Project Proposal FOR
East Asia and Pacific Environmental Initiative
TITLE: Capacity-Building for Coral Reef Conservation and Management in SE Asia
PRIORITY PROGRAM AREAS:
B. Coastal Resources
Management
B1. Marine Resources Management
B2. Marine Biodiversity Conservation
C. Environmental
Planning and Management
C1. Climate Change
PROPOSING USG AGENCY: US EMBASSY, Bangkok
Contact: Jim Martin, Tel: 662-205-4712 Fax: 662-254-2839,
Email: AmEmbassy Bangkok <martinjc@mozart.inet.co.th>
IMPLEMENTING AGENCY: Reef Check Foundation, Hong Kong
PRINCIPAL PARTNERS: Reef World Foundation, Phuket, and Phuket Marine Biological Center (Thailand Dept of Fisheries)
GEOGRAPHIC COVERAGE: Sub-projects 1 and 2 would be Thailand focused (with an option for replication in Indonesia and Philippines), while Sub-project 3, the training program, would be regional, including Indonesia, Philippines, Cambodia, Vietnam. (We have strong coordination teams in most SE Asian countries therefore replication of Sub-project 2 is not problematic from an implementation standpoint.)
TOTAL PROPOSED COST AND DURATION: $25,000 for Sub-project 1; $50,000 for Sub-project 2, and $100,000 for Sub-project 3 for one year. Note that each sub-project can function as stand-alone project. (For an additional $100,000, Sub-project 2 can be replicated in Indonesia and the Philippines.
GOALS: There are three stand-alone but linked sub-projects in this proposal.
1. Share the Sea: To educate school children (8-12) about the value of coral reefs, threats to their health and solutions to these problems.
2. Reef Check: To train volunteer Thai community leaders in Reef Check methods and to survey the basic health of coral reefs in four regions of Thailand. (Optional replication in Indonesia and Philippines)
3. Training Center: To establish a coral reef monitoring and management training center at Phuket Marine Biological Laboratory to serve the region, including Indonesia and the Philippines.
PROBLEM DEFINITION: The 1997 Reef Check Global Survey was the first to scientifically document that the rate of damage to coral reefs has increased dramatically in recent years, resulting in a global coral reef crisis (Hodgson, 1999). The major impacts are over-fishing, pollution, sedimentation and global climate change. Coral reefs are now known to be one of the most sensitive biological indicators of global climate change (Wilkinson et al., 1999). Governments in the region will never have sufficient funds to pay for the wide-spread networks of teams that are needed to carry out monitoring and management of coral reef resources. The only practical option is to establish dozens of community-based teams in each country. Therefore, volunteer programs are the only viable solution in support of more focused government efforts. Reef Check has made an extremely successful start in this direction and is now the only standardised monitoring program. Reef Check is operating in 50 countries worldwide and thus allows inter-regional and inter-reef comparisons.
Reef Check has developed rapid reef health assessment and monitoring methods. Many of the key indicator organisms used by Reef Check such as humphead wrasse and butterflyfish, are also major targets of the live-fish and aquarium fish trade. Thus Reef Check offers a standardised method of tracking populations of these organisms. To be effective on a national scale, the public needs to be educated about the value of coral reefs, threats to their health and how they can become involved in caring for their own reefs. This needs to begin with children and to include adults.
At present in E Asia, with the exception of Reef Check, coral reef monitoring and management training is being conducted on an ad hoc basis. At this critical time, there is an urgent need for a Coral Reef Monitoring and Management Training Center to be established so that a regular series of trainings can be offered to Thais and others in the region. In addition, it is extremely important now to get as many Reef Check teams trained and in the water as possible, so as to obtain data on as the current status of SE Asia's reef health. Only with these data will it be possible to determine if future management efforts have been successful.
Having operated in Phuket for over three years, Reef Check/Reef World now have an excellent training staff there and a solid partnership with the Phuket Marine Biological Laboratory. The site has already served as a training location for Thais and nationals of other SE Asian countries.
ACTIVITY DESCRIPTION:
1. Share the Sea
The first proposed project will provide marine education for Thai school children with an emphasis on coral reefs and marine conservation. Materials already available from the Reef World program will be used as the basis for the program. In addition, new materials will also be developed following a survey of available educational materials in English and other languages. The courses will be taught at Reef World training centers already established in Phuket, Pattaya and Koh Tao. Additional program locations will be established as more centers are set up.
Share the Sea (STS) is a marine education project which organises in-water activities for children (8-12) to teach them about the reef and their responsibility to preserve it. The project has had a successful pilot phase in Koh Tao in 1999. Koh Tao is a small island in the Gulf of Thailand that relies on dive tourism. This project is run in co-operation with the Koh Tao School and the Koh Tao Reef Project, a local community program. STS hopes to increase knowledge and awareness of the reef and help Thai children develop confidence in the water to enable some of them to choose a career in dive tourism or marine conservation. In addition, the project will provide training for the teachers and community volunteers, to ensure the educational experience will continue after the project is finished. Matching funding is available for this project from other sources.
Expected Outcome:
· Coral reef education training materials available in Thai for school children and teachers
· 400 to 600 Thai school children educated about marine resources and coral reefs
· 40-50 Thai teachers exposed to coral reef education training
2. Reef Check Monitoring and Management
Reef Check is a volunteer program to check the health of coral reefs and to provide management solutions for problems that threaten reef health. In 1999, a network was established within the Thai tourism industry to involve Thai dive and tourism professionals and tourists in Reef Check surveys throughout Thailand. In 2000, we plan to expand this network so that Thai university graduates and other Thai and expatriate community members can join in with Reef Check surveys. Our goal is to actively involve volunteers in dozens of surveys around Thailand in 2000 and to steadily increase this number each year. We will harness publicity events including Dive In for Earth Day and a national Press Conference to encourage participation and increase public awareness about the program. Matching funding is available.
Expected Outcome:
· All Reef Check training and PR materials published in Thai
· 60 new Reef Check trainers trained and 60 new teams formed throughout Thailand
· 50 Reef Check surveys carried out.
· Thai database established and data submitted to global RC database
Note: this project can be replicated in the Philippines and Indonesia for an additional US$100,000. The budget items would be the same, but details of the Philippine and Indonesian partners are given in Annex C.
3. Coral Reef Management and Monitoring Training Center
A Reef Check Training Center will be established in Phuket, to service training needs in South East Asia. With expertise from the PMBC, this Training Center will provide both basic coral reef ecology training as well as Reef Check and GCRMN survey training. Training programs will include courses for government employees, NGO staff and community outreach programs. The Training Center will provide guidance for SE Asian professionals who are seeking to pursue a career in marine conservation.
Through these community based monitoring efforts, the program will catalyse a more focused national discussion on health of reefs and human impacts informed by and led by Phuket's intellectual leadership and prestige. This will create a new climate for management based on monitoring, awareness, and a renewed national dialogue on reef management informed by science and participation and leadership from the bottom to the top. A national decision-makers dialogue will result, based on the results of the annual monitoring. This model national network of monitoring leading to dialogue by public decisions-makers is part of the regional role of Thailand.
Expected Outcome:
· Coral reef monitoring and management training center established in Phuket
· 40 new RC trainers trained in SE Asia and new teams established
PROPOSED ALLOCATION OF BUDGET: (US$)
1. Share the Sea (STS) Budget
Production of STS training materials 5,000
STS trainer salary (1 year part time) 10,000
Transportation/Expenses 8,000
Translation 1,000
Contingency 1,000
Project 1 Total 25,000
2. Reef Check Budget
Translation and publication of Reef Check manual in Thai 5,000
Publication of Thai Reef Check brochure and posters 3,000
Reef Check team leader training workshops (4) 20,000
RC survey costs (boat hire, equipment, fuel) 8,000
Travel for trainers 5,000
Bali 2000 Intl Coral Reef Symposium for 2 Trainers 2,000
Press Conference (preparation of press kits incl. video clips) 2,000
Data management and analysis 2,500
Contingency (5%) 2,500
Project 2 Total 50,000
Note: this budget would be replicated x 2 (an additional $100,000) if Sub-project 2 is replicated in the Philippines and Indonesia.
3. Training Center Budget
Coral reef monitoring and management trainer salary (1 year part time) 15,000
Reef Check International Training Consultant 15,000
Preparation of training classroom 10,000
Airfares and expenses for SE Asian trainees 45,000
Field training costs (boats, equipment rental, gear) 10,000
Contingency (5%) 5,000
Project 3 Total 100,000
Grand total (Projects 1-3) $175,000
Note: budget would be increased by $100,000 if replication of Sub-project 2 is desired in Philippines and Indonesia.
MATCHING FUNDS: The Reef World Foundation will provide US$5,000 in matching funds for Sub-project 1. The Reef Check Foundation will provide a US$20,000 match for Sub-project 2 pending approval of a private foundation grant. Matching funds are also available for Indonesia and the Philippines options.
OVERALL EXPECTED PRODUCTS/OUTCOME:
· Coral reef education training materials available in Thai for school children and teachers
· 400 to 600 Thai school children educated about marine resources and coral reefs
· 40-50 Thai teachers exposed to coral reef education training
· All Reef Check training and PR materials published in Thai
· 60 new Reef Check trainers trained and 60 new teams formed throughout Thailand
· 50 Reef Check surveys carried out.
· Thai database established and data submitted to global RC database
· Coral reef monitoring and management training center established in Phuket
· 40 new RC trainers trained in SE Asia and new teams established
REFERENCES:
Hodgson, G. 1999. A global assessment of human effects on coral reefs. Marine Pollution Bulletin. 38 (5) 345-355.
Wilkinson, C., O. Linden, H. Cesar, G. Hodgson, J. Rubens, and A. E. Stong. 1999. Ecological and socioeconomic impacts of 1998 coral bleaching in the Indian Ocean: an ENSO impact and a warning of future change? Ambio 28:188-196.
ANNEXES:
Annex A. Background on Project Partners
Reef Check Foundation is a registered charity in Hong Kong. The Foundation's sole purpose is to educate the public about coral reef conservation and to implement coral reef monitoring and management. Reef Check comprises one-half of the International Coral Reef Initiative's (ICRI) Monitoring Network and is a partner with the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN). The GCRMN Scientific and Advisory Committee has selected Reef Check methods to serve as GCRMN's community-based methods. Information about the Reef Check Foundation and program can be found at www.ReefCheck.org.
Reef World Foundation was established by Thai Reef Check co-coordinator, Anne Miller, who saw the need to educate non-divers who are unable to participate in Reef Check. She designed a series of training materials for this purpose and markets them through dive outlets with profits going to support educational and Reef Check activities. Phuket is an excellent base for Reef World due to the high economic value do the marine tourism sector and the presence of PMBC.
Phuket Marine Biological Center is the best equipped and maintained coral reef laboratory in Thailand, with the most expertise. Located on the reef in Phuket, it is an excellent location for coral reef training. The University of Miami-trained Director, Dr. Hansa Chansang, is the senior coral reef biologist in Thailand. PMBC has been actively collaborating with Reef Check since 1997, principally by assisting with training and data analysis.
Annex B. Summary Reef Check Findings From SE Asia
The Reef Check global coral reef survey program was successfully implemented during three years (1997-1999). The sample size is over 500 sites in 50 countries. From a global perspective, the Red Sea was in the best overall condition while the Caribbean was worst. No reefs showed high numbers of most high-value indicator organisms, suggesting that few if any reefs have been unaffected by fishing and gathering. Most reefs have been severely overfished with respect to the indicator species. Most of the world’s reefs are not located near cities, therefore sewage and industrial pollution are unlikely to strongly affect most reefs. Overfishing of key fish species, can lead to a physical breakdown of the coral reef system.
Annex C. Indonesia and Philippine Partners
In the Philippines, the contract could be handled through the existing CRMP agreement with Tetratech (Dr. Kitty Courtney). The partners would include the University of the Philippines Marine Science Center (Dr. Ed Gomez), Silliman University, Dumaguete (Dr. Laurie Raymundo), and Mindanao State University. At present, Dr Raymundo is our Reef Check coordinator and there are teams in Palawan, Negros, Cebu, Mindanao and Luzon.
In Indonesia, the contract could be handled through the existing CRMP agreement (Ian Dutton). The overall Reef Check coordinator for Indonesia is Ketut Sarjana Putra (WWF) based in Bali. An existing network of coordinators on the main islands can be used to help identify trainees.