Working and impacting local communities as establishing the start of a conservation initiative: American Society of Primatology conservation committee webinar

Nonhuman primate species currently face human‐induced pressures and will continue to face them in the modern landscape. These pressures require conservation projects in primate habitat countries to aid in protection, preservation, and conservation. Though there are several examples of primate conservation projects, starting up an initiative can be a daunting task. The American Society of Primatology (ASP) Conservation Committee hosted a video webinar presenting on the first steps of developing, running and continuing a primate conservation program. Dr. Christopher Shaffer, Rahayu Oktaviani, and Dr. Jill Pruetz presented their early program experiences establishing wild primate conservation projects to educate primatologists around the world. The running themes of the presentations included establishing community, working locally, impacting locally and preparing for the future.

Current methods for enacting primate conservation initiatives require scientists to address major threats through understanding the causes and drivers of such conservation concerns (Ceballos et al., 2019;Kling & Wright, 2018).Previous primate conservation studies relied on heavy data sets with large sample sizes and detailed information about the primate species in question to determine the best conservation action.Current populations are often in crisis when they are discovered in the literature, not providing enough time for the original conservation template.A shift in the timeline and methods of conservation must occur to help primates in the current conservation crisis (Bicca-Marques, 2017;Estrada et al., 2017).
Many projects around the world work either in situ in primate home ranges or indirectly through international funding support with wild primates, monitoring projects, wildlife protective authorities and local persons to combat negative impacts of human actions.Some programs work to increase education, provide corridor connections, reforest areas, physically protect primates, and provide alternative economic opportunities for the local people.Understanding the complex connection between conservation and local people is an important step in primatology.
While conservation is a term often used in literature, presentations and conversations, the definition of conservation is more complex than normally considered.Traditional conservation efforts were often based in fortress conservation where persons are removed from the landscape and restricted from using the natural landscape set aside for wildlife-only use (Rutherford, 2011).This conservation method often relocates local people and restricts the use of resources.A shift began in primatology with the inclusion of ethnoprimatology in methods as it is important to acknowledge the interactions between people and primates in conservation measures (Riley, 2019).
Primatology was traditionally developed as a form of parachute conservation science, with Western scientists descending into remote locations to learn about primate species and behaviors unknown to the literature.Particularly at this time of decolonialization, including more voices from habitat-range countries in conversations, scientific research and publications is important (Riley, 2019).
Providing local people with the power, tools and support for the conservation of their own primate species is essential.While the conservation of primates and other wildlife is a major focus of primate conservation, the preservation of indigenous land is also a component of conservation methods.Applying local knowledge and culture to conservation practices in the cultural systems of these indigenous communities can provide a better, holistic opportunity for primate conservation (Dahlquist et al., 2007).If indigenous people ask for assistance, scientists should be able and willing to provide evidence on primate populations and methods.
While conservation of primates and other wildlife is a major focus of primate conservation, the preservation of indigenous land is also a component in conservation methods.The current Amazon tropical forest ecosystem is in large part protected by areas dedicated to the preservation of local cultures, providing an example of how ethnoprimatology (Fuentes et al., 2016;Lee, 2010) can benefit both cultural and wildlife aspects.People who have lived alongside primates for millennia have different relationships with land and species than international researchers and should be considered, engaged with and a component of primate conservation aims (Chapman & Peres, 2001;Estrada et al., 2020).
Although there are many running conservation projects for primate species around the world, the blurry, complicated and difficult early steps of establishing a functioning and thriving conservation project are puzzles for the next era of emerging primatologists.This workshop provided perspective from several researchers as to important considerations in the initial steps of a conservation project.

| CONSERVATION INITIATIVE BEGINNINGS WORKSHOP
The American Society of Primatologists (ASP) is an association of primate researchers, caretakers, curators, veterinarians and students from North, Central, and South America established to collectively learn, share, develop and complete research on nonhuman primates.
As a subsection of the ASP executive board, the conservation committee is a voluntary group of members participating in raising support, providing financial support, and leading discussions on current issues.One broad goal of the society and the conservation committee is to provide outreach and training to the membership.
Online webinars enable people from around the world to present, learn, or discuss conservation issues, projects and data.In November

| CONSERVATION INITIATIVE BEGINNINGS
During the webinar presentations, several broad themes appeared in the dialogue and mindsets of the speakers.These themes include establishing a community through local work and impacts and working for the future from the start of conservation projects.
Knowledge of these topics was shared and discussed in relation to the presenters' projects.

| ESTABLISHING COMMUNITY
A common theme found among the three speakers is the crucial start of establishing a community by working and establishing local teams.When beginning a conservation project, it is crucial to respect cultural norms and listeners.Establishing a community for conservation work depends on developing relationships among trust, mutual respect and communication.It is important at all stages of conservation initiatives to remember that "Conservation is more about people than primates" (Shaffer).This was highlighted in the discussions on working and impacting local communities.

| Working locally
One of the messages throughout the webinar was that a strong conservation project works alongside the locals, engaging them from the beginning in creating, presenting, and sharing science at all stages.Gaining permission to conduct primate research from locals is the first step.Not only are university and international permissions needed to participate in research, but the support and permission of local leaders and partners is also required (Pruetz).Respecting the relationships and connections that local people have with primates and land is crucial for reducing parachute conservation methods.This begins to break down parachute conservation and acknowledges that the local people have been living alongside primates for millennia and will continue to live in primate home ranges.
Once permission is gained, collaboration with locals is crucial for success, as both primates and local people share resources.It is vital to spend time with primates, but it is more important to spend time with the local community of humans around them (Oktaviani).This support can also benefit the relationship between the research and the community.If a project can provide education and healthcare to the local population, the relationship between research and locals will be strengthened (Pruetz).

| APPLICATIONS FOR THE FUTURE OF CONSERVATION
The unknown steps, "black box" of startup for a primate conservation project or organization has little to do with primates and instead has a strong reliance on strong relationships with local people.This webinar provided a small glimpse into what those first steps look like, how they can be taken and future project movements.The goal of this webinar was to provide listeners with an opportunity to hear from and have an interface with conservation project leaders.The hope is a line of shared information, or an answered question can spark the next primate conservation project.Individuals wishing to protect primate species in their local habitats through conservation projects can use the application of information from this webinar to establish, develop and run the beginning stages of conservation initiatives.
2022, the ASP Conservation Committee hosted the webinar "Conservation Initiative Beginnings."This webinar had three presenters share the very beginning of their conservation projects, how to maintain these projects and future plans.The three presenters were Dr. Christopher Shaffer, Rahayu Oktaviani and Dr. Jill Pruetz.I. Dr. Christopher Shaffer established and works with the Konashen Ecosystem Health Project in Gyana, South America.They work closely with the indigenous Waiwai people in the comanagement of natural resource use and ecosystem health.Indigenous people in South America protect more than 50% of the conservation land.After being asked to conduct a primate survey of the indigenous population, Dr. Shaffer decided to develop a project focusing on the resource use of people via GIS, transects and ethnography methods.II.Rahayu Oktaviani founded and runs the Yayasan Konservasi Ekosistem Alam Nusantara (KIARA) in West Java, Indonesia.KIARA aims to integrate human dimensions into conservation practices and bridging knowledge gaps.The project primarily focuses on gibbon conservation, as only 10% of the original standing forest remains.Oktaviani and their project focused on locally run research teams that presented data and findings both internationally and locally.III.Dr. Jill Pruetz founded the Fongoli Savanna Chimpanzee Project in Senegal in 2000 to begin research and conservation efforts on the region with a high density of chimpanzees.Dr. Pruetz works to connect people and chimpanzees' well-being and resources as "…chimps in this area have lived alongside humans for millennia…" (Pruetz).The webinar was hosted on the Texas State University Zoom server for attendees around the world to discuss the beginning of conservation projects.The three presenters gave a brief presentation on the start of their conservation initiative work.The topics covered included determining conservation needs, establishing a community, working locally, impacting locally, and working for the future.
Spending time with locals should be beyond gaining permission and social scenarios and instead include sharing information with locals and making them a part of the conservation, research, and project (Oktaviani).When interested students are present, the project should support local students' engagement and education with primates, research, and conservation.A field team is the backbone of a conservation project that requires support from the local culture.Leadership within the local field team is crucial.Two-way trust among local teams, collaborators and people starting projects should be protected.Sharing the research findings at all stages is important.It is crucial to train local conservation workers in field data collection, data analysis, and manuscript development (Oktaviani).It is crucial for a conservation project to give locals a voice and research by sharing information and intertwining scientific data with local tales.Data should be presented in jargon-free versions to a wider audience.Collaborations with local teams need to be based on active communication, sharing data, and respect, in part, by including all participants in papers, presentations and providing authorship (Oktaviani).The project should have a team of locals with visiting-only international researchers (Pruetz).This team is based in the local community with data collection and analysis sharing to connect local persons to science happening locally and to reduce barriers.It is also important to find and support a local champion for the project, primates and local regions (Oktaviani).A local champion not only connects an outside researcher to the local community but also engages the community in conservation science and establishes a conservation project in the local area.

4. 2
| Impacting locallyWhile a project can work in primate habitats, the people engaged in the conservation project should also focus on impacting the locals.Beyond working with the local people, a project should look to impact the local population by supporting education, aiding in healthcare, developing or supporting infrastructure or providing other needed support to the local community.When establishing a conservation project, the needs of people and primates must be balanced in terms of research, conservation education, and community support (Oktaviani).The conservation project should not only support the primates but also the local people living alongside them.
figure with each step playing a crucial role in driving the success of the conservation initiative (Figure1).