40to be rapidly diminishing. Some of
the damage may stem from natural
phenomena such as typhoons and even
tsunamis. In recent times, increasing
seawater temperatures, as a result of
global warming, has been wreaking
the most havoc on reef ecosystems.
Coral bleaching has been occurring
more frequently, and some reefs may
never recover. Mitigating these impacts
requires broad-scale countermeasures,
such as coral propagation programmes.
To accomplish coral reef restoration
on a scale of the extent required, we
need to have simple, but effective
programmes that allow for public
participation. To get the communityinvolved as a whole, such a
programme has to cater to the
needs of local people: It has to be
cost-effectively run by individuals or
organisations and not drain resources
from much-needed funds.
Our studies of the past failures
of many conservation agencies have
revealed a pattern of there being too
many funds allocated to administrative
issues rather than to the cause
itself. So when a regional plan for
coral restoration was put in motion,
we designed a new and effective
strategy that would sustain reasonably
long-term benefits by taking into
account the project goals as wellas the communities and the coral
propagation trainers involved.
The best solution for this immense
project was to create a new kind of
trade – a conservation-oriented trade
that helps restore the environment but
also opens up revenue streams to local
people. There are two approaches
that can run simultaneously within
the regional programme. The first is
the creation of a lucrative trade for the
locals to improve the environment.
The second is to make destructive
practices a dying trade by cutting their
source of recruitment and offering
people conservative solutions with
better income.To accomplish coral reef restoration on a scale of the
extent required, we need to have simple, but effective
programmes that allow for public participation.PHOTO REINHARD DIRSCHERL/CORBIS