During the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Samoa last year, His Majesty King Charles III gave his approval for a mangrove initiative as a legacy project for CHOGM. The ongoing management of the project will be overseen by the Rotary Club of Apia, Samoa.
By Judith Diment Rotary Representative to the Commonwealth
Attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Samoa in October 2024 was a remarkable experience.
I was deeply honoured to be part of such an historic event, especially as it was the first time the CHOGM was held in a Pacific Small Island Developing State.
Past Rotary International President Gordon McInally represented President Stephanie Urchick, and we were joined by Dr Chris Puttock, Chair of the Rotary Action Groups Advisory Council. The theme, ‘One Resilient Common Future: Transforming our Commonwealth’, captured the spirit of collaboration and resilience as we gathered with over 4,000 delegates from diverse nations, united in our commitment to address shared challenges, especially the existential threat of climate change.
In collaboration with the Sustainable Markets Initiative, I received a request to initiate a mangroves project in Samoa as a legacy project for CHOGM.
The Sustainable Markets Initiative was launched in 2020 by His Majesty King Charles III, then The Prince of Wales, to accelerate a sustainable future by putting nature, people and planet at the heart of global value creation.
This sanctuary at Saleimoa, a small village on the Samoan island of Upolu, will restore and maintain the mangrove ecosystem to mitigate the onset of rising sea levels.
PICTURED: His Majesty King Charles III was warmly greeted upon his arrival in Samoa for the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).
The project will work to prevent damage from the encroachment and removal of mangroves. It will also teach cultural heritage as well as knowledge that mangrove ecosystems are fish and shellfish nurseries, and how their destruction and overfishing can deplete a national resource.
The launch was held in collaboration with SpaceX/Starlink, which will install Starlink kits demonstrating the value of remote access connectivity to support underserved and remote communities across the Commonwealth.
This technology gives the local community excellent connectivity and the facility to monitor the mangroves over the coming years. In addition, it will be linked to a monitor to allow the screening of educational and training videos.
The whole village of Saleimoa turned out for the launch, and they did an excellent job decorating the site with flowers and flags. It all looked very festive. About 300 people attended the launch, which featured a traditional Polynesian ceremony, which was very moving.
The speakers included a village elder, a local priest, an MNRE minister, Sustainable Markets Initiative CEO Jennifer Jordan-Saifi, and SpaceX CEO Lauren Dreyer.
I spoke on behalf of Rotary as Gordon McInally was at another mangroves meeting with King Charles. I highlighted how this project had been initiated in just eight weeks at the request of the King, demonstrating partnership and teamwork.
I thanked all the sponsors who contributed $30,000, making the launch and first year’s program possible.
The sponsors included Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI), SpaceX, Commonwealth Human Ecology Council, Samoa Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE), Rotary in London and the Rotary Club of London. I also mentioned that it was World Polio Day!
The launch also featured a performance from the Vocal Fusion Choir with a song ‘The Mangroves of Samoa’, which was commissioned through Commonwealth Resounds. The Vocal Fusion Youth Choir from Western Australia wrote the lyrics, and students at the Purcell School in London wrote the music. The choir came to CHOGM and performed the song at the launch, as well as at the Rotary reception the night before.
The sponsors participated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony in front of a vast billboard installed on the side of the road as a permanent record. Chris Puttock then gave a talk and tour of the mangroves, and nine Sustainable Markets Initiative chief executives and others planted mangroves. Chris had visited Samoa a few weeks before and planted 400 mangroves in a nursery, which the Rotary Club of Apia planted over the following months.
ln future, the Rotary Club of Apia will manage the mangrove project and work with the local community, the Samoa Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, and the Samoa Conservation Society. Rotary Club President Titilia Bese and her team did an excellent job helping launch this project.
Following the launch of the new mangrove site, Past President Gordon, Chris and I attended a Commonwealth Leader Event with King Charles. I told King Charles we had launched the new mangrove site, and he was delighted.
While in Samoa, we launched a new Commonwealth e-Club for Rotaractors to help young people in the Commonwealth connect and benefit from the global Rotary network.
Throughout CHOGM 2024, I was reminded of the Commonwealth’s founding values of democracy, peace and development. As we move forward, I am inspired by the shared commitment embodied in the Commonwealth Charter and hopeful for a resilient, common future for all.
MAIN PICTURE: King Charles visited the Moataa Mangroves in Samoa during the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in October 2024. (Photo: The Commonwealth)