Iloilo, Philippines — Consistent with the commitment of the Philippine Ports Authority's "Puerto Gwapo Program", the Port of Iloilo with guidance from PEMSEA embarked on the development of a Port Safety, Health and Environmental Management System (PSHEMS).

 

Danang, Viet Nam — PEMSEA will be conducting a Regional Integrated Coastal Management (Level 1) Course on May 10-13, 2011 in Danang, Vietnam. The course aims to provide participants with better understanding of how the ICM framework has become a useful methodology to promote sustainable development of coastal areas. It is intended to strengthen participants' knowledge and skills essential in the implementation of ICM program.

 

Sapangar Bay, Malaysia — PEMSEA in partnership with the German International Cooperation (GIZ) conducted an Initial Status Review (ISR) of Sapangar Bay Container Port (SBCP) from 3-4 March 2011. SBCP is one of the pilot ports identified by Malaysia for the "Sustainable Ports Development in the ASEAN" project and is positioned as the premier trans-shipment hub for the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).

 

Hawaii, United States of America — Representatives of the NOWPAP Regional Coordinating Unit and Marine Environmental Emergency Preparedness and Response Regional Activity Centre joined more than 400 participants from all over the world at the 5th International Marine Debris Conference held on 20-25 March 2011 in Hawaii.

 

Co-organized by US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and UNEP, the meeting produced two important documents: the Honolulu Commitment and Honolulu Strategy for the prevention, reduction and management of marine debris.

 

Pampanga, Philippines — Mayors of Pampanga Province were recently briefed on the efforts being undertaken to scale up integrated coastal management (ICM) in Manila Bay in support of the implementation of the Operational Plan for the Manila Bay Coastal Strategy.

 

Changwon City, RO Korea — The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs (MLTM) of the Republic of Korea, Changwon City Government and PEMSEA signed a Memorandum of Understanding to formalize the hosting and organization of the East Asian Seas (EAS) Congress 2012 on 25 April 2011.

 

Parañaque City, Philippines — A coastal cleanup of the Las Piñas–Parañaque Critical Habitat and Ecotourism Area was conducted by the Direct Selling Association of the Philippines (DSAP), spearheaded by Avon Philippines and supported by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and PEMSEA.

 

Quezon City, Philippines — The PEMSEA Resource Facility welcomes Ms. Ma Mu to the Philippines as part of PEMSEA's Professional Upgrading Program for 2011.

 

Ms. Ma Mu works as a project assistant at the State Oceanic Administration in Beijing, China, where she helps organize meetings and training activities and liaises with local governments and site implementing units, among other tasks.

 

Montreal, Canada — Twenty-one Asian countries are meeting in Xi'an from 9 to 16 May 2011 to develop the way forward in creating and implementing the national strategies needed to save biodiversity, and to ensure that these form part of the ten-year global effort towards building a sustainable future.

Laguna, Philippines — Dr. Ahmed Djoghlaf, United Nations (UN) Assistant Secretary General and Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will visit the Philippines from May 28 to June 1 to launch the UN Decade on Biodiversity for Southeast Asia and grace the awarding ceremonies of the first ASEAN Champions of Biodiversity Awards.