Commitments
By early 2008, the Global Island Partnership had assisted participant countries and organisations in conceiving, launching or strengthening more than 12 major commitments. Following are examples of island commitments and initiatives that are utilising GLISPA to advance their collaboration, planning and implementation.
Western Indian Ocean Partnership
The Western Indian Ocean Partnership (WIOP) is an initiative that aims to promote national and regional commitments and actions at the highest levels to safeguard the resilience of the region’s ecosystems so these can continue to provide benefits for sustainable livelihoods, address needs related to the impacts of climate change – particularly adaptation - and secure human well-being and security in the region. Led by the region’s Governments, and supported by local, regional and international organizations, multilateral agencies and others, WIOP partners can work together to align and leverage multiple agendas and ongoing and future initiatives in the region. Within this context, the WIOP should avoid duplicating efforts and build and rely on existing international and regional institutions, platforms, frameworks and projects to galvanize regional and international community support.
The Western Indian Ocean was the subject of a side event held during CBD COP 10, 20 Oct 2010,
The Western Indian Ocean : Resilient Ecosystems for Sustainable Livelihoods, Adaptation, and Human Security, featuring presentations from:
Rémi Ratsimbazafy, WWF Fabiana Issler, UNDP
A webcast of this side event can be found
here.
Also during CBD COP 10, a
planning meeting for the WIOP was held on 23 October, when the following documents/presentations were introduced:
Western Indian Ocean Partnership Proposal
Western Indian Ocean: What's Already Happening, an outline of existing processes and frameworks
Other Documents
Towards an Ecosystem-Based Management Programme for the Western Indian Ocean Region, Western Indian Ocean Stocktaking Meeting, 29 March 2010, Nairobi, Kenya
Proposal for the Western Indian Ocean Challenge, presented during the UNFCCC Bonn Climate Change Talks, 8 June 2009
Micronesia Challenge
Led by President Remengesau of Palau, five Micronesian governments — the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the U.S. Territory of Guam, and the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands — came together in a joint commitment to effectively conserve at least 30% of the near-shore marine resources and 20% of the terrestrial resources across Micronesia by 2020. The Micronesia Challenge inspired island leaders in the Caribbean, Indonesia and Western Indian Ocean to initiate similar regional conservation collaborations and quickly attracted more than US$12 million from public and private sources for sustainable financing.
Caribbean Challenge
With leadership from Grenada and The Bahamas, six members of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) — Antigua & Barbuda, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia and St. Vincent & the Grenadines — along with the Dominican Republic and Jamaica are working together on an ambitious regional framework of conservation commitments and sustainable financing for national systems of protected areas.
Coral Triangle Initiative
Six neighbouring countries — Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, the Solomon Islands and Timor Leste — are working together to protect the heart of marine biodiversity, the Coral Triangle. Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders and a range of development partners and NGOs are joining in support of this new Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries and Food Security.
Phoenix Islands Protected Areas
In January 2008, the Government of Kiribati expanded the Phoenix Islands Protected Area (PIPA) and declared it the world’s largest marine protected area, encompassing an ocean wilderness the size of California. PIPA will be partly financed through an innovative “reverse fishing license” which will fund an endowment to cover core management costs and compensate the government for the foregone commercial fishing license revenues.
Sea Level Rise Foundation
President Michel of the Seychelles has established a global foundation to bring resources and expertise together to support small island states, islands and other low-lying areas in adapting to the growing threat of sea level rise and avoiding the first climate refugees. The Foundation has been registered in Seychelles.
Funding for Islands
Building on commitments totalling more than US$70million, governments and organisations around the world are working with GLISPA to increase financial support for island priorities and collaboration. Leaders in this effort include the countries of Micronesia and the Caribbean, Italy, Seychelles, USA, the GEF, Conservation International, IUCN, The Nature Conservancy and WWF.
