Coastal communities in Manus Province depend on local food gardens and collecting inshore marine resources to support their subsistence-based economy. Women are primarily responsible for the cultivation and collection of these resources, and for the sale of their surplus on local markets. Recently, however, inshore fisheries and village gardens have not been producing enough for women to feed their families and pay expenses, such as school fees and health care. This is a result of deeply felt climate impacts, such as rising sea levels, salt water intrusion, storm surges, and unpredictable weather patterns.

With support and guidance from The Nature Conservancy, communities in Manus Province established the Manus Environment and Conservation Communities Network, a subgroup of which is Women in Conservation (WIC). WIC recognizes the role of women in food security issues and climate adaptation, and aims to modify the traditional roles of women to help villages cope with the effects of growing populations, resource depletion, sea-level rise, and drought on food production. Twelve representatives of different clans meet monthly to discuss solutions to these challenges, some of which include backyard and atoll gardening, mangrove rehabilitation, and temporary closures of inshore marine harvesting.

What makes it Bright?

• Facilitates community cooperation to manage common-area resources
• Targets food security and ecological concerns with multifaceted approach
• Improves shoreline health and resiliency with mangrove rehabilitation and trash removal

Country: Papua New Guinea
Focal Point: Jenny Songan, Gabriel Kulwaum