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MARINE PROTECTED AREAS & ECO-TOURISM

THE CHALLENGE

Biodiversity loss is taking place across the globe. In some cases, marine ecosystems collapse due to the combined effects of habitat degradation, pollution, overfishing, and climate change.

A healthy ocean is highly productive: it generates and safeguards jobs for coastal communities, provides food security, and appeals to the growing tourism industry. Globally, there is growing recognition of the need to increase conservation efforts, as protecting the ocean is not just an environmental issue but has social and economic impacts as well.

Indonesia’s islands are located in the heart of the Coral Triangle, one of the most biodiverse areas on Earth. Its islands offer exceptional tourism destinations for lovers of pristine water and tropical white-sand beaches. However, the negative impacts of mass tourism observed in areas such as Bali have been recognized to threaten islands and their marine ecosystems. It will be a major challenge to reach the Indonesian government’s target of creating “10 new Balis”, boosting the national economy while ensuring the conservation of protected marine sites.

Marine Protected Areas can be a powerful mechanism to maintain coral reefs and protect marine ecosystems, and are part of a range of integrated ocean management options that can sustain ocean health while enhancing the ocean’s productivity.