Mitigating Global Warming by Bicycle Power

http://sgp.undp.org/web/projects/9688/mitigating_global_warming_by_bicycle_power.html

Mitigating Global Warming by Bicycle Power (THA/05/21)

Country:	THAILAND
Grantee:	Phu Tham Phu Kratae Rehabilitation Group - PTRG (Community Based Organization)
Focal Area:	Climate Change
Op. Program:	OP11 - Promoting Environmentally Sustainable Transport
Project Type:	Full
Operational Phase:	OP3 - Y1 (Mar 05 - Feb 06)
Dates:	3/2006 - 3/2008
Grant Amount:	27 982,95 USD
Project Status:	Satisfactorily Completed
Project Types:

Project Details & Results

Target Population/Location of project:
100 high school students from two schools in Waengnoi District, Khonkaen Province who commute 10 kilometers to school by bus and motorbikes. The parents of the 100 students are members of a CBO currently launching conservation activities for the 320-ha community forest in the project area. The project proposes to demonstrate a community-based approach to reducing carbon dioxide emissions.

Objectives:
1. Build capacity of youth to lead and sustain bicycle power project
2. Demonstrate the use of bicycles to reduce consumption of fossil fuels
3. Launch campaigns and disseminate relevant material in other communities

Planned activities:
1. Provide training for 100 core youth leaders
2. Create a New Generation for Reversing Global Warming Club
3. Conduct study tours to share relevant experiences
4. Organize youth camps focusing on reduction of energy consumption
5. Establish a service center for bicycles
6. Hold mobile forums to teach peers in five villages about the benefits of bicycle use
7. Launch a radio campaign advocating bicycle use on National Mothers’ Day

Anticipated outputs:
1. Emergence of a youth group with an action plan to create value through bicycle use and energy efficiency
2. Adoption of bicycles for short-distance commuting in 30% of total population
3. Within two years of project start: (1) 30% reduction in use of motorbikes for commuting to school, and (2) avoided consumption of 18,072 litres of gasoline; this is equal to THB 433,728 and 39,758,000 grammes of CO2
4. Community-wide awareness of the environmental benefits of bicycle use

Project Results
I. First progress report (September 12, 2006):
Activities undertaken:
1. Training provided for 50 core youth leaders
2. New Generation for Reversing Global Warming Club created
3. ‘Bicycles to Reverse Global Warming Festival’ held
4. Community radio programme launched

Results of activities:
1. 30 project members planned the ‘Bicycles to reverse Global Warming Festival’; 189 people—on 150 bicycles—participated
2. 74 project members formulated an action plan and methodology for data collection
3. Increasing percentage of the population showed interest in project activities, and participating in the campaign

II. Mid-course evaluation workshop (February 20-22, 2007):
After a brief presentation by the National Coordinator (NC) reiterating the objectives of the GEF SGP, representatives from each project spent 30 minutes explaining project background, activities undertaken, immediate results and challenges. The National Coordinator encouraged candid discussion of problems and problem-solving strategies, and each presentation was followed by a question-and-answer session.

Project representatives also spent an afternoon interacting with community members from THA-05-14 (Local Scenes for Environment Protection). Workshop attendants learned about the old ways of life in the central area and how local ecologies had been altered. The final day was allotted to the two remaining project presentations, the National Steering Committee's observations and suggestions, and the National Coordinator's reminder of next steps.

Progress-related observations at Workshop:
--Of 14 projects, 12 were on time regarding activities and submission of reports. All were capable of articulating details of their activities and immediate results, which were deemed promising.
--Several projects secured financial support from other stakeholders.
--Leaders from at least four projects demonstrated increased capacity, both technically and institutionally. (National Steering Committee members expressed special satisfaction with this.)
--Eleven projects used Power Point and audio-visual equipment; the remaining three presented sets of photos.

III. Second progress report (March 7, 2007):
Activities undertaken:
1. Continued training for 50 core youth leaders
2. Training camp held for members of the New Generation Club to Reverse Global Warming
3. Centre for Bicycle Service Against Global Warming established

Results of activities:
1. 20 leaders show increased capacity as a result of role in planning activities of youth groups
2. 136 project members show increased capacity as a result of participation in organized events, and role in disseminating project information to communities outside target area
3. Centre served 20 bicycles, and had another 20 donated from the community

IV. Interim report (September 18, 2007):
The report highlighted two events:
(1) Cycling Against Global Warming Campaign
(2) Mobile Forums for Training Brothers and Sisters To Cycle

Cycling Against Global Warming Campaign: This secondary campaign encompassed 221 participants from the New Generation of Wang Noi (Tha Nang Naew School), the Phu Tham Phu Kratae Forest Conservation Group, and youths from Wang Noi District. These participants shared knowledge, built networks, performed bicycle repair services, and engaged in a rally for environment.

Mobile Forums for Training Brothers and Sisters To Cycle: The Mobile Forums took place in six villages, and reached 270 people, 60% of which were children. The four major activities were: reforestation of marginal area and temple grounds, environmental education, demonstration of bicycle maintenance, and bicycle service for those attending. As a result of these forums, friendships were forged, over 1,000 trees were planted on temple grounds, and old bicycles were made usable again.

V. Monitoring visit from NC and two NSC members (April 10, 2008):
On April 10th, the National Coordinator and two members of the National Steering Committee visited THA-05-21 to assess project results, and interact with the target population and other stakeholders to gauge their satisfaction. The two-year project is nearing completion in several months.

In discussions with project members, the assessment team discovered a number of issues that had reduced project effectiveness. These included:
• After initial campaigning and training, hundreds of students were using bicycles to commute to school. Soon afterwards, rumors about gangs using vans to kidnap children riding bikes prompted commuters to turn to car-pooling (subsidized by the local Tambol Administrative Organization, or TAO).
• A lack of bike lanes along roads connecting villages to schools made cycling dangerous for students.
• A number of parents encouraged their children to use motorbikes, as they are more comfortable and efficient.
Despite these issues, the project youth group and some community elders were using bikes to do errands within the village.

Project leaders were working towards project sustainability by convincing participating schools to establish bicycle service centers, and soliciting institutional and financial support from the TAO for promoting bicycle use.

After these discussions of project issues and action plans, the assessment team cycled 10 km with students and other villagers to plant trees in a local school. As the school is near a previous SGP grantee--THA-98-G20, ‘Rehabilitation & Conservation of Phu Tham & Phu Kratae Forest’--they were also able to verify that the forest has been well rehabilitated in the nine years since project end.

V.The completion report was received on 18 July 2008, with following details:

Date of final participatory Evaluation: 16 July 2008

Number of Beneficiary/ Participating personnel:
Woman: 88
Man: 63
Children: 543

Number of person trained/ attending seminars, joining study tours:
Woman: 10
Man: 50
Children: 120

Expense:
Amount received to-date from SGP: Baht: 930,824.29
Amount received from other :
In cash: National Environmental Fund: Baht: 144,000
Communities: Baht: 162,040
The grantee: Baht: 41,100
Phuan Phu Association: Baht: 4,000
Huay Yang Wai Conservation Group: Baht: 3,280
Total in cash: Baht: 354,420
In kind: Phuan Phu Association: Baht: 120,000
Communities: Bath: 389,800
Waeng Noi District Office: Baht: 1,600
Waeng Noi Hospital/Police Station: Baht: 15,000
Total in kind: Baht: 526,400

Activities Carried out:
1. Building capacity of 50 target project members through seminar, training, study tour and youth camps
2. Establishing the Centre for Bicycle Service Against Global Warming
3. Using bicycle to commute between homes and schools, three days per week by youth groups
4. Training additional youth groups in five villages and one municipality
5. Disseminating project results through community radio, national mother’s day and printed matters on energy conservation

Results:
1. Emergence of a youth group called New Generation Club to reduce energy consumption to reverse global warming, with planned participatory system to include new junior groups and relevant local administrative organization to sustain project activities
2. Evinced increasing numbers of bicycle use, from average 7 persons/day to 13 in two target villages ( Baan Pa Peng and Baan Namsub)
3. 63 bicycles being donated by individuals with estimated value of Baht: 9,450 , increasing bicycle users to 100 persons
4. Estimated avoidance of gasoline use by 3,375 litres during the life of project. This could be translated to an equivalent amount of 7,425 kg. of CO2.

Impact: 1. Local government offices such as public health office, municipality and tambol administrative organization encourage, through
participatory process, community members to use bicycle for short-distance mobility.
2. The management of four primary schools established bicycle repairing centres with a goal to upscale throughout all primary schools in
Waeng Noi District.
3. Tha Nang Naew DJ Club was committed to continue with project dissemination.
4. Project activities were sustained through the support of the Health Promotion Fund of the government.

Experience and lessons learnt:

In campaigning on bicycle use, continuity was of utmost important. Target communities needed to be regularly instigated to ensure sustainability and successful transfer of practice from this generation to next. With able youth groups, the successful transfer was expected. Primary schools should be more targeted than secondary ones to ensure transfer of built capacity thus continuity. In this regard, the project, together with its network, had formulated a bicycle curriculum for primary schools with appreciated number of biking students.