FORWARD

The coastal zone of Belize has over the years served as an enduring source of food, shelter, fuel and spiritual nourishment. This area sustains hundreds of people who live in or near it. In turn, many traditional coastal zone dwellers can contribute to the sustainability of the coastal areas. They can do so by drawing on local knowledge passed down over generations. Such people should have a say in decisions made about the fate of the coastal zone area.

To maintain healthy and productive coastal areas, government must build partnerships with those individuals who live in and use the resources of the coastal zone. These people have a direct stake in strategies to manage prudently and to use wisely the resources of the coastal zone...

Today, tourism is recognised as one of the major preferential options for economic development of the nation of Belize. A significant portion of the tourism development in the country occurs in the coastal area. If the tourism industry is to achieve significant and measurable levels of sustainability, then protection of the coastal zone ecosystem must be given serious consideration as development occurs within it.

This website, with its wealth of information provides a rationale for the need to protect our coastal zone. It is also a source of information for tourists, tour guides, teachers and Belizeans who have a desire to learn about the rich biodiversity in our coastal ecosystem.

The Ministry of Tourism and the Environment, along with the Belize Tourist Board, recommend that this website be read widely among the people of Belize. The knowledge gained from this reading exercise can strengthen our appreciation for our coastal zone patrimony and help to enhance national initiative to protect it. Within such a framework, our chances of attaining a significant level of sustainable development within the coastal zone area can also be enhanced.

Today the over-riding concern for many of us must be to seek out ways to enhance rather than degrade our coastal zone area-an area upon which many of our citizens must depend for survival. In this regard, the challenge will be to give priority to actions that simultaneously improve the environment while fostering both economic and social development. This website could well assist us in meeting the challenge. I take this opportunity to congratulate all those whose efforts have made possible this website.