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18 December 2020 
WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
National News Regional News Mixed News
Tools and Research Funding and Training Job Vacancies and Tenders
Thank You and Best Wishes for this Holiday Season!
Dear Subscribers,
This is the final edition of the weekly newsletter for 2020 - A year that has been quite difficult to navigate.
Furthermore, I want to take this opportunity to relay a sincere thank you for your ongoing support and interest over the year and hope that you have enjoyed reading the newsletter as much as I had enjoyed compiling it.
The PIPAP Weekly Newsletter will resume again from early January 2021.
Wishing you and your families an enjoyable, restful and safe holiday season…Merry Christmas!
Vai
NATIONAL NEWS
Samoa - Plans to protect environment launched
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and Aleipata District village mayors and representatives have launched the Aleipata District…
Fiji - Fiji PM Bainimarama receives UN’s highest Environmental award
For his persistence and commitment to action against climate change for Pacific Island Nations, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP)…
Palau - Twenty-eight Chinese crewmen detained for poaching
Following their arrest this past Thursday for poaching off of Helen Reef, the twenty-eight-man crew of a Chinese fishing vessel has been…
Papua New Guinea - We didn’t have money or enough food’: how COVID-19 affected Papua New Guinean fishing families
In March 2020, Papua New Guinea went into a state of emergency to contain the spread of COVID-19. For Ahus Island - a small atoll community…
Vanuatu - Strengthening collaborative networks among coastal fisheries stakeholders
The Vanuatu Department of Fisheries (VFD) hosted its 1-day Coastal Fisheries symposium on the 9th of December. It brought together…
Northern Marianas - Working with the community to bring back the åga
The island of Rota has the distinction of being the only place on earth where the åga now can be found in the wild. More known as the Mariana Crow…
New Zealand - Coromandel residents declare voluntary rāhui on collecting scallops at Opito Bay
Coromandel residents have declared a voluntary rāhui on collecting scallops from a bay on the eastern side of the peninsula. The ban at Ōpito Bay…
Australia - Australia-first research reveals staggering loss of threatened plants over 20 years
When it comes to threatened species, charismatic animals usually get the most attention. But many of Australia’s plants are also in grave danger of…
REGIONAL NEWS
Pacific island countries call for urgent actions to fight climate change
Leaders of the Pacific island countries have at their last meeting endorsed the development of a 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent, while…
NOAA announces sister sanctuary agreement between American Samoa and Palau
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Palau’s…
WCPFC17 members agree on way to negotiate new Tropical Tuna Measure in 2021
A process for negotiating a new Tropical Tuna Measure has been agreed by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission…
SWAP Project Is Getting Ready To Roll Out
The virtual inception meeting for the upcoming Sustainable Waste Actions in the Pacific (SWAP) project kicked off on December 9, 2020. The first of…
MIXED NEWS
River conservation by an Indigenous community
Both biodiversity and the people in river-associated communities are under severe stress the world over. Across the globe, 30% of freshwater…
Whale of a find: Scientists spot beaked whale believed to be a new species
Scientists on board a Sea Shepherd vessel say they found a new species of beaked whale near the San Benito Islands off Mexico’s Pacific coast.
Nature Based Solutions Essential For Climate Mitigation
On the 5th anniversary of the Paris Climate Agreement, Nature Based Solutions are emerging as essential climate mitigation and adaptation…
Improving multi-sectoral ocean management to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals
Researchers from IRD, the CNRS and Memorial University of Newfoundland (Canada) have assessed the capacity of the principal ocean management…
Charting a new course for MPA finance: Practitioners explore new concepts like public-private partnerships, the use of financial technology, and more
Even before the COVID pandemic started, the MPA field was in need of new ideas and tools for financing, with many sites chronically underfunded…
UNCCD 2021 Land for Life Award - Nominations open
The Land for Life Award is designed to reward impactful holistic approaches and practices that address the ecological and the social aspects of…
TOOLS AND RESEARCH
Chance played a major role in keeping Earth fit for life
A study by the University of Southampton gives a new perspective on why our planet has managed to stay habitable for billions of years…
Satellite data identifies companies fishing in high seas
A team of researchers, using satellite data and other analytical tools, has identified companies fishing in high seas—waters that lie outside of…
Mapping corals from the sky guides reef conservation
Coral reefs are one of the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet supporting an estimated 25 percent of all marine species. These biologically…
Researchers uncover an overlooked process enhancing the carbon-removal potential of mangroves
High levels of dissolved calcium carbonate present in their bedrock indicate that Red Sea mangroves are capable of removing more carbon…
FUNDING AND TRAINING
The Nature Conservancy - Conservationtraining.org
ConservationTraining is an open and free learning community that offers conservation-based training materials from The Nature Conservancy and…
Sue Taei Ocean Fellowship For Indigenous Women of the Pacific
The Sue Taei Ocean Fellowship is a new education and professional development opportunity for Indigenous Pacific Island women…
Boyd Lyon Sea Turtle Fund - Call for applications - 2021 Scholarship
The Ocean Foundation and The Boyd Lyon Sea Turtle Fund seek applicants for the Boyd N. Lyon Scholarship, for the academic year 2020/2021…
BIOPAMA Rapid Response Grants 2020
On 2 June 2020 the BIOPAMA Action Component launched the call for proposals for Rapid Response Grants. The Rapid Response Grants are…
JOB VACANCIES AND TENDERS
Request for Tenders: Technical Assistant for the Mainstreaming of the Indicator Reporting Tool and the Samoa State of Environment Report
SPREP would like to call for tenders from qualified and experienced consultants that will work with the Environment Sector Coordination…
Request for Tenders: Cetacean Review in the Western Central Pacific Ocean - An ecological review of species interacting with fisheries
SPREP would like to call for tenders from qualified and experienced consultants (individuals or teams) to conduct a review and gap analysis…
Request for Tenders: READVERTISEMENT - Building capacity of the Kingdom of Tonga to address regulatory and legal obligations relating to CITES with Appendix II listed giant clam, coral and shark species.
SPREP would like to call for tenders from qualified and experienced consultants (individuals or teams) to lead the preparation of a number of…
READVERTISEMENT: Consultancy services to support the implementation of project activities relating to the development of conservation areas under the Niue R2R Project
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) hereby invites you to submit a Proposal to this Request for Proposal (RFP)…
Job Vacancy - SCS Forest Restoration Coordinator
Samoa residents only. The Samoa Conservation Society (SCS) are seeking a coordinator for the “Upscaling Samoa’s Carbon Offsets…