Resources | COMBO

The resources collated below will help partners and stakeholders develop and apply national policies aimed at addressing development impacts on biodiversity in line with on best practice in the mitigation hierarchy, including offsets. The materials have been produced by COMBO, its partners and other collaborators. They provide an introduction to some of the themes that are important for understanding why and how biodiversity impacts should be addressed to achieve no net loss or net gain outcomes for biodiversity aligned with overarching biodiversity targets.

An excellent starting point is the website created by the Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP), which includes a comprehensive set of resources produced by this Programme.

In addition, the IUCN Thematic Group Impact Mitigation and Ecological Compensation (IMEC) compiles useful material from a range of sources. This includes a set of introductory videos on key concepts relating to biodiversity offsets and ecological compensation, to which COMBO staff have contributed. COMBO+ and IMEC continue working collaboratively on several outputs, such as training materials and technical briefs on the mitigation hierarchy and translating communication materials into different languages (e.g. videos on biodiversity offsets in the context of the mitigation hierarchy).

The materials below are organised into several categories, covering information on the COMBO program itself, policy briefs and technical resources we have produced, training materials and useful weblinks and other resources. Country-specific resources are listed here as well as under the country pages. We will supplement these materials throughout COMBO's second phase of work.

About COMBO

COMBO Global synthesis report (Eng)

This document offers a summary of COMBO’s first phase of work in Guinea, Uganda, Mozambique and Madagascar between 2016 and 2020.

COMBO Brochure de synthese (Fr)

Ce document est une synthèse de la première phase de travail de COMBO en Guinée, en Ouganda, au Mozambique et à Madagascar entre 2016 et 2020.

COMBO+ au Madagascar (flyer FR)

COMBO+ Programme Flyer (ENG)

Gives a short introduction to the Programme, its goal, objectives, partners, contacts

Brochure COMBO+ (FR)

Une introduction au programme, y inclus le but, les objectives strategiques, partenaires, etc.

COMBO+ video Guinee

Video on COMBO+ with a focus on Guinea (FR)

This video was produced in 2022 during the launch of COMBO+ in Guinea and introduces the programme's work in this country.

Video on field exchange

In May 2023, COMBO+ Mozambique organised a field mission to the operational sites of Portucel, which is rolling out a plantation project.. A video of the exchange was prepared (PT with ENG subtitles).

Policy briefs

COMBO Summary Brochure/ policy brief for Moz (Eng)

This document provides a summary of COMBO’s first phase of work in Mozambique, including key achievements, and it introduces the aims of the program’s second phase of work (COMBO+).

COMBO Summary / Policy brief for Moz (Pt)

Este documento fornece um resumo da primeira fase de trabalho do COMBO em Moçambique, incluindo as principais realizações, e apresenta os objectivos da segunda fase de trabalho do programa (COMBO+).

Good practice Principles: NNL for people and biodiversity

This document outlines good practice principles for addressing social impacts that arise from biodiversity losses and gains due to a development project and its NNL/NG activities. The principles were developed under the UK Government’s Darwin-funded project “Achieving No Net Loss For Communities And Biodiversity In Uganda” (23-019) and the ESRC Impact Accelerator Award “Developing and mainstreaming guiding principles for ensuring No Net Loss for people and biodiversity”. COMBO supported translation into French and Portuguese.

Bonnes Pratiques: L'absence de Perte Nette pour la Population et la Biodiversite

Ce document, preparé par Bull, Baker, Griffiths, Jones et Milner-Gulland, met en exergue les principes fondamentaux pour la mise en oeuvre de bonnes pratiques pour la prise en compte optimale des impacts sociaux résultant des pertes et des gains de biodiversité du fait d’un projet de développement et de son application de la hiérarchie d’atténuation.

Principios de boas praticas: Nenhuma perda líquida para pessoas et biodiversidade

Este documento delineia os princípios de boas práticas para abordar os impactos sociais que decorrem de todas as perdas e ganhos de biodiversidade, resultantes de um projecto de desenvolvimento e das suas actividades que visam alcançar a Nenhuma Perda Liquida/ GL.

Technical resources

Restoration Priority Assessment

This report sets out an approach for spatially identifying and assessing areas that may lend themselves for restoration and thus for biodiversity offsets in Mozambique. The study focuses on one district in Mozambique, as part of a high-level illustration that could inform field studies, and it intends to complement previous assessments applying the IUCN ROAM tool.

Portucel case study (Eng)

This case study, jointly written by COMBO and Portucel staff, offers insights into the application of the mitigation hierarchy to address the biodiversity impacts of a forestry sector company in Mozambique’s Zambezia province.

Portucel case study (Pt)

Este estudo de caso, escrito em conjunto pela equipe da COMBO e da Portucel, oferece insights sobre a aplicação da hierarquia de mitigação para abordar os impactos na biodiversidade de uma empresa do setor florestal na província da Zambézia, em Moçambique.

Miombo woodland metric – final report

This report summarises a miombo forest condition metric, and how it was developed, for use in biodiversity offset calculations in Mozambique.

Mangrove metric – final report

This report summarises the framework for assessing the condition of mangrove forests in Mozambique, including a description of a metric (the Mangrove Conservation Index) and how it was developed, for use in biodiversity offset determinations.

Ecological characterisation of pilot project site

This document gives a short description of the ecological importance of the Licuati Forest Reserve, including threats, to inform the use of this Reserve as a pilot study for COMBO+

National Chimpanzee Conservation Plan for Guinea (Fr)

This Plan is the translation of a common and shared vision where "The populations of chimpanzees in Guinea and their natural habitats are restored and preserved by a strong commitment from the Guinean State, local and international communities, and by productive sectors, for sustainable development”.

Training materials

Introduction to biodiversity offsets

Biodiversity Offsets in the Mitigation Hierarchy: Explainer Videos

Nine videos explain key concepts and challenges central to biodiversity offsetting and ecological compensation. They were produced by offsets specialists from the IMEC Thematic Group, the University of Queensland, RMIT University, The University of Melbourne and University of Helsinki with the support of funding from the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program through the Threatened Species Recovery Hub. Members of the COMBO team also contributed to these videos, now available in English and with Portuguese sub-titles.

Bluecapacityhub

Ecosystem-based Marine and Coastal Planning

This site provides a wide range of capacity building materials on marine spatial planning, including the ‘Blue Planning in practice’ training course. The translation of the trainer manual and participant handbook to Burmese language was facilitated by the Myanmar COMBO team.

Websites and others resources

BBOP

Business and Biodiversity Offsets Programme (BBOP)

The international multi-stakeholder Program involved companies, governments, financial institutions and civil society and developed and tested best international practice on the mitigation hierarchy, including biodiversity offsets. The Program ran between 2004 and 2018 and has collated all of its outputs on this legacy website.

IUCN

Impact Mitigation and Ecological Compensation (IMEC)

This IUCN Thematic Group was formed in 2019 and aims to provide the latest research, guidance, and tools on applying the mitigation hierarchy and ecological compensation. It also offers a community of practice that is actively engaged in applying and improving the mainstreaming of biodiversity into development plans, programs and projects.

Land Use 2021

Alberta’s Land Use 2021 Conference

The Alberta University’s Land Institute ran a webinar series on current trends and best practice in biodiversity offsetting. Eight sessions of webinars are collated on this site and are free to view.

BIODEV2030

This program is implementing an experimental approach to identify opportunities for voluntary conservation commitments by private sector actos in 16 pilot countries, including several countries in which COMBO is working. The program’s aim is to connect governments and the private sector to promote profound changes in those economic sectors that have a strategic impact on development and also biodiversity.

Webinar

Webinar: Biodiversity conservation in Madagascar: Do no net loss commitments help?

In this COMBO and IMEC co-hosted webinar, Bangor University's Katie Devenish and Julia Jones present the cutting edge analysis of Ambatovy mine's efforts towards achieving no net loss and Alain Liva Raharijaona contributes insights from the Madagascar Biodiversity Fund, FAPBM.

Webinar

Webinar: Perspectives on Mainstreaming biodiversity into policy and development practice

This webinar presents the COMBO Project and the perspectives of several speakers from the finance sector, government and NGOs on mainstreaming biodiversity conservation into policy and development practice. Speakers include Aurelien Guingand from the Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD), Conrad Savy from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Francis Ogwal from the Govt of Uganda, Josia Razafindramanana from Ambatovy and Hugo Rainey from the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Video: Huit étapes clés pour compenser

Video: Huit étapes clés pour compenser les impacts d’un projet d’aménagement sur la biodiversité

Ce vidéo est associée au guide sur l’approche standardisée du dimensionnement de la compensation écologique en France.

Guide Compensation Ecologique en France

Ce Guide de mise en œuvre de l'approche standardisée du dimensionnement de la compensation écologique en France s’adresse à tous les acteurs concernés par la compensation écologique appliquée aux projets (maîtres d’ouvrage, bureaux d’étude, services de l’État et collectivités territoriales, chercheurs, citoyens, etc.) en leur offrant un cadre concret et standardisé décrivant les 8 étapes et les méthodes de la démarche.