An Overview Of Our Solution
Opportunity Born from Crisis
Who is this solution impacting?
Ecosystem
Océanos/Costas
Community Type
Rural
Additional Information
- Population Impacted:
- Continent: América del norte
Problem
Describe the problem
In Eleuthera, The Bahamas, coastal ecosystems and the fisheries they support are facing increasing pressure from a growing human population in an economic downturn. The Cape Eleuthera Institute’s (CEI) holistic solution to this problem combines research, education and community outreach activities. CEI is assembling scientists from around the globe to address conservation issues important to Eleuthera. CEI then disseminates this knowledge using an integrated approach to learning that assimilates primary research into curricula catering to both local schools and foreign universities. CEI completes the process by exporting research findings to the community via local outreach projects, collaborating with citizens in a two-way dialog to address our shared coastal conservation issues.
Biodiversity Impact
CEI embraces Muir’s adage that “when one tugs at a single thing in nature, she finds it attached to the rest of the worldâ€. Sustainable fisheries result from naturally reproducing, robust fish populations living in healthy habitats and an informed public using exploitation rates low enough to sustain recruitment rates. To help create this, CEI’s research provides the basic biological information needed to define healthy fish populations and habitats. For example, the Flats Ecology Program has defined the ontogenetic corridor for bonefish in south Eleuthera, i.e., the network of key habitats that are needed for bonefish reproduction, along with each of their life history stages. Through education and outreach, CEI has reduced the amount of illegal harvest of adult bonefish and is convincing recreational anglers and guides to use modern catch-and-release techniques. CEI promotes ecosystem health by using research to illustrate the intrinsic value of ecosystem services to local communities. For example, studies documenting the role that mangroves and tidal creeks play in serving as nurseries for commercial fish species (grouper, conch, lobster) as well as for species that support recreational diving (sharks, rays, reef fish) and angling (bonefish, tarpon, permit) provide the data needed to drive mangrove conservation. By creating a climate where researchers exchange ideas and experiences with local fishermen and community leaders, CEI is helping to promote a culture of conservation. By including students of all ages in this process, the community grows up in such a culture.
Solution
Biotic communities found in the habitats of the coastal ecosystem of south Eleuthera contain a mix of different species, yet the biodiversity inherent in these communities is at risk from a common set of threats including overexploitation, pollution, habitat alteration and invasive species. CEI is generating locally relevant data for each of these threats, educating the public about the impacts of these threats and working jointly with community members to address them. For example, by documenting the importance of mangroves and patch reefs as transitional zones that support critical life stages of many species, CEI is driving a number of conservation initiatives, including important discussions around establishing an MPA in the region. Furthermore, by monitoring human nutrient output, as well as the ability of mangroves to sequester those nutrients, CEI is demonstrating to local communities how important those coastal habitats are for mitigating our own speciesƒ?? impacts. Scientific findings will not by themselves change our conservation practices. Taking relevant data into the community and explaining to local leaders how they can pave the way for real change, however, can help realize those needed changes. Everyone in south Eleuthera is aware of the explosion of the non-native lionfish. Through a successful CEI outreach campaign, people are now also acutely aware that this predator is depleting native fish populations at an alarming rate. People across south Eleuthera have now overcome their fear of this fish to become active in removing as many as possible. // Our research study sites, along with most of our direct outreach and education efforts lie within an area of south Eleuthera that is 18,130 hectares. The aim, however, is that the work we do at CEI will aid in coastal management throughout Eleuthera, an area of 51,200 hectares.
Replicability
How many years has your solution been applied? 2 years // Have others reproduced your solution elsewhere? No // Considering that our solution employs a holistic, multifaceted approach combining research, education and outreach components, its management requires strategies that facilitate linkages across these components. One important way that CEI accomplishes that challenge is by organizing its research efforts into seven different major programmatic themes: • Flats Ecology and Conservation • Shark Research and Conservation • Reef Ecology and Conservation • Lionfish Ecology • Sustainable Aquaculture • Sustainable Permaculture • Sustainable Energy Systems Organizing research under these programmatic themes allows for more effective sharing of knowledge and resources, which in turn leads to more innovative conservation approaches. For example, in an effort to create common biological and physical data sets, the flats, reef, lionfish and aquaculture programs coordinate data collection efforts. Collaboration among research programs, facilitated by program-specific managers, allows CEI to address environmental and socioeconomic issues in a broader, more integrated way. CEI staff is also supported by an Advisory Committee that has six subcommittees: • Organizational Structure • Research • Education • Outreach • Recruiting and Marketing • Facilities In this way, external advisers can work with CEI staff to help plan and initiate initiatives, as well as providing a different set of perspectives based on their wealth of experiences.
Human Well Being and Livelihood Impact
Over 10,000 people live on Eleuthera, with the majority located in the southern half. To enhance wellbeing, the source of one’s livelihood must be improved, and in Eleuthera, a person’s livelihood involves marine resources. As a result, efforts to provide strategies for conserving those resources are critical to the long-term security of the Eleutheran way of life. Unfortunately, in this arena, the behaviors of an uninformed public can be at the root of the crisis. Although CEI’s research provides the data to build the argument for conservation, its education and outreach activities at the community level are what actually builds the communication bridge toward change. Connecting directly with stakeholders is just one avenue CEI takes in its outreach initiatives. Believing students to be the future leaders of The Bahamas, CEI actively engages them in the conservation process. Partnering with local schools, such as Deep Creek Middle School, CEI engages students in marine conservation activities, promoting academic growth and responsible citizenship in Eleuthera’s youth. Continuing this leadership trend, in partnership with the Bahamas Reef Environment Educational Foundation, CEI administers The Bahamas Environmental Stewardship Scholars Program , a year-long academic and work experience, exposing graduating high school students to ongoing conservation issues of primary importance to The Bahamas. This multifaceted approach is aimed at developing the culture of conservation needed to sustain a cache of dwindling natural resources upon which an entire way of life is built. // The holistic approach of CEI’s solution, combining research, education and outreach components, allows community interaction on many levels. Not only does each program work with targeted groups of community members involved in program-relevant issues, but they also work together to facilitate community wide activity on broader issues. In addition, this partnership between CEI and local stakeholders helps to deliver cogent messages to the Bahamian government, and the thematic organizational approach allows CEI to attract partnerships with outside scientists, universities, governmental agencies and NGOs. Building a dialog between CEI and the local communities on Eleuthera builds mutual trust. Stemming from our invaluable connections with the students of Eleuthera, protection of marine resources is not only transferred from scientist to the community, but also trickles down through communities and across generations. Rooted in the confluence of research, education and outreach, CEI promotes a bottom-up approach to managing local fisheries, rather than conventional top-down paradigms. By instilling an understanding of, and appreciation for the marine world, communities on Eleuthera are beginning to take ownership of habitats that house valuable resources upon which the Eleutheran way of life depends. Although encouraging this type of self-governance in low-income communities is often a difficult task, we believe that by sharing information grounded in sound scientific research, communities will become invested and empowered to protect and conserve their marine resources.