Mangroves for the Future

Mangroves for the Future
Name	Mangroves for the Future
Formation	2006
Type	Environmental partnership
Headquarters	Bangkok
Region served	Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia

Mangroves for the Future

Mangroves for the Future is a regional initiative established in 2006 to promote coastal ecosystem restoration and sustainable coastal livelihoods. It supports integrated coastal management, disaster risk reduction, and biodiversity conservation through partnerships among international agencies, national ministries, and local stakeholders. The initiative works across multiple countries and engages with organizations, academic institutions, and multilateral donors to scale mangrove rehabilitation and nature-based solutions.

Overview

Mangroves for the Future operates as a partnership that links multilateral institutions such as United Nations Development Programme, World Bank, United Nations Environment Programme, and Food and Agriculture Organization with national agencies including Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (Thailand), Ministry of Environment and Forests (India), and Department of Environment (Bangladesh). It interfaces with conservation NGOs like World Wide Fund for Nature, Conservation International, Wildlife Conservation Society, and IUCN while collaborating with research centers such as Smithsonian Institution, James Cook University, National University of Singapore, and Institute of Marine Sciences (Pakistan). The partnership emphasizes links to funding bodies including Global Environment Facility, Asian Development Bank, European Commission, and bilateral agencies like Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation and Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.

History and Development

The initiative emerged after the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami prompted international attention to coastal resilience and restoration. Early advocacy drew on work by experts associated with Convention on Biological Diversity, the Ramsar Convention, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature to promote mangrove rehabilitation as a nature-based solution. Pilot projects were implemented following models developed by institutions such as Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies, Thai Mangrove Development Station, and research groups at University of the Philippines Diliman and Mahidol University. Coordination meetings involved representatives from ASEAN, SAARC, and donor assemblies hosted at venues like Asian Development Bank Headquarters and United Nations Conference Centre, Bangkok.

Objectives and Activities

Primary objectives include restoring mangrove ecosystems, enhancing coastal livelihoods, and integrating ecosystem services into disaster risk reduction. Activities span site-based restoration, capacity building, policy advice to ministries (for example, inputs to Ministry of Fisheries (Sri Lanka)), community-based livelihood programs supported by organizations like Oxfam, and scientific monitoring with partners such as WorldFish and The Nature Conservancy. The program promotes methods developed by research teams at University of Hawaii, Australian Institute of Marine Science, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to measure carbon sequestration, coastal protection, and fisheries enhancement. Training workshops have been held in collaboration with Stockholm Environment Institute, Wetlands International, and national institutes including National Institute of Oceanography (India).

Geographic Scope and Partnerships

Work is concentrated across countries bordering the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal including Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, and Seychelles. Regional cooperation draws on mechanisms like Indian Ocean Rim Association and Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation. Partnerships include universities such as University of Colombo, Universitas Indonesia, and Chulalongkorn University alongside NGOs like Practical Action and Fauna & Flora International. The initiative liaises with national departments including Department of Environment (Maldives) and Directorate General of Forests and Nature Conservation (Indonesia).

Funding and Governance

Funding has combined grants from the Global Environment Facility, bilateral donors including United Kingdom Department for International Development and Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and co-financing from regional banks like the Asian Development Bank. Governance arrangements involved steering committees composed of representatives from United Nations Environment Programme, United Nations Development Programme, donor agencies such as Norad, and national ministries including Ministry of Environment (Maldives) and Ministry of Natural Resources (Pakistan). Project management has been coordinated through offices in hubs such as Bangkok and national focal points hosted by institutions like Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies.

Impacts and Outcomes

Reported outcomes include rehabilitation of thousands of hectares of mangrove habitat, livelihood benefits for coastal communities through aquaculture and eco-tourism initiatives linked to organizations like UNESCO World Heritage Centre and International Union for Conservation of Nature project portfolios, and contributions to national policies on coastal zone management in countries such as Indonesia and Bangladesh. Scientific monitoring by teams at University of Durham, King's College London, and National University of Singapore has documented increases in nursery habitat for commercially important species, enhanced carbon storage following protocols related to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and reduced coastal erosion in pilot sites. The initiative informed regional policy dialogues at forums such as Convention on Biological Diversity meetings and UNFCCC mechanisms addressing nature-based solutions.

Challenges and Future Directions

Challenges include balancing afforestation with ecosystem-appropriate restoration, securing sustained finance amid shifts in donor priorities such as those by European Commission and Global Environment Facility, and addressing land-tenure and governance issues encountered in case studies from Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Indonesia. Future directions emphasize scaling blue carbon accounting methods advocated by Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, strengthening links to climate finance mechanisms like the Green Climate Fund, integrating remote sensing approaches from European Space Agency and NASA, and deepening collaborations with regional bodies including ASEAN and Indian Ocean Rim Association to mainstream nature-based coastal resilience.

Category:Environmental organizations