A CONSERVATION-ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION FRAMEWORK FOR THE SUSTAINABLE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT OF ABALONE IN ANDA, PANGASINAN, NORTHERN PHILIPPINES

The study attempted to establish an integrated conservation-education framework consisting of three important components – experiential learning through the Farmer Field School (FFS) Concept, using local ecological knowledge (LEK), and various Environmental Education (EE) activities – in aiming to develop a corps of local resource managers who would promote sustainable abalone fishing and resource conservation in Anda, Pangasinan.Local fishers possess a wealth of knowledge gained through long-term association with their resources, and this knowledge may be useful in guidingbiologists and conservationists in resource management. Additionally, the fisher’s LEK, validated by modern scientific findings, could be a source ofimportant and effective ideas in resource management. The knowledge of abalone fishers regarding important fishing grounds should help in pinpointingcritical areas that need to be managed. Abalone mariculture in cages learned through the FFS concept could be used as a resource management option.Mariculture cages should be set up near productive fishing grounds to routinely create dense breeding populations which can help in enhancing therecovery and in providing fishers with a source of additional income. Various other EE activities can be combined with the above approaches to help increase the ecological awareness of the fishers and their community and help them become sustainable resource managers.

Keywords:

Abalone , Local Ecological Knowledge , Environmental Education , Farmer Field School , Resource Management