Integrating science-based and local ecological knowledge: a case study of mangrove restoration and rehabilitation projects in the Philippines

Mangrove forest is an ecosystem-based solution for disaster risk reduction in the Philippines, but its historical deforestation has hampered its capacity to protect coastal communities. With the increasing occurrence of storm surge in the Philippines, mangrove reforestation projects have received renewed attention, but many have failed. Community participation was deemed to be essential in those projects that did well. Hence, this paper examines successful mangrove restoration and rehabilitation projects in the Philippines to find out how community participation contributed to the accomplishments. The study found that while the transfer of science-based ecological knowledge from project managers to the community is an important factor in ensuring successful initial planning and implementation, its integration into existing local ecological knowledge—‘localisation’ of science-based ecological knowledge or hybrid ecological knowledge formation—helped to facilitate long-term community-based mangrove management beyond project duration by empowering community members and enabling project acceptance and ownership. Still, continuous local institutional support is a necessary anchor for community resilience.