Fiji is working to effectively confront threats to its precious coral reefs through an increasingly comprehensive approach that involves villages, the government, scientists, and the tourism industry. This includes the establishment of marine protected areas like the successful Namena Marine Reserve, where banning destructive fishing practices and introducing sustainable tourism has benefited the local economy. Conservation efforts are led not just by authorities but also the tourism sector, such as the Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort which conducts reef surveys, coral replanting initiatives, and environmental education programs. Educating children from remote islands also presents challenges that tourism donations have helped address, such as assisting a school on Waya Island that currently lacks electricity.

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Protecting
FIjI’s jeWels
PHOTOS | JEAN MICHEL COUSTEAU

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CONSERVATION
BY KAY DOUGHERTY
Divers and snorkelers across the globe know
Fiji as the “soft coral capital of the world”
and travel to the island nation to explore the
colourful reefs teeming with fish.
Unfortunately, climate change, pollution from
development, overfishing and uninformed
tourists combine to threaten the health of
these precious reefs. Fortunately, Fiji is
effectively confronting these threats in many
different ways.
Concerned Fijians have studied the destruction
caused by development to reefs that once
existed in Honolulu, Manila and Singapore.
They have seen the local effects of over-fishing,
poaching, floating trash and pollution run off.
They have applied this knowledge to develop
an increasingly comprehensive approach to
reef protection that includes the government,
scientists, tourism operators and villagers.
Because Fiji villages own the reefs that
surround them, this unusual legal situation
means the informed and willing cooperation of
villagers is essential to any reef preservation
practices. A “top down” mandated programme
would not succeed in a country with the
community-based culture and decision-
making that Fijians have long practiced.
An early success that arose from a community-
based cooperative approach to natural
resource management is Namena Marine
Reserve, a world famous diver’s paradise.
The community realised that they needed to
do a better job managing and protecting their
natural resources so they teamed up with
the Fijian Kubulau Resource Management
Committee (KRMC) and the scientific Coral
Reef Alliance. The goal of the reserve was to
end overfishing and poaching and embrace
sustainable tourism, which benefits the village
economy.
A Namena Reserve dive fee of F$30 was
introduced and made it possible to eliminate
destructive commercial fishing, develop better
mooring buoys to reduce reef damage from
anchors, expand the marine protected area
to an additional 11 districts, and finance school
scholarships.
Dr Joshua Drew, Lecturer in the Department
of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental
Biology at Columbia University has worked
with the Fijian Locally Managed Marine
Network Area (FLMMA) and private
businesses to study the reefs and fish life of Fiji
and make recommendations. But even with his
impressive academic credentials Drew said
that when discussing environmental topics
in Fiji “the biggest thing is also the simplest,
just sitting down and talking with people…It’s
definitely a two-way street and I learn a lot
about reef ecology when I talk to community
members. That’s important and humbling”.
In addition to the villages, government entities
and researchers, some in the tourism sector
are leading efforts to save the aquatic jewels
of Fiji for the future. A notable player in this
regard is the Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort,
Fiji. The resort’s actions and leadership
advance the legacy that comes with the
Cousteau name.
The resort employs a variety of direct
and indirect approaches to protect the
environment, including reefs and mangrove
forests. They contributed to the development
of the Namena Marine Reserve and conduct
reef surveys to report on progress. With
Nukubalavu village they have established,
monitor and help enforce the policies of
Lesiacava Marine Reserve.
Their affable marine biologist Johnny Singh has
a Masters of Applied Science in Marine Biology
and a contagious enthusiasm for explaining the
small steps that, taken daily, will combine over
time to create a significant, positive impact.
Singh oversees a coral planting programme
at the resort. Wave action, sometimes
PHOTOS | JEAN MICHEL COUSTEAU

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accelerated by cyclones, breaks down coral.
The coral planting programme uses marine
epoxy glue to attach coral “plugs” to a mesh
screen. After growth has begun the screen is
inserted into coral crevices. Another direct
initiative is mangrove planting to improve
water quality and fish numbers.
The resort recycles all wastewater into
gardens and doesn’t use any coral-killing
phosphate-based products. The restaurant
serves only sustainable open water seafood.
Their landscaping includes native edible and
medicinal plants that help remove carbon
dioxide, minimising the global warming that
contributes to coral bleaching. They use low
voltage light systems and forgo air conditioning
in the bure accommodation for the same
reason. Singh conducts dive and snorkel
reef etiquette sessions as well as awareness
programmes with resort guests and local
communities.
Singh and Drew have many of the same
recommendations when it comes to what you
can do to preserve and protect the reefs of Fiji.
They include:
● When visiting reefs never touch or
stand on them
● If you are a diver learn to maintain your
buoyancy so you don’t brush against corals.
● Know what fish you’re eating and avoid
reef-fish – go for the tuna, mahi mahi or
mackerel
● Do not buy coral jewelry – harvesting the
coral severely damages the reefs
● Conserve your water consumption so less
runoff and wastewater ends up in the
ocean
Reefs provide food to millions of people,
help maintain the planet’s biodiversity and
are natural barriers against disasters such
as cyclones. They also provide significant
economic benefits critical to the future of Fiji.
So when you get off the aircraft and into
your swimsuit, go explore the reefs. Admire
and enjoy, but give them respect as essential
components of the planet’s ecosystems and
Fiji’s precious jewels.
CONSERVATION

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BY KAY DOUGHERTY
Every Sunday, boatloads of children as young
as six say goodbye to their mums and dads and
leave some of Fiji’s tiniest, most remote islands
to go to boarding school, and every Friday they
travel home again.
Educating the children of the most isolated
of Fiji’s 106 inhabited islands has always
presented logistical challenges. In the past
several years significant progress has been
made, often been aided by the generosity of
tourists and the hospitality industry.
Many resorts and cruise companies offer
optional village tours which include schools
on their itineraries. A group of travellers with
Captain Cook Cruises recently paid a visit to
Ratu Naivalu Memorial School on Waya Island
to meet students, see them beam with delight
as they performed dances and songs and to
gain an understanding of how the school
operates and the needs they face.
Admittedly there was a degree of concern that
going to see the children might feel as if they
Bright Faces
of Fiji’s Future
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were being exploited or that there would be
pressure to make donations. Those concerns,
however, were completely unfounded. While
they do receive some voluntary financial
assistance and school supply donations from
tourists as well as contributions from Captain
Cook Cruises, the agenda of the day was to
meet and learn – for the visitors more than the
children.
Education is compulsory and tuition fee free
in Fiji and the Ratu Naivalu School educates
children ages 6 to 13. The students board at
the school from Sunday night through Friday
afternoon, either commuiting by boat or for
the few who live on Waya, making a long,
demanding walk each weekend.
It may initially seem shocking to consider
sending a six year old child to boarding school,
but the strong social fabric of Fiji helps to make
this as emotionally easy as possible. A child
in Fiji is raised by his or her mother, but also
considers various other adults, relatives and
even unrelated community members as being
as important to their well-being. A rotating
EDUCATION

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roster of mothers and aunties stay at the
school and create a comfortable environment
for the children. Many students also have
siblings attending the same school, which
helps maintain family bonds.
Eight teachers, all from Fiji, teach the 144
students at Ratu Naivalu. One is from a nearby
village but in general it is believed best to have
teachers from outside the villages served by
the schools because culturally, the teachers
are more able to establish authority if they
are not related to anyone where the students’
families live.
The students at Ratu Naivalu are taught English,
Fijian, Hindi, Maths, Social Studies, Health
Science, Elementary Science, Music and
Physical Education. They also have communal
roles in planting, harvesting and cooking food
and in looking after younger children. They
would have similar roles in their home villages
so this is a different setting but not a new set
of expectations.
The children identify strongly with their level at
the school and are eager to tell you. They are
full of energy, enthusiasm and excitement and
keen to show their school, dormitories, play
areas and dining facilities to visitors.
The creation of boarding schools and
commuting system has done much to begin
to raise and standardise the quality of
primary education in Fiji. However, there are
many needs still to be met, some of which
may astound visitors from wealthier, more
developed countries.
At Ratu Naivalu they do not have electricity.
They cannot afford it. The main office has solar
power but there is not enough money to buy
a diesel generator to provide electricity for
the school. Without electricity students cannot
develop computer skills along with a host of
other major inconveniences in running the
school. The staff could easily teach innovative
courses in how to be resourceful with very
little.
Some tourists are moved to donate school
supplies to the teachers or money to the school.
In one case a Rotary Club in a Melbourne
suburb was inspired, by a club member’s visit
to one of the schools Captain Cook Cruises
assists, to establish a Fiji Scholarship Fund.
This fund assists families from the outer islands
to cover the costs of lodging, transportation
and other needs so students can continue
their education after primary level. To date the
Hampton Rotary Club has generously donated
more than AU$40,000.
If you have the opportunity to meet some of the
charming, eager-to-learn school children of
Fiji take it, it may well prove to be the highlight
of your trip.
EDUCATION