Coastal communities are already helping turn global biodiversity commitments into action. But their ability to sustain that work depends on rights, resources, and recognition.
That was the message delivered by local and national leaders from the Philippines, Indonesia, Ghana, and Mozambique, who came together at the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP17) in Yerevan, Armenia, for an event co-hosted by Rare, Blue Ventures, and the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers, highlighting community-led approaches to advance the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework targets.
“Local communities are not just beneficiaries of conservation, they are its frontline guardians,” said Bupati Michael Thungari of Indonesia’s Sangihe Islands and a member of Coastal 500. Every speaker returned to the same point: communities were protecting biodiversity long before the Global Biodiversity Framework. The challenge now is for governments to recognize and support that work, not reinvent it.
The discussion, moderated by Rare’s Rocky Sanchez Tirona, showcased approaches ranging from customary fishing closures and community-managed marine protected areas to protections for artisanal fishing grounds. Together, the experiences shared illustrated how local knowledge and collective action can support both healthy ecosystems and coastal livelihoods.
Securing rights
Ghanaian fisher representative Simon Okoe Kwao described how fisher organizations – including his organisation the Canoe and Fisher Gear Owners Association of Ghana – mobilized communities to advocate for stronger protection of artisanal fishing grounds. Their advocacy succeeded: the national government extended the Inshore Exclusion Zone to 12 nautical miles, reserving it solely for small-scale and artisanal fishing. Importantly, they also secured co-management rights enshrined in legislation, enabling true stewardship of their waters. Okoe Kwao stressed that protections on paper must now be matched by investment in local capacity and enforcement.
Secure rights emerged as a foundation across countries. In Ghana, it is the exclusion zone. In the Philippines, municipal waters are reserved for small-scale fishers. In Indonesia, community managed access areas build on national law. And in Mozambique, community fishing councils have legal authority to set their own rules.
Pejul Calenga, Director General of Mozambique’s National Administration for the Conservation Areas highlighted community fishing councils and communities’ authority “by stating clearly that they have the right to set up their own rules when it has to do with the community-based management of marine resources.”
National government representatives explored how policy can support this stewardship. Indonesia’s Ahmad Sofiullah discussed national efforts to recognize the historic stewardship of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities as other effective area-based conservation measures (OECMs). “We are here together to protect our ocean in our different ways,” he said.
The discussion also raised a critical question: How can formal recognition reinforce existing community rights? Speakers agreed that recognition must strengthen community governance, not take it over. In closing reflections, IUCN Asia’s Olivier Chassot emphasized that recognition must be a choice: “Only rights holders decide if they want to be recognized or not. That’s their decision.” Olivier added that OECMs are one pathway among several. Often the gap is in how community contributions are counted, not in the conservation work itself.
Ensuring representation for traditionally marginalized groups
From the Philippines, Miriam Petalcorin, President of the grassroots women’s fishery organization, HAYUMADORA, described women’s contributions to coastal and marine protection, mangrove conservation, and human rights-based local fisheries planning – and the importance of ensuring those contributions are recognized and supported. “We hold the community together and protect our coastal and marine ecosystems,” she said.
Thungari described how in Sangihe, traditional practices like seasonal customary closures work alongside community-led managed access areas and reserves that complement the national marine protected area. He was candid about the limits of local action. Threats such as mining, coastal development, and illegal fishing are often beyond communities’ control. District governments also have limited authority over marine waters. Coordination and support from provincial and national governments are therefore essential.
Resources to sustain progress
The speakers agreed that while policies can enable local communities to lead in ocean conservation, sustaining progress made will take more resources.
“In order to make sure that we create the perfect environment for sustainable use of natural resources, government alone is not able to do it,” said Calenga. “Funding is also something that we need to consider. This is now time for all of us to create the perfect mechanisms so that we can finance the activities taking place in the ground.”
Speakers also underscored that conservation depends on the well-being of the people carrying it forward. Mayor Alfredo Coro of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines and a member of Coastal 500, described the need for savings programs, insurance, pensions, and stronger local government support for fishers: “These are important in terms of understanding social determinants because they are the ones protecting our oceans and our waters.” He noted that only a fraction of the Philippines’ locally managed marine protected areas are effectively managed. Coro called for local governments, as the bridge to communities, to receive direct and sustained financing and recognition in national reporting.
A shared call
Across the discussion, a shared call emerged: advancing the Global Biodiversity Framework requires sustained investment in the people, knowledge, and institutions already protecting coastal waters.
Tirona emphasized this, stating “As we think about bringing our commitments to life, we need to make sure that we are reinforcing the excellent work that people are doing already in communities all over the world.”
Event hosted by Rare, Blue Ventures, and International Collective in Support of Fishworkers (ICSF) at CBD COP17 on 22 October 2026. Full recording here: https://youtu.be/NGz_iHB8Uwc.