MADISON NENA AWARDED 1999 SEACOLOGY PRIZE
1999 Seacology Prize recipient Madison Nena
(lower left)
with family members, Seacology board and staff
In a ceremony held December 2, 1999 at the National Tropical Botanical Gardens in Kauai, Hawai'i, Madison Nena received the1999 Seacology Prize. The $5,000 award is given annually to an indigenous islander for outstanding achievement in preserving the environment and culture of any of the world's more than 100,000 islands. The costs for the prize were generously underwritten by Nature's Way.
Madison Nena is from Kosrae, a small Micronesian island. For over 13 years, Nena was the administrator of the Kosrae Division of Tourism. In this position he promoted ecotourism focusing on the island's unique natural and cultural heritage. He also made sure that government decision makers considered the environmental impact of any proposed development. In 1996, Nena left to work more directly on preserving Kosrae's environment.
Since then, Nena has played a pivotal role in the establishment of the Utwa-Walung Conservation Area, comprised of several rivers, extensive and diverse mangrove swamps, pristine coral reefs and an abundance of marine resources. Recently developers tried to convince landowners in the Conservation Area to allow the development of a tourist facility without provisions for sewage facilities in one of the richest areas of the lagoon. Sewage contamination would have threatened marine ecosystems and the livelihoods of many residents. Through Madison Nena's facilitation of community education and dialogue, the landowners realized that the long-term negative impacts of the project would outweigh their short-term gain, and they rejected the proposal. A consensus-driven Community Based Resource Management Plan is being drafted to protect the Conservation Area, while allowing for carefully controlled sustainable development.
Nena has also worked with island elders to revitalize historic methods of Kosraen house construction. Fourteen structures have already been built, combining traditional exteriors constructed with local materials with modern interiors. There is now a core group of young builders who will continue to use these traditional construction skills. Traditional canoe-building techniques have also been resurrected, and the boats are now being used for fishing and recreation throughout the lagoon area. In addition, Nena is the co-owner and operator of the Kosrae Village Resort, an ecotourism resort and dive center.
When the decision was made to award the prize to Nena, Dr. Paul Cox, chairman of Seacology, stated that "There are too few examples of people turning down the short term economic gains of a questionable development in order to preserve the environment for future generations. The fact that Madison not only was willing to make this enormous sacrifice but was able to convince others to do so is an extraordinary achievement."
According to Nena, "I am thrilled with this wonderful recognition from Seacology. I strongly believe community-based conservation can only work effectively if all the stakeholders participate in the initial planning stage. Local awareness and education programs require a lot of time but must be done in order to get full support from the affected communities."
Past winners of the Seacology Prize include King Taufa'ahua Tupou IV for his efforts to preserve fruit bats in Tonga, the late Chief Fuiono Senio for his work to preserve a 30,000 acre tropical rainforest near the village of Falealupo in Samoa, and Saula Vondonaivalu for his discovery of 30 new species of plants in Fiji and working for the conservation of endangered ecosystems.
