Institutional effectiveness and political economy of coral reef restoration in the Philippines

Efforts at coral restoration seek to add to existing conventional management strategies by pro-actively restoring damaged reefs, and potentially form part of a wider strategy to effectively manage these maritime ecosystems, including the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Coral restoration raises a series of governance challenges. A critical challenge that this project will address is how to ensure that the benefits of coral restoration are not wasted through ineffective protection arising from poor governance – specifically, how to institutionalise these benefits through improved coral reef governance.

This project aims to improve the institutional effectiveness of coral reef restoration in the Philippines, by understanding political-economic influences at multiple scales and applying lessons learned through a network based approach.

Chief investigators:
Associate Professor Michael Fabinyi
Dr Nick McClean
Professor Kate Barclay
Associate Professor. Maria Vanessa Baria Rodriguez (University of the Philippines)
Professor Peter Harrison (Southern Cross University)
Dr Dexter dela Cruz (Southern Cross University)
Dr Vera Horigue (Macquarie University)

Funding bodies: 
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research

Project website: https://www.aciar.gov.au/project/fis-2021-112

Photo credit: Michael Fabinyi