{"id":24334,"date":"2021-04-07T10:14:32","date_gmt":"2021-04-07T09:14:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/?p=24334"},"modified":"2021-04-07T12:31:16","modified_gmt":"2021-04-07T11:31:16","slug":"giving-back-to-seagrass","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.blueventures.org\/en\/giving-back-to-seagrass\/","title":{"rendered":"Giving back to seagrass"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Rujinun Palahan (Dream), Seagrass Ecosystem Services (SES) Project Lead, Save Andaman Network (SAN)<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

I want everything that we have right now here in Koh Mook to continue for our children, for our families and for generations to come.\u201d \u2013 Kan Yaprang, fisherman and assistant to the village head<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

During one of my regular visits to Koh Mook, a small island in the Andaman Sea off the coast of the Trang province, southern Thailand, Kan Yaprang and I were chatting about why conservation is so important to his community. It has been a hot topic in Koh Mook recently, as earlier this month the community took part in an event led by myself and my colleagues at <\/span>Save Andaman Network (SAN)<\/span><\/a>. Through presentations, games and workshops, we supported the community in learning more about their fisheries \u2013 in particular, seagrass meadows and the often undervalued services they provide to small-scale fishing communities.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Presentations were an important part of the SES events | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div>
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The community members brainstormed their ideas together | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div>
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Large posters and worksheets made it easier to work together | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div>
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Both events were held on sunny days | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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Participants received certificates for taking part | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

At SAN, we work with coastal communities across Trang to develop locally led fisheries management and marine protection, with a focus on upholding the rights of artisanal fishers. We act as a bridge between government, NGOs and communities to establish partnerships that support community-led conservation efforts and affect policy change. As of January 2020, we are now a partner of Blue Ventures through an <\/span>International Climate Initiative<\/span><\/a> (IKI) funded project. This <\/span>Seagrass Ecosystem Services (SES) project<\/span><\/a> is focused on understanding, protecting and restoring seagrass meadows and their valuable services, placing communities central to the development of new locally led research, policy recommendations and community business models that support long-term seagrass and marine conservation.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our interactive seagrass events are an important step in building knowledge and unearthing some of the needs, opportunities and challenges to seagrass conservation from the community perspective. So far, we\u2019ve hosted two \u2013 one in Koh Mook and another in Mod Ta Noi, where both communities have rich seagrass areas and a dependency on small-scale fishing.<\/span><\/p>\n

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A map showing Koh Mook and Mod Ta Noi in the Trang province | Image: SAN<\/p><\/div>\n

Life in the Trang province<\/span><\/h4>\n

Traditionally, most coastal people in Trang are artisanal fishers like Kan Yaprang. Men fish and women work throughout the value chain, in seafood processing or selling at local markets.<\/span><\/p>\n

Like much of Thailand\u2019s coastlines, the area is famed for its natural beauty, with rich turquoise waters decorated with green islands framed by white sand beaches. But unlike more well-established tourist hotspots like Krabi and Phuket, Trang is largely unknown to international visitors, mostly welcoming Thai tourists who enjoy a quieter, more community-focused experience. The communities here are increasingly interested in developing their tourism operations whilst staying true to their regional, community and religious values. Through locally led tourism enterprises, the communities in both Koh Mook and Mod Ta Noi offer boat tours and excursions that support many alternative livelihoods.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In Mod Ta Noi, the community have been investing their tourism earnings in supporting marine conservation efforts and community development, and in Koh Mook, there\u2019s a desire to follow a similar path.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For decades, commercial and illegal fishing has put a strain on the ecosystems that the communities here rely on. In December 2004, the devastating tsunami that thundered across the Indian Ocean compounded this pressure, destroying many of Trang\u2019s marine and coastal environments. This is when our team at SAN began working with communities in the area, supporting them to restore damaged infrastructure and rebuild lost livelihoods. Since then, SAN has also supported them in addressing illegal fishing, as well as raising awareness of dugong protection and mangrove and seagrass conservation.<\/span><\/p>\n

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In Trang, most of the fishers are men | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div>
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Many people in Koh Mook and Mod Ta Noi make their living from the ocean | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div>
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Women are involved throughout the fisheries value chain, processing catches | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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The communities spend much of their free time on the beach | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div>
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Seagrass is a vital part of daily life in Trang | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

Amongst Trang\u2019s artisanal fishing communities, seagrass is an integral part of daily life, \u201cIt is our source of food and livelihoods, and so it gives us our quality of life\u201d, Kan Yaprang told me. The seagrass meadows are where he catches fish, shellfish and shrimp to feed his family and to sell at markets. By earning money from seagrass-related livelihoods, fisher families can share their earnings around without having to invest time in other supplementary livelihoods. In Koh Mook and Mad Ta Noi, where most residents are Muslims, this means having more time to practice their religion and maintain a higher quality of life. Here, seagrass is more than just food and jobs \u2013 it enables the community to uphold its cultural identity.<\/span><\/p>\n

Learning through play<\/span><\/h4>\n

From seafood processors and boat captains to school students and representatives from holiday resorts, we welcomed over 60 community members in Koh Mook and Mod Ta Noi to March\u2019s seagrass events. We invited a diverse set of people because whether their livelihoods operate directly in the ocean or not, we believe that all of them are connected to seagrass in some way. It was amazing to see community members listening to each other\u2019s perspectives and recognising that they all share the same goal to protect their environment.<\/span><\/p>\n

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People of all ages took part in the events | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div>
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A community member receiving his certificate | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div>
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For the presentations, we got out of the hot sun | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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This board was part of the relay game, where participants had to match photos to words | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div>
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The school children particularly loved doing seagrass monitoring | Photo: SAN<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

In both villages, the events were action-packed \u2013 we led training presentations, held workshops and in Koh Mook, we supported community members to participate in seagrass monitoring. The school students particularly enjoyed getting out of the classroom and into the ocean; it was inspiring to see how quickly they were able to learn just by being amongst the habitat rather than reading from a textbook.<\/span><\/p>\n

With such a diverse attendance, we had to think carefully about how to make the sessions engaging and memorable. Learning through play became central to everything we did; we ended every presentation or workshop with a quick quiz or game so that the participants could win little prizes. One particular highlight was a relay race where the participants had to match words to images of different marine species that live in seagrass meadows. Everyone really let loose, running across the grass in the sunshine and laughing with one another. I loved seeing the positive energy of the communities, who were so open to learning new things.<\/span><\/p>\n