The Covid-19 pandemic exposed weak community preparedness to respond to the crisis and poor sanitation and living standards at Pulau Omadal that facilitate the spread of disease. Left unattended, current environmental and social conditions can potentially aggravate future outbreaks. This project will address the identified gaps by: i) fostering community capacity to manage sanitation and health risks; ii) empowering children and youth by increasing marine stewardship and to use media as advocacy and education tools and to enhance economic opportunities

Specifically, we will engage with the residents of Malaysian and stateless fishing communities on Omadal to pilot a demonstration waste disposal system to affect behavioral change in trash disposal; equip community members with knowledge to recognise and seek appropriate health interventions; integrate marine stewardship in ongoing literacy classes for children, and train youth to use media as a platform for cultural expression, advocacy, education and extra income generation.

Together these strategies address the thematic categories of i) help prevent zoonoses and future pandemics; ii) communication and lessons sharing through culturally appropriate means; and iii) local bio-circular economy approaches based on reciprocity. The strategies will improve on the lack of waste management and of resources for the residents to manage health risks, and mitigate the consequences of engrained social marginalisation.

We expect the pilot waste management system to achieve increased cleanliness on Omadal that will help to reduce physical hazards, pathways for disease transmission, and marine pollution in the long-term. The expected outcome of our health campaign is greater understanding and preparedness to deal with health risks especially Covid-19, increased practice of good hygiene among residents and understanding the importance of childhood vaccination. Finally, we anticipate that Malaysian and stateless youth will gain self-esteem through the acquisition of media skills and its application for cultural expression, advocacy, education and to generate extra income.

The synergistic benefits to environmental and human health that are likely to arise will build socio-ecological resilience at Omadal. Thus, our project delivers on two important criteria for ICCA-GSI projects: i) supports indigenous fishing communities otherwise marginalised from government services; and ii) provides enabling factors for communities to cope with environmental and health risks, especially in response to Covid-19.