The Catlin Seaview Survey (external link) has published some amazing photospheres from their March 2014 survey of Tubbataha Reefs, Philippines, on Google Maps. Click the links below for a glimpse of the irreplaceable natural treasures that the CTI-CFF Countries are working to protect. For the related story, click here.

The first four flagship sites of the Coral Triangle Marine Protected Area System (CTMPAS) were unveiled on May 13 during a launch event held on the sidelines of the World Coral Reef Conference in Manado, Indonesia.

Indonesia’s Vice President Boediono on May 16 received a preview tour of the facility that will house the CTI-CFF Regional Secretariat.

Located in Grand Kawanua International City (GKIC) in Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia, the new 1.5-hectare CTI Centre Complex was built by the Indonesian Government to serve as the regional hub of the CTI-CFF.

An innovative platform to highlight the role of women leaders in protecting and sustaining the world’s epicenter of marine biodiversity was launched on May 13 at the sidelines of the World Coral Reef Conference in Manado, Indonesia.

The CTI-CFF Council of Ministers (COM) on May 15 approved the Coral Triangle Center (CTC) (external link) as a CTI-CFF Partner.

The 5th CTI-CFF Ministerial Meeting (MM5) approved the establishment of a new thematic Technical Working Group (TWG), bringing to five the total number of active TWGs under the CTI-CFF. Each TWG corresponds to one of the five thematic goals of the CTI-CFF Regional Plan of Action (RPOA).

Called the Threatened Species Working Group (TSWG), the new TWG will be primarily responsible for facilitating progress on Goal 5 of the RPOA (improving the status of threatened species). Its specific functions include:

On May 15, the CTI-CFF Ministers agreed to adopt two regional resource management frameworks developed for the Coral Triangle for national policy making.

Papua New Guinea (PNG) is the new Chair of the CTI-CFF Council of Ministers (CTI COM), and the Philippines is the new Vice Chair. Their term began on May 16, 2014, and will end on May 16, 2016, or “when the next Ministerial Meeting will be held after 16 May 2016.”

The CTI-CFF Council of Ministers (CTI COM), acting on the recommendation of the Committee of Senior Officials, has approved the 2014 Operations Plan and Budget for the soon-to-be established permanent Regional Secretariat of the CTI-CFF.

The CTI-CFF marked its 5th anniversary with a major milestone and received assurances of continued support from its Partners.