TIDE and MARFUND Show Off Successes Down South

We’ve shown you the Port Honduras Marine Reserve down south. It’s an economically important piece of the south, but it is also a nationally protected marine reserve. One of the co-managers of the reserve is the Toledo Institute for Development and Environment (TIDE). Over the years, they have implemented a number of programs and projects to strengthen the reserve. They received a grant from the Meso American Reef Fund (MARFUND) back in 2013 for infrastructure and capacity building. That project wrapped up in 2016 and today TIDE hosted a team from Guatemala, along with the donors of the program. We will have the full story in Friday’s newscast, but here’s a bit from TIDE and MARFUND on this project.

Celia Mahung

Celia Mahung, Executive Director, TIDE

“It also helped with our research. So, TIDE does a lot of research. We do fin fish, lobster, conch, sea cucumber and we also do other species and so we were able to maintain our research and use that information to inform the management of the Port Honduras Marine Reserve.”

Maria Jose Gonzalez

Maria Jose Gonzalez, Executive Director, MARFUND

“The investments made have the possibility of sustainability in time, which is, after all, something that you are looking for when you fund a project. You want good results, impact on the resources, well managed resources, resources that can stay there for the long term.  And I think TIDE is perfectly working on that and that is what they are gearing for and I believe that is what they are achieving.”