This e-book is the first of the series. Within its overall objective of demonstrating holistic, ecosystem-based management and improved governance of small-scale coastal fisheries, the CFI has learned that co-management schemes that empower local communities – women as well as men - to act as stewards of their own resources can result in the sustainable use of fragile habitats such as mangrove forests in ways that can guarantee thriving livelihoods and conservation at the same time. This e-book describes the methodologies and results achieved by the CFI in Indonesia, Latin America (Ecuador, Peru) and West Africa (Cabo Verde, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal), which can be adapted to local contexts anywhere in the world. It is aimed at national and international policymakers, practitioners and development agencies and is enriched with testimonies from beneficiaries across these geographies.