Main Activities:

Interconnected coastal systems composed of coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass beds, beaches, estuaries and the watersheds, forests and other upland ecosystems that feed them have historically been the basis for subsistence, security and culture of local people throughout the developing world. Coastal ecosystems also constitute an important renewable resource for a wide range of other development uses, such as settlement, transportation, fisheries, aquaculture, forestry, mining, industry, waste disposal and tourism.

In many cases, coastal ecosystems are subject to a variety of stresses including sedimentation (largely because of deforestation for agriculture, settlement, and road-building), pollution (industrial waste, urban run-off, and sewage disposal), increased harvesting to meet the demands of a growing population, and temperature and sea level variations due to climate change (e.g. El Niño events). Such habitat destruction is a major threat to biodiversity and is one of the leading causes of species extinctions.

The proposed study shall address key issues affecting biodiversity conservation in the light of practical need for natural resource utilization around the Mt. Malindang area which has been declared as priority one in terms of biodiversity conservation efforts in the country and risks associated there from.

The proposed activity shall therefore work around three themes that will directly address the problems of coastal communities: a) Reversing degradation of coastal resources, b) Enhancing livelihoods of coastal people; and c) Capacity building and information/data base management.

To be able to do this the proposed action will have eight specific components directly addressing the three themes indicated above namely:
Project 1: Understanding material transfers from watersheds and reducing ‘downstream’ effects of agriculture and forestry on coastal aquatic ecosystems
Project 2: Addressing non-optimal use of resources through valuation and “environmental payments”
Project 3: Identifying, mapping and strengthening management of critical coastal habitats
Project 4: Understanding the factors determining livelihoods for poor coastal people and facilitate the application of ecosystem approach to fisheries (EAF)
Project 5: Restoring production from capture fisheries
Project 6: Developing technologies for alternative or supplementary livelihoods for coastal people
Project 7: Resource mapping (Biodiversity Information System) for effective resource management and monitoring
Project 8: Capacity Building in Biodiversity Conservation and Natural Resources Management

The project will draw on the expertise and linkages of the members of the consortium to effectively and efficiently attain the objects of the project. To ensure sustainability of the activities and interventions to be made, a Project Steering Committee will be created composed of representatives of the Consortium and the potential beneficiaries as well as other stakeholders in the Mt. Malindang area (LGUs, NGOs, other line agencies like DA, DENR and DOST as well as the academe). This is to ensure ownership of the project efforts from among the stakeholders who could sustain the project’s gains thru their own mandated programs and projects.

A critical component of the project is local capacity building to ensure that the beneficiaries and other stakeholders will have the necessary skills and capabilities to continue biodiversity conservation efforts while at the same time empowering the coastal communities to have access to technical skills and information necessary to identify and sustain alternative livelihood activities in the project area.

All lessons learned and packages of technologies that will be developed will be managed in an information system (knowledge management system) that will ensure the lessons are shared to a much wider audience as possible in addition to providing some key opportunities for applying the same modalities in other areas with similar problems and circumstances.