Collaboration for conservation in the Portland Bight Protected Area, Jamaica

Port of Spain, 4 November 2024 – The Portland Bight Protected Area (PBPA) is Jamaica’s largest protected area. This multi-use protected area is home several marine and terrestrial species found nowhere else on earth, like the critically endangered Jamaican Iguana (Cyclura collei), which is restricted to the dry forests of the Hellshire Hills. The PBPA also hosts industrial activities, commerce and human settlements, with many people relying directly on its marine and terrestrial ecosystems to make a living. Its conservation, therefore, relies not only on strong environmental management but also on the active participation of the local communities that depend on its resources. Throughout 2024, the Caribbean Coastal Area Management (C-CAM) Foundation, with support from the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF), launched a series of participatory activities under its project ‘Management Planning and Implementation in the Portland Bight Protected Area, Jamaica’ to integrate both local communities and environmental managers into conservation efforts as they undertake the critical task of updating the area’s management plan.

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