Great Sea Reef Project

The resulting ecosystem-based management strategy employs conventional conservation and customary management to create 25 marina and coastal resources and two coastal reserves, covering a range of ecosystem types and functions (such as spawning sites, riparian corridors, mangrove forests, beach systems, and reefs) (Macuata Province Learning Site: MACBIO Introductory Field Visit to the Mali District, 2016). The coastal area of Macuata province, comprising of qoliqoli (customary fishing grounds) contains a network of areas of marine protected areas or tabu (no-take zones, seasonal closures) (The Great Sea Reef: Weaving Communities Together for Conservation, 2017). As field surveys are completed there is anecdotal evidence from local people of positive change, including the return of endangered species to protected areas.

Ecosystem-based management for the people of Macuata Province recognize that the protection of the ecosystem is everyone’s responsibility. For fishermen and farmers alike, ecosystem-based management strategies emphasize the connectivity between people and their natural environment, as well as the connectedness of the whole system (The Great Sea Reef: Weaving Communities Together for Conservation, 2017). The great sea reef for example, does not work alone, but is holistically connected to and intwined with the health of all components of the system, including forests, freshwater, and marine environments.