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alternative to declining marine fisheries, helping communities without other livelihood options. Culturally, aquaculture keeps fishermen within their own realm, and it may diminish the problems associated with cultural identity loss when traditional livelihoods die (McGoodwin 2001).22 Finally, development of small-scale aquaculture helps to provide a supply of high-quality food. Small-scale aquaculture could use the same principles employed by small-scale fair trade farmers. Such projects would require the establishment of much clearer land rights that support the interests of indigenous and impoverished communities, and they should ensure that the local community keeps the right to manage aquaculture production, without outside influence from big corporations. Guidelines that prevent abuse of natural resources and pollution and protect the surrounding environment need to be incorporated, as do rules that (a) permit only the cultivation of native species, (b) ensure proper nutrient cycling to minimize release, and (c) impose production limits to keep the ponds from overproducing and eventually collapsing.23 Additionally, the development of aquaculture should not undermine capture fisheries, for example, by relying on juveniles caught in the wild for stocking ponds. Aquaculture must also be climate-proofed. Protecting aquaculture from the effects of climate change and variability calls for the use of adaptation mechanisms such as building deeper ponds and selecting species for culture that can withstand possible sea level rise, saltwater intrusion, and temperature change. Possibly, climate change and variability will even create more favorable conditions for aquaculture, in particular marine aquaculture: areas where rising sea levels are expected to cause salinization and in some cases inundate freshwater resources may become suitable for development of marine-based aquaculture.24
Preparing for Climate Change and Variability in the Tourist Industry Because climate change and variability have potential to damage tourism significantly, and because tourism is a main poverty alleviation tool, the industry needs to consider climate implications in project development to safeguard communities that rely on it. As stated by UNWTO Secretary General Francesco Frangialli, “Climate change as well as poverty alleviation will remain central issues for the world community. Tourism is an important element in both. Governments and the private sector must place increased importance on these factors in tourism development strategies and in climate and poverty strategies. They are interdependent and must be dealt with in a holistic fashion� (UNWTO 2008).