CRISP at a glance
The Initiative for the Protection and Management of Coral Reefs in the Pacific (CRISP), sponsored by France and prepared by the French Development Agency (AFD) as part of an inter-ministerial project from 2002 onwards, aims to develop a vision for the future of these unique eco-systems and the communities that depend on them and to introduce strategies and projects to conserve their biodiversity, while developing the economic and environmental services that they provide both locally and globally. Also, it is designed as a factor for integration between developed countries (Australia, New Zealand, Japan, USA), French overseas territories and Pacific Island developing countries. The CRISP Programme comprises three major components, which are:
The coordination of the CRISP Programme is provided by the CRISP Coordination Unit (CCU) and its programme manager (Eric CLUA). The unit is hosted by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) in Nouméa (New-Caledonia). The programme manager, based at the CCU, benefits from the support of two scientific counselors: Professor Bernard SALVAT (laboratoire de l'Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes de Perpignan, France) and Dr. Clive WILKINSON of the Australian Institute of Marine Sciences of Townsville (Australia).