Velondriake is a locally managed marine reserve

Marine reserve

For the United States Marine Corps Reserve see: Marine Forces ReserveA marine reserve is an area of the sea which has legal protection against fishing or development. This is to be distinguished from a marine park, but there is some overlap in usage...

 in southwest Madagascar

Madagascar

The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...

. Covering an area of 1,145 km², the reserve brings benefits to over 10,000 people in twenty-five villages, protecting coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass

Seagrass

Seagrasses are flowering plants from one of four plant families , all in the order Alismatales , which grow in marine, fully saline environments.-Ecology:...

 beds, baobab

Adansonia

Adansonia is a genus of eight species of tree, six native to Madagascar, one native to mainland Africa and the Arabian Peninsula and one to Australia. The mainland African species also occurs on Madagascar, but it is not a native of that island....

 forests and other threatened habitats.

Villagers worked with partner organisations, Blue Ventures Conservation and the Wildlife Conservation Society, to set out the borders of the Velondriake marine reserve as well as chosing which habitats required protection. Villagers are being educated in conservation

Conservation biology

Conservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction...

 science and planning, and have set up their own management board, the Velondriake Association, that oversees the implementation, management and monitoring of the reserve.

Along with traditional conservation strategies, such as seasonal no-take zones and permanent reserves, the villagers living within and around Velondriake are benefiting from a variety of sustainable development

Sustainable development

Sustainable development is a pattern of resource use, that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for generations to come...

 activities, including sea cucumber

Sea cucumber

Sea cucumbers are echinoderms from the class Holothuroidea.They are marine animals with a leathery skin and an elongated body containing a single, branched gonad. Sea cucumbers are found on the sea floor worldwide. There are a number of holothurian species and genera, many of which are targeted...

 farming, algae

Algae

Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...

 farming and eco-tourism.

Awards

Andavadoaka

Andavadoaka

Andavadoaka is a small fishing village located on the southwest coast of Madagascar. It is located in the Morombe division of Toliara Province, 45 km south of the town of Morombe...

is one of the founding villages of the Velondriake locally-managed marine reserve, winner of the UNDP Equator Prize in 2007.