What relationships between man and the Coral Sea Park?

Aurélie Fourdrain, Marine Affairs Officer in charge of drafting the management plan, and Marlène Dégremont, in front of an attentive assembly - composed of representatives of environmental associations, customary, seafaring professionals and persons sensitive to the subject , Doctoral student in anthropology, initially made a presentation of the park. A place where green turtles lay, nest birds and feed on remarkable species such as sharks and whales. The stakes of the park and its orientations were also recalled in order to highlight the reflections of the working group.

A space of influence

The notion of preservation and valorization of the tangible and intangible cultural heritage could be better understood thanks to the intervention of Marlène Dégremont. The first results of his study on the links between man and the environment assess the place of the ocean in the Kanak organization and society, especially in the Hoot Ma Waap and Paici Cemuhi (North Province) customary areas. Thus, for the doctoral student, "we can speak in New Caledonia of a civilization attached to the sea or a population connected to the sea". Marlène Dégremont also stressed that in "protecting knowledge, nature is preserved". Moreover, his work shows that there are "historical-cultural links between different islands: Belep and reefs of Entrecasteaux, Walpole, Maré and Île des Pins, Hunter and Vanuatu ..., thus revealing the presence of a A real space of influence and stakes ". Little known links of the population.
Sensitizing Caledonians to this natural and cultural heritage is precisely one of the wishes expressed in the draft management plan for the Park, as well as the acquisition of new knowledge, the search for a better balance between conservation and development of activities Human rights, or the establishment of good governance principles.