Belize

Stéphanie Sabbagh, currently a doctoral student in the research group, has been working in collaboration with various communities in Belize since 2006, initially as a Master's student, then as a marine biologist, and currently as a Doctoral student.

Overview of the research sites

The Mesoamerican Barrier Reef is a World Heritage Site extending from Mexico in the north to Guatemala and Honduras in the south (Windevoxhel et al. 1999). The majority of the reef lies in the jurisdiction of Belize, bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the east. Due to its location in Central America and the Caribbean Sea, Belize has a diversity of cultures and traditions. Ethnic communities include the Garifuna, the Creole, the Maya, the Mestizo (Spanish / Latino), Mennonites, East Indians, East Asians and expatriates (a rapidly growing community over the past five years).

Data for our case study were collected predominantly in Punta Gorda town and Placencia village (Figure 1). These sites were selected due to the presence of diverse stakeholder groups and interests (recognizing that most government departments are in Belize City), the proximity to the reef (both are gateways to important marine reserves and fishing grounds, see Figure 1), and their cultural diversity (Punta Gorda is mainly a Maya and Garifuna community while Placencia is predominantly Creole in origins).

Figure 1. Map created by Katie Reynar for this Sabbagh 2012, using the World Resource Institute Source: Reefs at Risk Revisited 2011

Stephanie- monitoring Spawning Aggregations.

Punta Gorda

Punta Gorda is a major town located in the southernmost district of Toledo (Figure 1). The South is the forgotten part of Belize, least developed but most diverse in terms of ethnic diversity and where tourism is trying to take off (Peedle 1999, Moreno 2005) Port Honduras Marine Reserve, the Snake Cayes and the Sapodilla Cayes Marine Reserve -the Southernmost reserve-, are all accessible from Punta Gorda. The town is primarily home to Maya and Garifuna People, also known as ‘Black-Caribs’. Garifuna People funded the town, escaping persecutions from Honduras (Escure 2004) have their own religious beliefs, though are also catholic and speak the Garifuna language. Most also speak English, or the local Belize Kriol.

Placencia

Placencia, in the Stann Creek district, is located along the Placencia peninsula; The reef is located closer than in Punta Gorda, where Laughing Bird Caye National Park and the Gladden Spit and Silk Cayes Marine Reserve are quickly accessible by boat and major tourist attractions. Placencia has seen tourism rapidly increase since the ‘80 (Key 2002) and the village continues to change and expatriate numbers are on the rise (pers. obs. since 2006). Placencia is predominantly a Creole village (Peedle 1999, Escure 2004), another major culture in Belize, and different from the Garifuna one. The food, the habits and the customs are different. There are some clashes known between the Garifuna and Creole people, especially with the neighboring Garifuna village of Seine Bight.

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Garifuna Settlement Day in Seine Beight - November 19th 2006. Copyright: S. Sabbagh

Photo taken in Livingston (La Buga) summer 2010 - motivated a lot of my MSc research. Copyright: S. Sabbagh