WHILE working on my final paper for my environmental management course, I was pleased to share with my class that the Philippines pioneered a community-based approach to marine protected area management. I spent a whole season with Canadian classmates and a few others, like me, who were overseas. During this time, I represented real-life examples of climate change issues like Typhoon "Paeng" wreaking havoc on Luzon. The module on agroforestry, allowed me to share examples from my little farm where we got yields from cacao trees we planted five years ago between coconut and other native trees. Learning that we had a head start in marine protected areas management gave me a little sense of pride. We're not so bad, and we aren't always climate victims.
As early as 1974, the Philippines set a framework for coral reef management in Sumilon and Apo islands where a "no take zone" was established. This resulted in protecting the coral reef habitats, enhancing biodiversity, and increasing fish yields for traditional fishermen in the community. Not all countries with marine protected areas (MPAs) commit to strict no "take zone" declarations. In the Philippines, we do. And what we lack in monitoring resources, we make up for in community management and involvement.
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