Transboundary learning strengthens coastal community resilience

SEMPORNA (Feb 25): Sabah Parks in partnership with WWF-Malaysia, supported by the Semporna District Office and WWF Coral Triangle Programme, hosted a regional learning exchange to facilitate cross-boundary knowledge sharing within the Sulu-Sulawesi Seascape between coastal communities from Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

The Sulu-Sulawesi Seascape is at the apex of the Coral Triangle — this stunning part of the world is known to millions of people around the globe as the epicentre of marine biodiversity and encompasses all or parts of the exclusive economic zones of Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste.

Home to over 40 million coastal people, the Sulu-Sulawesi Seascape is a critical source of food and nutrition, jobs and livelihoods, and a treasured maritime cultural complex that offers key tourism destinations. Despite its significance, the seascape’s coastal communities face challenges exacerbated by climate change and nature loss.

Rising sea levels are damaging property and infrastructure, while warming seas further deplete already dwindling fish stocks. Limited access to sustainable financing and knowledge hinder efforts to build climate resilience.

“Our goals, whether it be sustainable economic development, habitat restoration, climate change adaptation, or waste management can only be achieved through cooperation and collaboration, and learning exchanges such as this opens more opportunities for collaborative work,” said Mohd Azmie Anuar Bin Hj. Minduru, Assistant Administrative Officer, representing the Semporna District Office.

“Sabah Parks believes that learning exchanges help build stronger partnerships which are important for creating resilient communities and conserving marine resources,” said Dr Maklarin Lakim, director of Sabah Parks.

“With WWF-Malaysia’s support, we can carve stronger relationships with coastal communities and strengthen marine conservation efforts.”

Through sharing knowledge and experiences, this learning exchange aims to develop coastal communities’ capacity to help scale community-led marine conservation.

“We empower communities through training and encouraging them to take action, learn from their experiences, and grow through their mistakes. And it’s the lessons learned that will lead to best practices and knowledge. We hope that the practice of exchanging knowledge will be the norm as we continue to adapt to the impacts of climate change,” said Chitra Devi, Marine Programme Leader of WWF-Malaysia.

During the three-day learning exchange, over 50 participants from coastal communities, local authorities, and conservation organisations in the Sulu Sulawesi Seascape (spanning Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines) learned about each other’s initiatives to restore and conserve marine ecosystems through nature-based solutions. After a day indoors presenting their success and challenges, participants visited the community groups of Larapan, Omadal and Mabul islands.

Sabah Parks also hosted a learning session and a brief tour to the marine turtle and coconut crab hatcheries on Sipadan Island Park.

“Although we are from different islands and even countries, our struggles are often similar, like marine pollution and lack of resources,” Roziah Jailid, chairperson of the Women Association of Omadal Island (WAPO) stated. “It’s exciting to share our success and challenges, and learn best practices from our counterparts so we can potentially implement them in our islands.”

The Learning Exchange serves as a foundation for the Semporna Community Learning and Innovation Hub, which is currently in development. It envisions collaboration with the communities of Larapan, Mabul, and Omadal islands and aims to connect with similar community-led hubs and centers across the seascape. This would contribute to a peer learning network among coastal communities, helping to enhance collaboration across coastal communities, governments, non-governmental organisations, and the public.

“Learning exchanges such as this are essential building blocks to bridge the gap between communities and government agencies, promote peer-to-peer learning in locally-driven nature-based solutions, and amplify the critical voice and role of coastal communities in safeguarding marine ecosystems as part of the global ambition towards effectively protecting 30% of our planet,” said Klaas Jan Teule, leader of WWF Coral Triangle Programme.

The initiative reflects a strong commitment to knowledge sharing and learning. By bridging knowledge gaps, promoting inclusivity, and strengthening community ties – it creates momentum for collective action, supporting local resilience, and contributing to global ambitions to protect 30% of the Earth’s land, oceans, and water by 2030.

-Agency