Welcome, Nairobi Convention Member States, partners, and friends, to this issue of the Weekly News Round-up!
Do you have any events, research, or scientific publications on the Western Indian Ocean that you would like to be included in the round-up? Write to [email protected]!
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Young clownfish on coastal reefs dying faster due to exposure to artificial light, study finds
Young clownfish on coastal reefs are dying faster as a result of exposure to artificial light at night, according to new research. A team of scientists studying reefs have found that orangefin anemonefish exposed for long periods to human-generated artificial light were 36% less likely to survive than clownfish living in reefs farther from the coast.
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Launch of the Western Indian Ocean Marine Protected Areas Managers Network
The Nairobi Convention and WIOMSA partnered to launch WIOMPAN on World Oceans Day. This platform is made of MPA managers, community members and scientists where they can collaborate, share cross project knowledge and exchange information, experiences and resources to support management of MPAs in the region.
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In Kenya, a river estuary comes back to life
A new project, supported by UNEP, is aiming to restore the health of the Malindi-Sabaki estuary – a stretch of Kenyan coast where the Sabaki River empties into the Indian Ocean – while creating new economic opportunities for local residents. Over the past year, it has seen conservationists replant more than 10,000 mangroves and persuade dozens of fishers to use legal fishing gear.
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Much of ocean plastic ends up in an unlikely place: back on land
A new research suggests ocean plastic is being transported back onshore and pushed permanently onto land away from the water’s edge, where it often becomes trapped in vegetation. A separate, yet-to-be-published research has found around 90% of marine debris that enters the ocean remains in the “littoral zone” (the area of ocean within 8km of the coast). This new study set out to discover what happens to it.
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Harnessing the Power of Blue Carbon in Mitigating Climate Change
The IAEA joins hands with the leading experts from all over the world to study organically absorbed carbon, known as Blue Carbon, captured and stored especially by coastal ecosystems, such as seagrass meadows, mangrove forests and tidal marshes to understand the natural mechanisms of organic carbon sequestration and catalyse sustainable solutions to the problem of climate change and corresponding ocean degradation.
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Major barriers to financing a sustainable ocean economy
Financing a sustainable global ocean economy may require a Paris Agreement-type effort, according to a new report from an international team of researchers led by the University of British Columbia. The report identifies major barriers to financing such a sustainable ocean economy, that includes all ocean-based industries, like seafood production, shipping and renewable energy, and ecosystem goods and services.
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More ´fairness’ needed in conservation
New research shows what is often assumed to be ‘fair’ in conservation practice may not be considered so by the very people most affected by it—and a new approach is needed if protected areas are to be effective. Read the full paper here.
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Combining perspective from social and natural sciences reveals factors critical for success of marine protected areas
The NC is reviewing the Protocol Concerning Protected Areas and Wild Flora and Fauna in the Eastern African Region adopted in 1985 to incorporate the most recent scientific information, knowledge and assessment on the WIO region.
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Celebrating World Environmental Day and World Oceans Day
If you didn´t read it yet, check with the special Newsletter of the Nairobi Convention about World Environmental Day and World Oceans Day. This special edition shares updates on how countries and stakeholders are working to protect, conserve and manage the Western Indian Ocean region.
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Launch of the DiDEM Program
The launch meetings of the DiDEM program (Dialogue Science-Decision Makers for Integrated Management of Coastal and Marine Environments) took place recently and was an opportunity to bring together all the partners of the program and to present the activities and the partnership context. The first Steering Committee (CoPIL) allowed the funders and the coordination team to review the organization of the program and the schedule of activities for 2021 in more detail.
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Want to learn more about issues critical to ocean protection? Miss any of our recent virtual webinars?
