Hawaii FEP - Western Pacific Fishery Council

Council. The AP will be one of the vehicles for communities to bring their concerns to theCouncil for consideration in the development and implementation of fishery ecosystem plans.7.3.2 Western Pacific Community Demonstration Project ProgramThe Community Demonstration Project Program (CDPP) is a grant program. The Council has anadvisory panel which reviews and ranks proposals and forwards to the Council for approval andtransmittal to the Secretary of Commerce.The purpose of the Western Pacific Demonstration Project Program is to promote theinvolvement of western Pacific communities in fisheries by demonstrating the application and/oradaptation of methods and concepts derived from traditional indigenous practices. Projects maydemonstrate the applicability and feasibility of traditional indigenous marine conservation andfishing practices; develop or enhance community-based opportunities to participate in fisheries;involve research, community education, or the acquisition of materials and equipment necessaryto carry out a demonstration project.To support this program, region wide grant application trainings and workshops are conductedby the Council. These workshops also provide a forum for the community to makerecommendations and participate in the Council process. The Council develops the fundingpriorities.7.4 International Management, Research and EducationThe Council participates in the development and implementation of international agreementsregarding marine resources. These include the Western and Central Pacific FisheriesCommission (of which one Council member is a U.S. commissioner) as well as the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (of which the U.S. is a member). Although the focus ofthese commissions is the management of pelagic fisheries, the Council also participates inworkshops regarding demersal fisheries (e.g., the Tonga Bottomfish Workshop held in Januaryof 2007).The Council also participates in and promotes the formation of regional and internationalarrangements for assessing and conserving all marine resources throughout their range, includingthe ecosystems and habitats that they depend on (e.g., the Forum Fisheries Agency, theSecretariat of the Pacific Community’s Oceanic Fisheries Programme, the Food and AgricultureOrganization of the UN, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO, theInter-American Convention for the Protection and Conservation of Sea Turtles, the InternationalScientific Council, and the North Pacific Marine Science Organization). The Council is alsodeveloping similar linkages with the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center and its turtleconservation program. Of increasing importance are bilateral agreements regarding demersalresources that are shared with adjacent countries. The Council also participates in broadinternational education initiatives such as the International Pacific Marine Educators Conference(held January 5-17, 2007 in Honolulu) as well as international marine debris conferences andfisheries forums. Figure 26 provides an illustration of the formal and informal institutionallinkages in the Council process.219