Conservation Scholarships for Chagos Islanders
11.06.2010 by chagosadmin
Digeo Garcians help out with conservation efforts on their visit to Diego Garcia in January 2010
LONDON – The Chagos Conservation Trust, Coral Cay Conservation and the Diego Garcian Society are delighted to announce the worthy winners of the 2010 International Year of Biodiversity Coral Reef Scholarship Programme.
In July 2010, Pascaline Cotte and Louis Augustin, both 18 years of age and descendants of the Diego Garcian and Chagossian communities in Crawley, will visit the coral reefs of Southern Leyte in the Philippines as part of a Coral Cay Conservation training programme funded by the Chagos Conservation Trust.
“This is a great opportunity for members of the Diego Garcian and the Chagos community at large, that marks the initial steps to our people becoming stewards of the protected area,” says Allen Vincatassin, Community Leader and Founder of the Diego Garcian Society. “We look forward to our scholar’s return so that we might share their experiences and learn the importance of coral reef protection and community work.”
Joining a team of volunteers from all over the world, Pascaline and Louis will help survey some of the least researched habitats in the Philippines, learning to dive and protect coral reefs through the implementation of crucial marine conservation measures.
“As the UK’s leading volunteer NGO and charity dedicated to coral reefs, Coral Cay Conservation is delighted to share its expertise with members of the Diego Garcian Society,” says Peter Raines MBE, founder and CEO of Coral Cay Conservation. “Having recently returned from a scientific research expedition to Chagos I am more than ever aware of the importance of such initiatives.”
“We strongly support the involvement of Chagos Islanders in the conservation of the Chagos Archipelago,” says William Marsden, Chagos Conservation Trust’s Chairman. “We are working closely on this with the Diego Garcian Society and members of the Chagossian community. We are particularly pleased that Chagossians who visited the Chagos recently had first-hand experience of conservation projects which have been promoted by CCT. The Chagossians are now developing ideas for their involvement with such projects in future.”
The Chagos Protected Area will include a no-take marine reserve where commercial fishing will be banned, creating a much-needed safe haven for breeding fish stocks for the benefit of the region. The UK Government has made it clear that this decision is without prejudice to the pending legal proceedings before the European Court of Human Rights and would not prove a legal obstacle if the Chagossians are granted the right of return. Creating the marine reserve will ensure that the Chagos Islands and their resources will remain healthy no matter what the future holds.
The Chagos Conservation Trust intends to continue its work with Chagossian organisations to ensure that these islands and their resources are maintained in the best condition possible for the future.
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NOTES FOR EDITORS
The Chagos Conservation Trust
The Chagos Conservation Trust (CCT) was registered as a Charity in 1993 with the objectives of conservation, scientific and historical research and education in relation to the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT). The Trust became established as the leading non-governmental organisation dedicated to those objectives. It provides a channel for cooperation between the BIOT/UK Governments and other organisations on BIOT environmental matters. It monitors the status of the BIOT environment with expert scientific advice, and actively promotes and supports practical conservation measures, such as regular ship-based scientific surveys and projects for habitat protection and restoration. CCT is a founder member of the Chagos Environment Network.
Coral Cay Conservation
Coral Cay Conservation (CCC) was founded in 1985 by Peter Raines MBE with the objective of encouraging a “citizen science” approach to effective coral reef conservation. Since then, CCC has achieved conservation success in many countries, including the designation of the Belize Barrier Reef as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the establishment of numerous Marine Protected Areas world-wide. CCC has won many international accolades and awards for its contribution to effective, community-based conservation approach, all thanks to the tens of thousands of CCC volunteers who have helped over the past 25 years.
The Diego Garcian Society
The Diego Garcian Society was founded by Allen Vincatassin, a native Diego Garcian who pioneered a settlement of the Diego Garcians and other people of the British Indian Ocean Territory (formerly known as Chagos Archipelago) in the UK. The first group of just 19 people arrived in the UK from Mauritius on the 16th of September 2002. Today, the Diego Garcian Society represents the UK’s largest group of Chagossians with a community of 2,000 people.
