Who We Are
About Marine Conservation Myanmar
A community-driven reef restoration initiative born out of love for Myanmar's coastal ecosystems — and urgency to protect them before damage becomes irreversible.
Our Story
Myanmar's First Structured Coral Restoration Programme
Marine Conservation Myanmar was founded with a clear-eyed understanding of a critical gap: Ngwe Saung Beach — one of Myanmar's most important coastal tourism destinations — had no formal reef monitoring, no nursery infrastructure, and no coordinated conservation effort of any kind.
The reefs are under mounting pressure from climate-driven bleaching events, anchor damage from tourist and fishing boats, destructive fishing practices, and coastal sedimentation. Without a structured response, the damage accumulates with no mechanism for recovery.
We established Marine Conservation Myanmar to fill that void — deploying a proven rope nursery methodology adapted to Ngwe Saung's sandy-bottom conditions, building real scientific data about the reefs for the first time, and placing community ownership at the centre of everything we do.
Our Location
Ngwe Saung Beach stretches over 20 kilometres along the Ayeyarwady Region coastline. It is one of Myanmar's premier coastal tourism destinations, drawing thousands of visitors annually and supporting a thriving local fishing community whose livelihoods depend entirely on healthy marine ecosystems.
Our Core Purpose
To restore degraded coral reefs at Ngwe Saung Beach and build long-term community stewardship of marine ecosystems — creating a model that can be replicated across Myanmar's entire coastline.
The Founders
The People Behind the Project
Marine Conservation Myanmar was founded by two individuals who share a commitment to science-based, community-centred reef restoration.
Nyan Linn Aung (Georgie Aung)
Georgie is the driving force behind the reef restoration programme at Ngwe Saung. With deep roots in Myanmar's coastal communities and a passion for marine ecosystems, he established Marine Conservation Myanmar to bring structured, evidence-based reef conservation to a region that urgently needs it. He leads field operations, community engagement, and programme strategy.
Igor Stanisic
Igor co-founded Marine Conservation Myanmar to bring scientific rigour and programme architecture to the Ngwe Saung initiative. He focuses on the rope nursery methodology, monitoring protocol design, and building the institutional partnerships that will ensure the programme's long-term sustainability. His work bridges field conservation with scientific credibility.
Our Approach
Community Ownership First
We believe lasting reef conservation only works when the local community owns it. Every programme element is designed to transfer knowledge and capacity to people who live and work on these reefs.
Training Local Capacity
A core group of 10–20 local dive guides, fishers, and resort staff are trained in fragmentation, nursery maintenance, monitoring, and transplantation — transferring conservation ownership to the community.
Stakeholder Partnerships
Formalised relationships with beach resorts, dive centres, government fisheries departments, and international NGOs provide logistical support, institutional endorsement, and shared communications platforms.
Science-Led Decisions
All management decisions are driven by real monitoring data — fragment survival rates, species suitability, reef zone assessments — so our restoration work adapts to what the data shows, not assumptions.
Low-Tech, High Impact
Rope nurseries are deliberately designed so local dive guides and fishers can maintain them without PhD-level expertise or imported technology. Community-operable from day one.
Replicable Model
Once proven at Ngwe Saung, this model is designed to be replicated across Myanmar's coastline. Our goal is a national reef restoration network built on community-led rope nursery programmes.
Indo-Pacific Proven
Rope nurseries have achieved 60–90% survival rates across the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Maldives. We bring that proven methodology to Myanmar for the first time.
The Challenge
Threats Facing Ngwe Saung's Reefs
- Rising sea temperatures from climate change causing coral bleaching events
- Boat anchoring directly breaking and smothering coral structures
- Destructive and overfishing practices depleting reef fish populations
- Unregulated tourism and snorkelling causing physical coral damage
- Coastal runoff and sedimentation reducing water quality
- No baseline reef data — damage has been accumulating invisibly
- No nursery infrastructure or coordinated restoration effort
- Loss of fish habitat reducing catches for local fishers
The Cost of Inaction
Continued reef degradation puts the entire Ngwe Saung ecosystem at risk. Loss of fish habitat reduces catches for local fishers. Reduced reef attractiveness weakens eco-tourism. Declining biodiversity undermines the overall coastal ecosystem.
Without intervention, damage becomes irreversible within years. That urgency is why Marine Conservation Myanmar exists.