Levine, A.

Socioeconomic assessment for marine protected areas and watershed management areas in American Samoa

2015

NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Program

7

"This project implemented socioeconomic surveys in key villages associated with marine protected areas and watershed management areas in American Samoa. Surveys were administered during 2012-2013 in ten Community-based Fisheries Management Program (CFMP) villages, providing information to inform CFMP staff about the outcomes of their education and outreach programs, as well as which villages were the most and least aware of and supportive of program policies. Additional surveys were conducted in 2014 in the villages of Faga'alu (a priority watershed), Vatia (a CFMP village and CRCP priority site), and Aunuu (a Sanctuary site). These surveys focused on community use of and reliance on marine resources, community responses to natural resource management efforts, issues of trash and pollution, and preliminary indicators of village adaptive capacity and community resilience. These surveys can provide baseline information against which management programs can compare future change. Workshops were held with local natural resource managers to provide an overview on available socioeconomic information in the territory and determine local priority socioeconomic information needs. Each set of surveys was designed to address these priorities, and can be used as a base for future assessments and to monitor changes over time. Priorities from the final workshop will be incorporated into CRCPs revised Social Science Strategy for 2016-2020."

FY2013 CRCP Project ID 170; Project Title: Baseline Socio-economic Assessment for MPA Villages and Watershed Management Areas; Principal Investigator: Arielle Levine