Category: Velondriake
Velondriake is Madagascar’s first locally managed marine area, established in 2006 by a network of communities located around the village of Andavadoaka on the southwest coast. Our work in the Velondriake area encompasses sustainable fisheries management, sea cucumber and seaweed aquaculture and community health, as part of our integrated approach to marine conservation.
Calling all mothers: Safidy has a new home and maternal & child health programme!
by Dr Clarisse Razanamampionona, Safidy’s Doctor, and Samantha Cockburn, Medical Elective Student. Safidy is part of Blue Ventures’ integrated Population, Health, and Environment (PHE) approach to conservation in the Velondriake area of southwest Madagascar. Safidy, which means “choice” or “freedom...
A day in the life…
by Kirsty Rankin, BV volunteer, Madagascar Waking up to the relentless crash of breaking waves on halfmoon beach, I groan, turn over, but just before I close my eyes to the temptation of continued slumber I catch the dim glow...
Welcome to the Velondriake JRC / FTM2V
by HERINDRAIBE, Junior Reporters Club, Madagascar Ny FTM2V dia fikambanana hoan’ny Tanora Mpikaroka sy Mpampita Vaovao ato amin’ny faritra Velondriake sy manodidina azy. Ny fomba fiasan’ny FTM2V dia miara-miasa amin’ny projets misy ato amin’ny Blue Ventures sy ny fokon’olona eto an-toerana,...
Farming seaweed without harming the forest…
By Antoine Rougier, Aquaculture Project Coordinator, Madagascar The link between seaweed farming and the forests of Madagascar might not appear obvious at first, but when examined a bit more closely, it starts to make much more sense. Seaweed farming is...
Sea cucumbers paving the way to education
by Fran Humber, Conservation Programmes Manager, London Working from the London office of Blue Ventures, it can be easy to forget, underneath the piles of emails and reports, how the projects our colleagues in the field work hard on actually...
Sign me up for Saturday school!
by Merike Bruen, Education Programme Volunteer, Madagascar As I approached the bright yellow school house that sunny Saturday morning, the shrieks of excited children were already audible. Smiling kids proudly sporting their crisp, new, white UNICEF t-shirts raced to the...
Addressing gender differences in natural resource management
by Kame Westerman, Velondriake MPA Project Coordinator, Madagascar Octopus is the most commercially valuable species within the Velondriake LMMA (locally managed marine area), bringing in a substantial portion of household income. Traditionally, women harvest octopus most frequently, venturing out on shallow...
Velondriake’s first permanent mangrove reserve officially closed
by Kame Westerman, Velondriake MPA Project Coordinator, Madagascar The Bay of Assassins, in the southern area of the Velondriake LMMA, is home to vast tracts of mangrove forest. These forests provide local communities with building materials and daily food supplies...
Climate change adaption in southern Madagascar
by Paubert Mahatante, Roger Samba and J. Paul Getty Scholar, Toliara, Madagascar (introduced & adapted by Jo Hudson, BV Science Intern, UK) In this blog entry Paubert Mahatante, Roger Samba and J. Paul Getty Scholar discusses proposed research in the south of Madagascar, to study...
Bobbing along on the bottom of the beautiful briny sea….
by Caroline De Willebois, Blue Ventures volunteer, Madagascar Descending into the cool turquoise water below, I am overcome with that well-known sense of utter peace that accompanies the stillness and weightlessness of being underwater. After a few days of not...
Setting sail: a brief look at migration in southwest Madagascar
By Kame Westerman, Velondriake LMMA Coordinator, Madagascar Human migration can be influenced by a number of factors – political, social, economic, physical, and even cultural. In southwest Madagascar, where Blue Ventures works, migration is an important factor to consider when...
Great expectations: some thoughts from some of our volunteers
by Cara MacDonald, Blue Ventures volunteer, Madagascar The two weeks I have been volunteering in Andavadoaka have flown by and we have managed to do so much already! In our first couple of days we traveled via pirogue to Lamboara....
2012: the year of the sea cucumber
by Antoine Rougier, Aquaculture Project Coordinator, Madagascar With a growing cycle of 8 to 12 months, Holothuria scabra or sea cucumber farming requires of those involved willingness and much patience until they can finally reap the fruits of their labour....
Having fun at the Club Aloalo Environmental Festival
by Jeremy Pivor, Blue Ventures volunteer, Madagascar Last Saturday (4th Feb) I had the fortunate opportunity to go to a festival put on by kids from Club Aloalo. For those that don’t know, Club Aloalo is an environmental youth club...
Weathering the storm
by Kame Westerman, Velondriake MPA Project Coordinator, Madagascar Although located hundreds of miles away in the Mozambique Channel, villages within the Velondriake Locally Managed Marine Area (LMMA) felt the effects of cyclone Funso’s outer edges last week. A recent report estimated...