Reef Check Discussion Forum

With the launch of Rare’s first Solution Search - Turning the Tide for Coastal Fisheries - Rare and National Geographic are sponsoring a contest to find proven innovations in near-shore fisheries. Entries are due October 31.

Do you have a solution to help protect coastal biodiversity and improve the productivity and sustainability of local fisheries?
Do you know someone who does?

The first place solution will win a US $20,000 project grant and will be featured in a video on National Geographic’s Ocean <http://ocean.nationalgeographic.com/ocean/> website. By entering Solution Search, contestants are joining a global community of innovators and ambassadors for marine conservation.

Please share Solution Search with your network and submit entries to http://www.solutionsearch.org.

Examples of solutions might include, but are not limited to, the areas of:

• No-take zones, marine protected areas, TURF (territorial user rights in fisheries) reserves
• Fishing gear, catch shares, fishing licenses
• Monitoring of catch compositions, data collection and analysis
• Eradicating destructive fishing techniques
• Community enforcement and natural resource management
• Creation of social and capital resilience, development of alternative livelihoods
• Regulation of curio and aquarium trades
• Biodiversity protection
• Reduction of terrestrial threats, such as road construction and local agriculture
• Other innovative ways of managing local fisheries

Important Dates
Solution Search Launch September 8, 2011
Entry Deadline October 31, 2011
Public Voting Opens November 16, 2011
Public Voting Closes December 25, 2011
Winners Announced January 6, 2012

Entries will go through a three-tiered judging process and finalists will be announced to the public to vote for the winner. All applications will be judged based on their innovation, biodiversity impact, impact on human wellbeing and livelihoods, sustainability and resilience, replicability, and governance.

To find out more about Rare, visit us at our website, www.rareconservation.org

If you have any questions, please contact Andrea Durcik at adurcik@rareconservation.org or +1 703-522-5070.

We look forward to learning about your solution!

It’s time to cast your vote!

Rare, National Geographic and the judges have named the 10 finalists for the first ever Solution Search. Now it is up to YOU to select the top three and award the $20,000 grand prize and two $5,000 runner-ups. Vote today at http://www.solutionsearch.org.

Solution Search is an innovative online platform dedicated to finding proven community-based solutions for global environmental issues. The first contest, “Turinng the Tide for Coastal Fisheries,” sought entrants from organizations worldwide that demonstrated proven innovations that benefit coastal communities and marine biodiversity. Over 100 entries were submitted from 48 different countries.