MANILA, PHILIPPINES—Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA) is working on two initiatives that aim to support ongoing efforts to rehabilitate Manila Bay. The projects are focused on pollution reduction and solid waste management (SWM) in the province of Cavite, where the Imus River is an important tributary of Manila Bay.

 

 

PEMSEA welcomes Ms. Karen See to the PEMSEA Resource Foundation (PRF), where she will serve as the PRF Secretariat Coordinator effective 26 October 2020.

 

A national forum to conclude the implementation of the GEF/UNDP/PEMSEA Scaling Up SDS-SEA Project was held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on 2 September. The implementation of the project was initiated in 2015 through the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement between and among the coastal Provincial Governments of Kampot, Kep, Koh Kong, and Preah Sihanouk, the Ministry of Environment, and the PEMSEA Resource Facility.

 

Biofouling, the attachment of living organisms to artificial surfaces, is a seemingly innocuous process that nonetheless threatens the health of the world’s oceans. The organisms can travel attached to shipping hulls and other equipment, thus entering new environments around the world as invasive species.

 

These invasive species can wreak havoc in the areas of environmental health, ecosystem services, fishing and aquaculture. Biofouling can also damage the equipment it accumulates on, reducing the efficiency of shipping and contributing to climate change.

 

Guimaras Province (located southeast of Panay Island and northwest of Negros Island) has developed the Guimaras Coastal Strategy 2020 as part of its long-term vision of becoming the agri-ecotourism capital of the Western Visayas in the Philippines. Adopted via Resolution No. 160, the Guimaras Coastal Strategy builds on the province’s adoption of Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) as a key approach towards achieving sustainable development of its coastal and marine areas and resources.

 

The National Forum on Scaling Up the Implementation of the Sustainable Development Strategy for the Seas of East Asia (SDS-SEA) and Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) in Thailand was conducted in Chonburi, Thailand, from 24-25 August 2020. The forum also served to conclude the GEF/UNDP/PEMSEA Project on Scaling Up the Implementation of the SDS-SEA in Thailand and discuss opportunities for sustainability and scaling up of project results and good practices.

 

 

MANILA, PHILIPPINES - The PEMSEA Network of Learning Centers (PNLC) recently held a virtual meeting to discuss its accomplishments over the last five years and ways to evolve and strengthen the PNLC as a regional learning network in light of the global pandemic and emerging opportunities. The meeting also aimed to solicit inputs on the draft PNLC Charter that will formalize the institution and sustain and build on its operations.

 

PEMSEA is pleased to announce a youth photo and video competition, supported by the RO Korea Ministry of Fisheries. Both competitions run into next year, with the photo competition finishing first with a deadline of 1 March 2021. More details can be found at https://www.pemsea.org/content/eas-futures-youth-and-ocean.

 

 

Acknowledging the contribution of local governments in the sustainable development of the Seas of East Asia through their Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) programs, PEMSEA recently announced the re-certification and advancement to the next level of certification to selected ICM sites in the region. PEMSEA’s ICM System Certification is designed to review and assess the local governments’ implementation of the ICM system and to recognize their continuous improvement and/or exceptionally good performance.