International Hotel Supports CTI-CFF Goals, Leads Sustainable Seafood Drive in Malaysia

On December 8, 2011, Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa launched its first-ever sustainable seafood awareness campaign in Sabah, Malaysia, supporting the CTI-CFF’s goals to promote the ecosystem approach to fisheries in the Coral Triangle. During the launch, the management of the 492-room resort committed to sourcing its seafood from sustainable suppliers through local fishermen organizations in the nearby Tun Mustapha Park. This initiative encourages local fishing communities to stop using destructive fishing practices and helps protect the marine ecosystem in the area.

The one-million-hectare park is among the biodiversity hotspots of the Coral Triangle and is home to Malaysia’s second-largest concentration of coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass beds, and endangered marine species, including turtles and dugongs. Shangri-La’s efforts to protect the marine environment were also highlighted at the CTI-CFF Regional Business Forum in Kuala Lumpur in October 2011 and are being used as a model for public-private initiatives in the region. The resort collaborates with the Sabah government and USAID’s US Coral Triangle Initiative Support Program through WWF-Malaysia in its sustainable fisheries projects.