This summary provides resorts, tourism operators, and policy makers with an introduction to marine conservation agreements (MCA) and outlines a process for planning and implementing an MCA in Fiji.
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has just finished a report on the "Contribution of Marine Conservation Agreements to Biodiversity Protection, Fisheries Management and Sustainable Financing in Fiji."The report documents the degree and scale to which Marine Conservation Agreements (MCAs) are being used in coastal waters in Fiji. The study focuses on partnerships involving local communities and the tourism sector.
Indigenous peoples are fighting the COVID-19 pandemic daily, taking strong measures to protect their communities and territories from this virus. In these times, historical exclusions affecting rights to basic services and health infrastructure have become more acute, making indigenous peoples an extremely fragile and vulnerable section of society in this pandemic. In addition, attempts to appropriate traditional lands, territories and resources and open up areas for mining and commercial exploitation continue in certain regions.
The purpose of this Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (BSAP) is to Assist the Marshall Islands to Plan for the Conservation of its biodiversity and for in the sustainable use of its biological resources. This is the first time that such a strategy and action plan has been formulated for the country. It provides an opportunity for the government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands to integrate principles of sustainable resource management and biodiversity conservation into the national development planning processes.
Global biodiversity loss is rapid and ongoing. International efforts are redoubling as the international community realizes the importance of biodiversity in maintaining our life support systems. In 2004 Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity committed to have effectively conserved at least 10% of marine and coastal ecological regions globally by 2010. Micronesian leaders responded to this commitment, and have taken this one step further by committing to effectively conserve 30% of nearshore marine and 20% of terrestrial resources by the year 2020.
Papua New Guinea (PNG), the largest of the Pacific island nations (population 8.9 million), has not been spared from the COVID-19 pandemic. The government declared a State of Emergency in March, closing off international borders and suspending domestic air travel. Schools were closed, non-essential workers requested to stay at home, and travel between provinces limited to cargo, medicine and security personnel.
The pandemic caused by COVID-19 has had far reaching effects across the Pacific, including isolated island nations like the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), population 112,000. The national government closed international borders and state governments imposed a country-wide travel ban, which has been rewarded with no recorded cases of the virus. Knock-on effects have been reported and this survey is intended to gain rapid impressions of these effects from the urban municipalities of Kosrae (popn. 6,600) and the more remote island of Yap (popn.
The pandemic caused by the virus, COVID-19 has had wide-ranging effects on coastal and island communities throughout the South Pacific. Solomon Islands has not recorded any cases of COVID-19 but the virus and the closing of international borders have had a trickle-down effect on all aspects of life, ranging from loss of employment to the closing of schools. Staff from the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources (MFMR) visited nine coastal communities in the Russell Islands to determine the immediate effects of the COVID-19 situation.
The global COVID-19 (or coronavirus) pandemic is having a major impact across the globe and on all segments of the population. The effects on Pacific Island countries and territories have been extremely varied; six have had to manage viral infections while others are so far managing to keep the virus entirely from their shores. The social and economic impacts across different 2 sectors has yet to be quantified.
The goals of the Jaluit Atoll Environmental Resource Management Plan (ERMP) are to provide all stakeholders with a framework to guide environmental resource management initiatives that will assist the community to maintain healthy marine and terrestrial environments for current and future generations. The options set forth in the ERMP are specifically designed to promote and empower all communities to actively participate in the protection of the atoll’s valuable resources, while allowing for sustainable use.