PROGRAM AREAS - Conservation of the Mesoamerican ReefOverview | 6 Year Objectives | 12 Year Objectives | Healthy Reefs Healthy Reefs for Healthy People is the slogan that embodies the Healthy Mesoamerican Reef Initiative, a multi-institutional effort designed to track the health and integrity of the Mesoamerican Reef system, the human choices that shape it, and progress in ensuring its long-term sustainability. The genesis of this Initiative goes back to Summit Board reflections in 2003 about what a healthy reef looks like under modern-day conditions, and how can we tell whether the overall health of a reef is faring ‘better’ or ‘worse’ over time. The apparent lack of answers to Summit’s seminal questions prompted the Foundation to recruit two marine biologists familiar with the region, Melanie McField of WWF and Patricia Kramer of Perigee Environmental, to spearhead this quest. While there were ongoing efforts to collect monitoring data on the Mesoamerican Reef, the region had been missing a ‘common currency’ of yardsticks and threshold values to assess changes in structure, function and governance of the Reef over time, as well as the impact of such changes on the local people and economy. In early 2004, we invited two other key players in the region to join in: the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System (MBRS) Project of the Central American Commission on Environment and Development, and The World Bank. Newer partners include The Nature Conservancy, Environmental Defense, and the Smithsonian Institution. McField and Kramer are near completion of a handbook of indicators of ecological health and socio-economic wellbeing for the Mesoamerican Reef. The handbook, with important contributions from World Bank consultants and staff, and others, features 58 key indicators of ecological and social wellbeing. It provides threshold values for indicators, where available. The handbook serves as an important data interpretation tool for field practitioners to make strategic management decisions. It will be available in English in the spring of 2007 (both in print and in PDF format). A Spanish translation will be available in the fall of 2007. For regular updates and more information on the Healthy Reefs for Healthy People Initiative, including how to become involved, visit their web site at www.healthyreefs.org.
Overview | 6 Year Objectives | 12 Year Objectives | Healthy Reefs Global Population and Youth Leadership >> |
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