participation and support of local people. These ambitious restoration initiatives will also require monitoring systems that allow for scalability and adaptability to a range of local sites. This will be essential in understanding how a given restoration effort is progressing, determining why or why not it is succeeding and learning from both its successes and failures. Participatory monitoring could play a crucial role in meeting international monitoring needs. The potential of participatory monitoring in forest restoration and related forest management activities is explored in this review through multiple case studies, experiences, field tests and conceptual discussions. The review seeks to deepen and broaden our understanding of participatory monitoring by teasing out the lessons learned from existing knowledge and mapping a possible path forward, with the aim of improving the outcomes of forest restoration initiatives.

It is a collaborative initiative in the framework of the MEDSCAPES project founded by the ENPI program. MEDSCAPES is an innovative project that comprises a multidisciplinary approach presupposing cross-border cooperation between neighboring Mediterranean European and third party countries. It will serve a point of reference for the scientific and technical research on landscape contributing on building a culture of the landscape in the East Med region through awareness/raising, dissemination and participation at local and regional level; and as a tool to coordinate and supervise the development of the landscape policies defining criteria for the territory protection, management and planning

This document presents the principles, criteria and indicators to be used as a guide for monitoring ecological restoration projects developed in the Atlantic Forest. It describes clearly how these aspects should be checked, measured and evaluated the logo of the implementation period, contributing to the improvement and replication of successful actions.