During the World Ocean Week in Xiamen 2024, I presented our MPA work in the East Asia Sea forum on Nov 7th.
As this meeting was organized by FIO (First Institute of Oceanography) and we have been working with FIO for several years, I did not present the results with them. Instead, I introduced our attempts at better management of a protected area.
As people know, before COVID, I led our co-management in Beibayao, Chongming Dongtan. In fact, there is not much new after 2020. Therefore I am very familiar with habitat management and the thoughts behind that.
There is progress in community engagement. Since the protected area strictly excludes tourists and the well-managed area sees a growing number of migratory birds, we train the local community to provide service on bird watching around their villages. We plan to mainstream such eco-tourism so that both the villagers and visitors can benefit. It is still in progress.
On Nov. 9th, I acted as a judge for a student speech contest at Xiamen University. I saw the passion of the ocean from students. It is always encouraging to see the young generation getting prepared to take up the future relay.