Thematic school
Reef heritage vulnerability
Seychelles, 2024, June 10-14th
Group photo, DIDEM Seychelles theme school © Xavier Koenig
From Monday June 10 to Friday June 14, a thematic school on the vulnerability of reef heritage was held at the University of Seychelles, Anse Royale campus. Some thirty participants from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines shared their experiences from several countries in the Western Indian Ocean and Europe: Comoros, France, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Monaco, Seychelles and Tanzania.
VULPARE schools started in 2014
The chosen theme, the vulnerability of reef heritage, has already been the subject of two thematic schools organized in Toliara, Madagascar, in 2014 and 2016. Jamal Mahafina, Director of the Institut Halieutique et des Sciences Marines de Toliara, which hosted these two thematic schools, recalled this link right from the school's first presentation.
For this session in the Seychelles, the school was hosted by the James Michel Blue Economy Research Institute of the University of Seychelles, whose Dean gave the introductory speech. This was followed by an introductory speech by Mr. Xavier Prache, Director of Monaco Explorations, sponsor of the school, to present the Mission Océan Indien framework in which the event took place.
The event received extensive media coverage, with several radio spots, TV news appearances and articles in the national and local press.
In situ measurement exercise, DIDEM Seychelles 2024 thematic school @ Xavier Koenig
Thematic school content and timetable
The main objective of this school was to compare knowledge and representations of the natural and cultural heritage of coral reefs from different disciplines, focusing on:
- Assessing the resilience of the coral reef ecosystem;
- Recognizing coral reefs as a natural heritage;
- Building a coral reef socio-ecological system.
Of the five days devoted to the thematic school, three were devoted to classroom presentations, three half-days were devoted to field trips, and the remaining half-day was devoted to methods for processing data collected in the field.
Participants in the room of the DIDEM Seychelles 2024 thematic school @ Ahamada Djahere
Indoor presentations focused on seven complementary themes, enabling participants to discover reef heritage and vulnerability from a multidisciplinary perspective:
- From ecosystem to reef socio-ecosystem
- The coral ecosystem in all its states
- Reef heritage monitoring and assessment
- Reef heritage, fisheries and conservation
- Integrated coastal zone management, blue economy and blue justice
- Reef heritage in relation to education and awareness-raising
- Ecological engineering
Through these themes, the group was able to explore the concepts of resilience, vulnerability, heritage and socio-ecological systems from the perspective of sustainability science. It included a section of presentations offered by various experts in the fields of anthropology, biology, ecology, fisheries, geography, governance and socio-economics to present the state of the art and lay common theoretical and methodological foundations, introduce fieldwork and initiate debate.
Given the diversity of the participants' scientific backgrounds, ranging from marine biology to geography to natural resource governance, all presentations were designed to be didactic, so that everyone could feel at ease and contribute to the overall reflection.
During the field day in the national parks of Ile Sainte Anne, Ile Moyenne and Anse Royale, the school proposed a field experience, conducted in small interdisciplinary groups, where participants from different backgrounds and skills applied methodologies from biological, human and social disciplines to foster exchanges (monitoring coral reef habitats and populations, ethnographic surveys, approach to fishing systems, analysis of social representations...).
By following an integrated approach, the school aims to position coral reef heritage as a cross-cutting element of analysis and management.
All presentations are available in English (except the first one)
Session: From ecosystem to reef socio-ecosystem
A look back at the international and interdisciplinary Southern Summer School: "EEA VulPaRe"
By Jamal Mahafina, Institut Halieutique et des Sciences Marines (IH.SM)
Geomorphology of reefs in southwestern Indian Ocean
By Lionel Bigot, Université de la Réunion, UMR Entropie
What means reef heritage’s vulnerability and how manage for reducing and reach the coral reef socio-ecological system’s viability
By Gilbert DAVID, Institut de Recherches pour le Développement, UMR Espace Dev
Session: The coral ecosystem in all its state
Coral reef ecosystem and its threats
By Pascale CHABANET, Institut de Recherches pour le Développement, UMR ENTROPIE
Connectivity between reefs in the SW Indian Ocean using a larval dispersal model
By Estelle Crochelet, Réunion Biodiversity Research Agency
Insights into coral reef resilience: monitoring and research at Aldabra Atoll
By Anna Koester, Seychelles Islands Foundation
Session: Reef heritage monitoring and assessment
Reef ecosystem monitoring using the GCRMN method
By Lionel BIGOT & Pascale CHABANET, Univ. Réunion and Institut de Recherches pour le Développement, UMR ENTROPIE
Reef ecosystem monitoring using the CORRAM method
By Léo BROUDIC, Réunion Biodiversity Research Agency
How monitor human coral reef users?
By Gilbert DAVID, Institut de Recherches pour le Développement, UMR Espace Dev
Session: Reef heritage, fishing and conservation
Artisanal fisheries in the Seychelles, vulnerability and management
By Rodney GOVINDEN, Seychelles Fishing Authority
Sea cucumber fisheries and management in the Seychelles (back to SEACUSEY project)
By Rodney GOVINDEN1, Ameer EBRAHIM2 et Marc LEOPOLD3, 1Seychelles Fishing Authority, 2Spécialiste des pêches, 3Institut de Recherches pour le Développement, UMR MARBEC
A participatory approach to managing the octopus fishery in southwest Madagascar
By Daniel RABERINARY, IH.SM, University of Toliara Madagascar
Research in Marine National Park
By Rodney BONNE, Seychelles Parks & Gardens Authority
Session: Integrated coastal zone management, blue economy and blue justice
Contributions of The 2023 Integrated Coastal Zone Management Protocol for the Western Indian Ocean to protect coral reefs (ICZM Protocol to the Nairobi Convention)
By Florence GALLETTI, Institut de Recherches pour le Développement, UMR MARBEC
Enhancing Marine Biodiversity: Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture and Coral Restoration Strategies in Mauritius
By Nadeem NAZURALLY, University of Mauritius
The blue economy in Seychelles, example of the Seagrass Mapping and Carbon Assessment: a national project to preserve 100% of blue habitats by 2030
By Jerome HARLAY, Blue Economy Research Institute, Univ. Seychelles
Session: Processing information from collected data and scientific publications
Information processing for biological data
By Lionel Bigot, Université de la Réunion, UMR Entropie
Information processing for social data, the case of marine emblematic species
By Gilbert DAVID, Institut de Recherches pour le Développement, UMR Espace Dev
Session: Reef heritage versus education and awareness
Evaluating the impact of an awareness campaign using the MARECO teaching toolbox
By Pascale CHABANET1 et Georgeta STOICA2, 1Institut de Recherches pour le Développement UMR ENTROPIE,2Université de Mayotte
The PAREO project in the Seychelles, with Educational Marie Area of Curieuse feedbacks
By Maria BRIOCHE1 et Liza ALISSOP2, 1Seychelles Island Foundation, 2Baie Sainte Anne Primary School
Session: Ecological engineering
Ecological offsetting, the challenge of sizing and evaluating
By Mathieu PINAULT, Marine Expertise Company
World Coral Conservatory: a Noah’s ark for corals and reef ecosystems
By Didier ZOCCOLA, Monaco Scientific Center
Restoring islands to save species: the Seychelles experience and how rodent eradication can also contribute to reef recovery
By Gerard ROCAMORA, Island Biodivesity Conservation Center
Photos of the thematic school
The school was funded by the Monaco Explorations as part of its Indian Ocean Expedition, and organized by the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement in partnership with the James Michel Institute for Research on the Blue Economy (University of Seychelles) and the Seychelles Parks and Gardens Authority.
