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ABOUT CRMP                
   - who we are
   - what we do
   - the philippine coastal environment
   - coastal resource management in the philippines
  -- crm toolbox

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ABOUT THE COASTAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PROJECT

 

Onward to 2000

In a nutshell, coastal resource management -- CRM -- is all about the sustainable use and management of coastal resources. In the Philippines, the most widely accepted definition is the one supplied by CRM experts Alan White and Nelson Lopez in a 1991 publication:

CRM is also referred to in various quarters as ‘coastal management’, ‘coastal zone management’, ‘coastal area management’, and ‘integrated coastal management.’ In more specific terms, it means planning, implementing and monitoring the sustainable use of coastal resources. Accepted wisdom says the process must be participatory, that is, it must be consultative, multisectoral and interdisciplinary. It must consider the interconnectedness of the various ecosystems. It must encourage cooperation among individuals, among communities, among countries. It must, in other words, be rooted in the truth that we all share but one ocean.

CRMP’s approach to CRM is both holistic and integrated, covering a diverse set of project activities designed to bring about effective management of coastal resources at both the national level and the local level. The Project is initially being implemented in six learning areas -- Olango Island, Cebu; San Vicente, Palawan; Malalag Bay, Davao del Sur; Negros Oriental; Bohol; and Sarangani Province -- which will serve as strategic expansion nodes from which good CRM practices can be spread to other coastal areas in the country. To support the replication and sustainability of the project, activities are directed at enhancing the capability of national and local governments and the communities themselves to develop and implement resource management processes and systems.

Community participation is therefore an inherent and integral part of CRMP: Throughout the CRM process, we work with and through a wide cross-section of coastal resource users, including fisherfolk, local governments, the national government, NGOs, the private sector, and POs.

CRMP includes the following project activity components:

Onward to 2000.
All these have one ultimate goal: the widespread and sustainable application of CRM in our coastal communities. For CRMP, the overall strategic objective is expected to be achieved by the year 2000, when 2,000 km or 11% of the 18,000-km Philippine coastline (mainly in Palawan, the Visayas and Mindanao) will have been brought to sustainable resource use and enhanced management, and a critical mass of communities and leaders involved in CRM activities and living by the CRM philosophy of sustainable resource use will have been developed. From this threshold, we expect CRM practices and systems to spread to other municipalities.

We are using a two-pronged approach to achieving sustainable resource use: We aim to influence policy at the national level and at the same time implement specific CRM activities and systems at the local level. By collaborating with other donor agencies involved in CRM, we are able to expand our reach in a strategic way.

The Project assists national government agencies in finding practical solutions to four key problem areas in coastal resource management: jurisdictional issues management, mangrove management, commercial fisheries management, and biodiversity conservation. At the local level, it helps communities institutionalize CRM planning and implementation.

To achieve our objective of sustainable resource management in Philippine coastal areas, CRMP is mobilizing all sectors of society, the private sector, the Church, media, NGOs, schools and the government. It is also undertaking public education and social mobilization activities to ensure that CRM is prioritized in the national social agenda.