September 2015 - A video film ”India’s disappearing beaches”, produced by the BOBLME implementation partner, the NGO “Pondicherry Citizens Action Network” (PondyCAN, Puducherry, India), as part of the work “Establishment and operation of a Coastal Stewardship Centre to foster Integrated Coastal Management in Pondicherry, India” has been nominated for an award at the CMS Vatavaran - Environment & Wildlife Film Festival and Forum 2015. It will be screened on 10 October between 1.30 pm to 3 pm under the category "Water for Life" (
http://vat2015.cmsvatavaran.org/nominations-announced/). The award ceremony is on 11th Oct at 6.30 pm. The video highlights the issue of coastal erosion, a particularly serious problem in this part of the south eastern Indian coastline, and the importance of stable beaches for the security of living and working conditions of coastal communities. The film can be seen at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgTn6Qpgjok. The BOBLME-PondyCAN collaboration has resulted in an operational Coastal Stewardship Centre (CSC) with state-of-the-art facilities and resource materials for capacity development and learning in action programs. The community-based work covered 25 villages and included a participatory coastal resource mapping exercise and village meetings to validate the maps.
