LINI Indonesia (Post-MAC)
In the wake of the MAC (Marine Aquarium Council) devolution, a new organization has emerged from the ashes in Indonesia to do work in the field, within the community, and in the areas where the most change is needed. Enter LINI.
Here Indonesian fish collectors fill plastic bags holding their catch with oxygen via an inflated inner-tube that serves as a reservoir for the gas. (From LINI’s website).
LINI (aka Yayasan Alam Indonesia Lestari) is an Indonesian based non-profit organization dedicated to conserving Indonesia’s coastal resources with primary emphasis on ornamental fisheries…
LINI is comprised of the former staff of MAC Indo. With MAC (based in Hawaii) now focused solely on the certification of net-caught fish, a need opened up for the sort of basic training that must come well before an uneducated fisherman can be expected to collect and handle ornamental marinelife responsibly (and thus earn MAC certification). From LINI’s website:
LINI’s mission is to support the conservation and management of coastal marine resources throughout Indonesia, by empowering coastal communities, and promoting fairer, more sustainable practices of marine resource use. As a local organization, LINI has more freedom to work within Indonesia, and has the advantage of experience and cultural awareness when gaining the trust of the local communities. This allows efficient delivery of training, using methods appropriate to the abilities and needs of the various target audiences. LINI is also helping the Indonesian government in policy development, coastal zone management, and community-based aquaculture and coral propagation for reef restoration.
I can speak with experience as to the leadership of LINI. I had the privilege to work as an intern under the guidance of Gayatri Lily, and her team of motivated and capable trainers while MAC Indo was still in existence. I believe that ground level, local initiatives of the sort that LINI are pursuing is clearly the best path towards lasting, long-term changes within the aquarium trade. From my experience living in Indonesia, it is clear that a domestic organization such as LINI will be more likely to make greater in-roads within local communities than an internationally operated organization. Trust is most easily gained when speaking the same language (literally and figuratively). Only by starting at the community level can we expect to begin implementation aquarium trade/collection reforms.
Volunteer and internship opportunities exist within LINI. If you are a hobbyist seeking an adventure where your contributions can make a real difference, I can recommend nothing more educating than taking the trip to see first-hand where your marinelife comes from, how it is collected, and who collects it. Diving in Indonesia will not only blow your mind, it will give you a much better understanding and appreciation for the precious creatures that we rely on (and occasionally take for granted) for our home aquariums.
We wish LINI all the best in their mission. If any group is capable of making a positive, lasting difference in Indonesia to the base of the ornamental marinelife supply chain, LINI is posed to be it.
