AQUA-Pearl

AQUA-Pearl will work with local fisher communities, women, national and local authorities, and the private sector to scale up gender-responsive and inclusive, community-led, nature-based approaches to aquaculture in Fiji. The project will be implemented by IISD along with the Wildlife Conservation Society, the Pacific Community, and J. Hunter Pearls, in cooperation with Fiji’s Ministry of Fisheries. It is supported by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and Global Affairs Canada.

The AQUA-Pearl project addresses the intertwined critical challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, and poverty by

• exploring current and future gender and climate vulnerabilities, risks, and opportunities in the aquaculture sector;
• integrating community values and preferences;
• enhancing community and ecosystem resilience to climate change;
• identifying entry points to aligning fisheries and aquacultural development plans with national adaptation, biodiversity conservation, and development priorities (including gender and development priorities);
• unpacking the role of the private sector and other stakeholders in nature-based aquaculture;
• fostering knowledge sharing and capacity building among civil society organizations, private sector entities, and national and local authorities from Fiji and other Pacific Island states.

The project builds on a previously piloted community-led oyster aquaculture project and is part of the Nature-based Climate Solutions in Aquacultural Food Systems in Asia-Pacific initiative (AQUADAPT). This 4-year initiative, co-funded by IDRC and Global Affairs Canada, aims to drive research action toward inclusive, nature-based aquaculture solutions and a better understanding of how such solutions can contribute to climate change adaptation, biodiversity conservation, and food security in Southeast Asia and the Pacific region.