White Water to Blue Water Partnership Initiative

Purpose of Initiative: The “White Water to Blue Water” Partnership (WW2BW) is an international alliance of governments, international organizations, financial institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), universities, and corporations seeking to integrate the management of watersheds, coasts and oceans. The initiative promotes regional cooperation and strengthens developing country capacity to address land-based sources of marine pollution (e.g. sewage and industrial discharges, agricultural run-off, etc.); promote sustainable fisheries, agricultural and forestry practices; challenges associated with tourism; and degradation of coastal areas. WW2BW efforts will begin in the Wider Caribbean Region. The outcomes in the Caribbean will serve as a blueprint for future efforts in Africa and the South Pacific. The initiative was announced on September 2 in Johannesburg, South Africa, during the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD).

Resources: U.S. Government involvement in WW2BW to date is substantial, with strong commitment from U.S. Agency for International Development, the Departments of State, Commerce (NOAA), Agriculture and Interior, and the USEPA. The State Department has committed $2 million to WW2BW-related projects worldwide ($1.5 million of which directly targets the Wider Caribbean Region). In addition to major ongoing activities, USAID recently announced a $1.5 million matching partnership with the UN Foundation to support a Meso-American Coral Reef Alliance in Mexico and Central America. Other U.S. agencies are developing WW2BW-related projects for future fiscal years to complement their ongoing activities in the Caribbean. The Governments of the Wider Caribbean Region have pledged in-kind and facilitative support for the initiative, while other international partners such as the United Kingdom, France and Canada are developing their own plans to implement WW2BW-related programs discussed at the WSSD.

Partners: Governments: United States, United Kingdom, France, Canada, and many governments of the Wider Caribbean Region. International Organizations: UN Environment Program’s Caribbean Environment Programme (CEP) and Global Program of Action (GPA), the International Oceanographic Commission and regional IO-Caribe program, World Bank, CCAD, CARICOM, IMO, IAEA, PAHO and OAS. Civil Society: World Conservation Union/IUCN, Conservation International, Wildlife Conservation Society, World Wildlife Fund, World Resources Institute, the Nature Conservancy, UN Foundation, Ocean Conservancy, Oceana, Consortium for Ocean Research and Education (CORE), EcoLogic, Sloan Foundation. Academia: the universities of Miami, Delaware, Rhode Island and the West Indies. Private Sector: hotels, cruise lines and the tourism industry.

Partnership Efforts to Date: The kick-off activity of the WW2BW initiative will be a U.S.-funded Caribbean partnership conference scheduled for Fall 2003 in Miami, Florida. The conference will focus on developing and implementing plans of action and promoting greater regional cooperation on marine ecosystem management. An international steering committee comprised of U.S. Government agencies, Caribbean and other partnering governments, international organizations, and NGOs active in the Caribbean, has begun preparing for the conference.

USG Points of Contact: Department of State: Dick Wilbur, (Phone: 202/647-3879; E-mail: WilburRM2@state.gov), Department of Commerce/NOAA: Tom Laughlin, NOAA (Phone: 202/482-6196; E-mail: Tom.Laughlin@noaa.gov), and U.S. Agency for International Development: Alan Hurdus (202/712-0218; E-mail: Ahurdus@USAID.gov).