Mangrove Action Project

Mangrove Action Project
Name	Mangrove Action Project
Formation	1992
Type	Non-governmental organization
Headquarters	Olympia, Washington, United States
Region served	Global
Fields	Environmental conservation, coastal restoration, community development
Leader title	Founders
Leader name	Swadesh Chanda, Mark Spalding

Mangrove Action Project

Mangrove Action Project is an international non-profit organization founded in 1992 dedicated to the protection, restoration, and sustainable management of mangrove ecosystems. The organization works across Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Pacific to support coastal community livelihoods, biodiversity conservation, and climate resilience. Through a mix of restoration projects, research collaborations, advocacy campaigns, and capacity building, the organization engages with local partners, indigenous groups, academic institutions, and intergovernmental bodies.

History

The organization emerged in the early 1990s amid growing global attention to tropical coastal degradation following events like the Earth Summit and the expansion of conservation networks associated with World Wide Fund for Nature and The Nature Conservancy. Founders including Swadesh Chanda and Mark Spalding built on prior mangrove research from institutions such as Smithsonian Institution and International Union for Conservation of Nature to mobilize grass-roots restoration. Early campaigns addressed shrimp aquaculture impacts linked to controversies similar to those surrounding Peruvian shrimp farming and policy debates reflected in forums like the Ramsar Convention meetings. Over subsequent decades the group broadened activities to integrate community-based approaches documented by organizations such as Wetlands International and research centers like CIFOR.

Mission and Goals

The organization's mission centers on conserving mangrove forests, restoring degraded coastal wetlands, and supporting vulnerable coastal populations in adapting to climate change impacts such as storm surges and sea-level rise highlighted by reports from Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Goals include promoting equitable resource tenure modeled in programs akin to those of Ford Foundation, advancing science-based restoration techniques used by Southeast Asian fisheries researchers, and influencing policy at multilateral venues such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and Convention on Biological Diversity. Emphasis is placed on gender inclusion, indigenous rights associated with groups like the Moken and Jarawa people, and alignment with targets similar to the Aichi Biodiversity Targets.

Programs and Projects

Field projects span reforestation, sustainable livelihood development, and blue carbon initiatives. Notable types of projects resemble community planting campaigns seen in Philippine mangrove co-management and asset-building programs like those of Oxfam. Projects have been implemented in countries with significant mangrove extent including Indonesia, Bangladesh, Mozambique, Mexico, and Guatemala. Activities often pair ecological restoration with income-generation models comparable to microfinance programs run by Grameen Bank and technical training from institutions such as University of Stirling and James Cook University.

Research and Conservation Initiatives

Research collaborations link with universities and laboratories including University of Washington, University of Southampton, and Monash University to monitor carbon sequestration, fisheries nursery function, and hydrological restoration. Methods draw on remote sensing approaches practiced by NASA and field protocols developed by RCE initiatives and Mangrove Rehabilitation Network affiliates. Conservation initiatives include mapping of remaining mangrove cover in hotspots identified by Global Mangrove Watch and pilot blue carbon accounting aligned with standards promoted by Verified Carbon Standard and Blue Carbon Initiative.

Advocacy, Education, and Community Engagement

Advocacy campaigns have targeted policy makers at institutions such as Asian Development Bank and World Bank to influence lending for coastal development projects, mirroring efforts by Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth. Educational outreach comprises training manuals, workshops, and community exchanges with partners like Community Forests International and academic summer programs at University of British Columbia. Engagement emphasizes traditional ecological knowledge from coastal peoples, collaboration with fisher cooperatives similar to Small-Scale Fisheries Guidelines initiatives, and participatory mapping used by Landesa and International Institute for Environment and Development.

Partnerships and Funding

The organization partners with international NGOs, local community organizations, academic institutions, and multilateral agencies such as UNEP and UNDP. Funding sources have included philanthropic foundations comparable to Rockefeller Foundation, project grants from bilateral agencies like USAID and DFID, and small-scale donations modeled after campaigns by Conservation International. Collaborative grants have supported joint work with regional bodies such as SAARC and ASEAN environment programs.

Impact and Controversies

Reported impacts include hectares of restored mangrove, enhanced fisheries productivity documented in case studies similar to those published in Conservation Biology and Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, and contributions to blue carbon projects referenced in Nature Climate Change. Controversies have arisen over restoration efficacy in sites where hydrology was not adequately restored—a critique echoed in debates involving WorldFish and academic critiques from researchers at Leiden University. Debates also center on the social dimensions of planting campaigns versus rights-based conservation advocated by groups like Survival International and scholarly critiques in journals such as World Development.

Category:Environmental organizations Category:Non-profit organizations based in Washington (state)