The Palawan Council for Sustainable Development Staff (PCSDS), together with representatives from 44 government and non-government organizations; academic institutions; Civil Society Organizations and local government units; is currently attending the three-day Marine Resources Initiative (MRI) Project Expert Elicitation Workshop (EEW) held at the Hue Hotels and Resorts, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.
The event, which kicked off on April 25, serves as a platform to inform participants about the Marine Resource Initiative (MRI) Project and solicit collective wisdom of subject experts to fill in the gaps on the current condition of Palawanβs environment in different aspects.
This initiative will strengthen the ECAN Coastal Marine Mapping for the Province of Palawan completing the ECAN process for both land and sea. This will provide PCSD the much-needed data sets that will determine Palawanβs contribution in attaining the protection of at least 30% of the coastal and marine areas protected by 2030.
This completes the province’s response to the Philippineβs commitment to the High Ambition Coalition (HAC) for Nature and People of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity.
The MRI Project is a demand-driven project funded by Australiaβs Department of Foreign Afffairs and Trade (DFAT) and is implemented by PCSD in partnership with the Geoscience Australia through Mr. Jonah Sullivan, Geo-Spatial Advisor and University of Sydney through Dr. Elaine Baker, MRI Principal Investigator and current UNESCO Chair in Marine Science at the and Director of the GRID-Arendal Office.
Subject matter experts likewise joining the team include University of Sydneyβs very own Dr. Billy Tusker Haworth, Geo-Spatial Analyst; Dr. Maria Bryne, and Dr. Will Figueira Professors on Marine Biology and Mr. Will Tucker, Geo-Spatial Analyst of Geo-Science Australia.
The conference will conclude today, April 27.
