The aumaga of Moamoa-Fou officially opened their new nature trail traversing rehabilitated land and forest adjacent to the Gasegase River where invasive species have been removed, an agroforestry plot established with indigenous trees, and plastic waste cleared.

Member of the Conservation Society Samoa, Seiuli Ioane Etuale, explained that the trail leads to a foaga, an ancient grinding stone in the Gasegase River, which was historically used by local inhabitants to sharpen axes before metal tools were introduced to Samoa. 

"The opening of the nature trail is part of the "Our Future is Now" project, which aims to rebuild community pride in the natural and cultural eco-systems of Moamoa-Fou. This initiative involves the creation of a conservation area, an agroforestry garden, waste management efforts, and the management of invasive species within a 20-meter buffer zone of the river," he said. 

"The project is funded by the European Union and is a collaborative effort between us (SCS), SRWMA, and the Samoa Women's Association of Growers. Live and Learn Environmental Education recently joined this collaboration when Moamoa-Fou was selected as one of the two communities to pilot the new Community Resilient Islands program. This program focuses on community-led climate resilience through nature-positive approaches."

Meanwhile, Moamoa-Fou and Luatuanuu are the two local communities participating in a training-of-trainers program, which involves the SCS, Conservation International Samoa, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, and Live and Learn Samoa. 

A two-day workshop was conducted by these organisations as well for the Luatuanuu community, and according to the Director of Live and Learn, Michelle Abel, it was quite a fruitful interaction with the community. 

"Some 30 people participated in the two-day workshop. They discussed a community story of resilience and identified their nature-based assets and priorities for resilience. The two-day workshop will result in a community Resilience Profile, which will compile important cultural, environmental, and social information to assist them in developing community resilience actions," she said. 

"The completed Community Resilience Profiles will be presented to Luatuanu'u in June before beginning resilience action planning. Future stages of the programme include Indigenous Knowledge leadership workshops, access to funding for actions, procurement of necessary tools and equipment and more. 

"This pilot will also help determine next steps for continuing to adapt and integrate the CRI approach to more communities in Samoa, helping strengthen climate resilience throughout the country."