The U.K. and Seychelles Secretariat, 2003-2005

For the Seychelles:

Policy, Planning & Services Division, Ministry of Environment
PO Box 1145, Victoria, Mahé,
Seychelles

For the United Kingdom:

Marine Environment (international)
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs,
Zone 3/B7, 123 Victoria Street,
London SW1E 6DE

The ICRI Secretariat has also decided to appoint UNEP-WCMC based in Cambridge (UK) to undertake a number of administrative tasks on behalf of the Secretariat, which will allow the co-chairs to concentrate more on substantive and co-ordinating work for ICRI. Contact points are:

Emily Corcoran
Marine Research Officer
UNEP-WCMC
219 Huntingdon Road
Cambridge, CB3 0DL
[email protected]

Plan of action

One of the major tasks for the Secretariat will be to organise biannual ICRI General Meetings. Aside from the general meetings this plan will cover four elements, specifically how the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) can continue to:

Action Point 1: raise the awareness of the importance of coral reefs;
Action Point 2: give policy steer to the ICRI networks based on ICRI’s Call to Action, Framework for Action and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;
Action Point 3: foster improved cooperation on coral reef issues between United Nations (UN) bodies, Governments, regional seas programmes and donor agencies;
Action Point 4: engage more actively the private sector, especially in terms of funding local development projects that promote the conservation of coral reefs, sustainable development and integrated coastal zone management.

It is suggested that the development of an ICRI communication strategy (outlined in Annex 2) is a prerequisite for action on points 1-4 based on the sense that despite its history and unique position in the coral reef world, ICRI means different things to different people. A clear communication strategy would help to define ICRI’s and raison d’etre in the minds of ICRI members, and hence facilitate progress on the Action points above.