10 Years of Ocean Protection: Calendar Events

History of Protection and Multiple ‘Firsts’ Traced in Third Hanauma Bay Education Lecture

The notion of “firsts” is something Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument Superintendent ‘Aulani Wilhelm reflected on, as she returned home from the UNESCO World Heritage Committee Meeting in August 2010. Papahānaumokuākea had just been designated as the first mixed World Heritage Site in the United States and our country’s first World Heritage site in more than 15 years. “Firsts” were also the focus of Wilhelm’s presentation at the third Hanauma Bay Education Series Lecture in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Coral Reef Ecosystem Reserve (NWHICRER) On Oct. 21, 2010. World Heritage inscription, Wilhelm feels, characterizes a decade-long journey of pioneering and trailblazing marine conservation, which began in December 2000 when President Bill Clinton, by Executive Order, created the NWHICRER.

It was the first time an Executive Order was used to establish a place-based marine protected area. It was the first ecosystem reserve in the U.S. It became the first remote, large-scale marine protected area. The creation of Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument in 2006 was the first time the Antiquities Act was applied to a largely marine, not terrestrial area. Thus it became the first marine national monument. World Heritage status provides additional firsts: Papahānaumokuākea is the first marine World Heritage site and the first cultural seascape on the list.

Wilhelm is quick to point out that by emphasizing first’s doesn’t mean that the people involved in all of these actions were smarter or braver than anyone else. Many of the trailblazing and pioneering efforts were not entirely intentional. She said, “Our conservation values and vision just happened to come at a time, on the cusp of change in the field of marine conservation where our efforts met with that of many, many other people and organizations to enable us to be change agents and leaders in this arena.”

During her talk Wilhelm also described the Monument geographically and politically and touched on its natural and cultural history and features. She detailed the threats to a place that is remote but not immune including alien species, marine debris and climate change. The audience of 35 people learned about the management philosophy of “bring the place to the people, not the people to the place.” Strict protections, permitting and limited access to the Monument is also a pioneering philosophy. “This notion that we should close off a vast portion of the ocean around the most isolated archipelago on earth was not easily embraced,” Wilhelm reflected.

The lecture wrapped up with Wilhelm honoring a handful of Native Hawaiians who provided the impetus for all the protections mentioned above. She said, “One of the best aspects of our story, in my opinion, is that we have people in our community and constituencies who continue to lead the way by bringing culture, community and science together to find ways to resolve issues before we see our oceans empty out to the point where they are unable to sustain us as people.”