As part of the public awareness, outreach and education on the importance of marine conservation and to support the establishment of MPAs in Maluku and North Maluku Province under the USAID SEA Project, CTC worked collaboratively with local community members and village leaders to install billboards in strategic places.

         
The installment begun in Sula Islands on April 23, 2019, specifically in three fishing namely Wai Ipa, Waitamela and Bajo Villages. Facilitated by the CTC field staff, the community members created the wooden billboard frames and erected them near the beach where people can easily see it. The 2 x 3 square meter billboard consists of more visual information about the positive impacts of marine conservation towards the sustainable life of marine biodiversity and fisheries supported by the primary tagline of “Lestari Lautku Banyak Ikanku”, meaning sustainable sea for abundant fish. 

More billboards were installed in Saparua Island on April 25-26 at Saparua and Haria Villages, the two most populated areas on the island. In Haria, the billboard stood inside the port area making it visible to hundreds of speedboat passengers from Saparua to Ambon and vice-versa. Meanwhile, the billboards in Buano Island were installed in in Buano Utara, Buano Selatan Village, also at Soa Tengah.
Our local champions called “Pejuang Laut” promoted the activity on the ground by using the billboards to provide education and advocacy about marine resource protection to their peers. We hope that this method of public socialization and education will increase the general awareness and knowledge that leads to more tangible behavioral change towards marine conservation and sustainable fisheries in the future. CTC is planning to hold more creative outreach activities in the future targeting more stakeholders in Sula, Lease and Buano Islands in Maluku and North Maluku.