Early efforts at marine conservation in Pohnpei were centered on marine protected areas (MPAs) established by state government. However, communities – who were most affected by such sanctions – were not involved in the process, so the effectiveness of these MPAs was lacking. In 1995, four villages – Enipein Pah and Enipein Powe, Soumwai and Mwoakot – joined together to write a management plan for the shared lands and waters of Woun Ko pwin Soumwai. In 2001, the coral reef surrounding the nearby small island of Nahtik was officially designated an MPA. However, it was still evident that community members themselves, in addition to the village chiefs, needed to be directly involved in order for rules to be respected.

The Conservation Society of Pohnpei (CSP), which has been a major force in creating a local MPA Network in Pohnpei, was founded in 1998 with the aim of increasing community involvement in the conservation and management of Pohnpei’s natural resources. Since 2002, CSP, together with Pohnpei State Marine Resources (PMR) and municipal governments, has been working to build the capacity of Community Conservation Officers (CCO), who serve an important role in the management and monitoring of MPAs. CCOs are individuals chosen by their village chief to work voluntarily in implementing local and state laws regarding natural resources in their communities. Training of CCOs strives to bring community members in closer touch with the management and preservation of their resources.

The LMMA Network was first introduced in Pohnpei in 2002, when LMMA Network representatives presented the Learning Framework (LF) to CSP. As the LMMA Network shared CSP's ideology of working with local communities in conserving marine resources, CSP decided to join the Network. In 2003, LMMA representatives Mike Guilbeaux from Hawaii and Pio Radidedike from Fiji visited the Enipein project site and helped the community develop a Community Action Plan. In December 2003, Nahtik became the LMMA Network's pilot site for Pohnpei. Since then, Bradley Phillip, CSP MPA Network Coordinator and LMMA project liaison, has been assisting the community with their conceptual model, monitoring plan, and skills training.

Other important players in Pohnpei's LMMA Network include the Enipein Mangrove Committee, Peace Corps Micronesia, the College of Micronesia, and local municipal governments, which better understand the particular needs of each community than state authorities and are closer to the paramount chiefs who ultimately give the final blessing of his village before a project starts. Pohnpei’s LMMA Network also works closely with the Pohnpei MPA Network, whose partners include local governments, College of Micronesia-Federated States of Micronesia, Peace Corps, Pohnpei State Marine Resources and Department of Land and Natural Resources.

Although the Pohnpei MPA Network has project activities around the country, the LMMA Network member site is represented on the map as Nahtik Marine Protected Area (indicated by the pink circle), since it is the only site at which Learning Framework data is currently being collected. The blue circles on the map signify existing MPAs declared by the state government that are engaged in some LMMA Network activities as part of the larger project.

Please see News and Stories from the Field for more on Pohnpei LMMA Network activities.