INTERNATIONAL WATERS LEARNING EXCHANGE & RESOURCE NETWORK

IW:LEARN

Asia-Pacific Connects: first Annual Asia-Pacific Regional Network Meeting

30 Apr 2018 | by eve@iwlearn.org
This meeting is organised by GEF LME:LEARN and the IOC of UNESCO Sub-Commission for the Western Pacific (WESTPAC). The primary objectives of the first Annual Asia-Pacific Regional Network Meeting are to provide a forum for GEF funded project leaders, non-funded GEF projects, regional agencies, academia and the private sector to network with one another; to enhance their understanding of related activities in the region; and to identify partnership building opportunities by engaging members actively involved in key thematic areas (marine and coastal management, biodiversity, fisheries and coastal climate change).

The Strengthening Global Governance of Large Marine Ecosystems and Their Coasts through Enhanced Sharing and Application of LME/ICM/MPA Knowledge and Information Tools or LME:LEARN projectseeks to improve global ecosystem-based governance of Large Marine Ecosystems and their coasts by generating knowledge, building capacity, harnessing public and private partners and supporting south- to-south learning and north-to-south learning. This project is funded by the Global Environmental Facility (GEF), implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and executed by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC).

A key element of this improved governance is mainstreaming cooperation and coordination between LME, MPA, MSP and ICM projects with overlapping themes and geographic areas, both for GEF projects and for non-GEF projects.

The meeting aims to:

  • Establish the Asia-Pacific Regional Network and enable members to build connections with one another;

  • Introduce the twinning and Inter-project Collaboration Opportunities offered by GEF LME:LEARN and discuss how these can or should progress with identified partners;

  • Foster an environment for regional private sector engagement;

  • Engage members in science-management discussions and how best practice could be replicated in the region

Expected outcomes of the meeting: 

  • Increased awareness and familiarity among the projects/activities under implementation in Asia-Pacific;

  • Network members committed to taking advantage of the opportunities offered by GEF LME:LEARN;

  • Establishment of a foundation for private sector engagement at a regional level;

  • Suggestions for replicating best practice in science-management


Learn more about the Regional Networks here.