Events
LaSMMI Webinar
September 10, 2026
2-4 pm EAT - Virtually
LaSMMI at the 13th WIOMSA Symposium
September, 2025
Mombasa, Kenya
🌱 On September 10, the Large-scale Seagrass Mapping and Management Initiative (LaSMMI) convened 136 researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and conservation professionals from across the Western Indian Ocean and beyond for the “Seagrass Science into Action” webinar, co‑hosted by WIOMSA, University of Southampton, and Pew Charitable Trusts.
🌿 Speakers from LaSMMI research institutions in Kenya, Tanzania, Madagascar, and Mozambique highlighted how regional collaboration and a shared, field-verified methodology are strengthening seagrass mapping, blue carbon assessments, and evidence-based management across the Western Indian Ocean, while supporting national conservation and climate goals.
🌿 During the Voices from the Field session, experts shared lessons from implementing standardized seagrass mapping, emphasizing the importance of knowledge exchange, national capacity building, and long-term partnerships.
🌿 In Beyond the Map, discussions focused on how seagrass data is informing policy and management, from Kenya's Seagrass and Coral Reef Strategy to national planning and conservation processes in Seychelles.
🌿 The message was clear: robust science, regional collaboration, and strong local leadership are essential to turning seagrass data into meaningful conservation and climate action.
Contributors: Lillian Daudi, Samson Job, Aina Le Don, Torres Taimo, Annike Faure, Lenice Ojwang, Damboia Cossa, Arthur TUDA, Gwilym Rowlands, Eylem Elma, Stacy K. Baez, and Inês Portugal Fernandes.
Some LaSMMI partners participated in the Western Indian Ocean Consortium (WIO‑C) meeting, which convened regional NGOs to share lessons, align priorities, and strengthen coordination on coastal and marine conservation across the Western Indian Ocean.
Discussions focused on advancing collaboration through thematic working groups, including a dedicated seagrass group, while contributing to the development of a regional seagrass strategy and broader coordinated conservation actions.
Ahead of the WIOMSA Scientific Symposium in Mombasa, Kenya in September 2025, the LaSMMI team convened a half‑day coordination meeting to strengthen collaboration and align priorities for 2025–2026. The meeting brought together seagrass researchers and policy partners from across the Western Indian Ocean—including Kenya, Tanzania (mainland and Zanzibar), Mozambique, and Madagascar—alongside representatives from the Pew Charitable Trusts, SeyCCAT, WIOMSA, and the University of Southampton, as well as policy partners within each country.
Participants reviewed country progress, shared updates on fieldwork and data processing, and discussed how regional seagrass mapping can better support national policy priorities, including commitments under Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). A strong emphasis was placed on regional learning and on linking scientific outputs with practical management and policy processes to maximize impact.
The meeting reaffirmed LaSMMI’s role in advancing a coordinated, science‑based approach to seagrass conservation across the Western Indian Ocean.
During the WIOMSA Symposium, LaSMMI also supported a Special Session to inform the development of a Regional Seagrass Strategy, helping partners come together around a shared vision for the future of seagrass management in the region.
Blue Carbon Ecosystems Science to Policy Workshop
April, 2025
Seychelles
Leaders and partners from across the Western Indian Ocean, including LaSMMI, convened at a regional roundtable co-hosted by the Government of Seychelles, SeyCCAT, and Pew Charitable Trusts to assess progress in blue carbon conservation, particularly seagrass, and identify next steps for success. Discussions highlighted growing momentum, particularly through initiatives like LaSMMI and the reaffirmation of government and partner commitments to ensure seagrass mapping and monitoring data inform decision making and are integrated into national policies and planning frameworks, including Nationally Determined Contributions and Marine Spatial Planning processes. Participants also emphasized the regional seagrass strategy under the Nairobi Convention as a key opportunity to align efforts and unlock long-term investment for seagrass conservation.
The second LaSMMI regional meeting brought together LaSMMI research and policy partners from across the Western Indian Ocean to share progress, strengthen collaboration, and advance coordinated seagrass conservation efforts.
Participants highlighted strong progress in fieldwork and regional capacity-building and collaboration, while emphasizing the importance of transforming data into practical outputs that can inform national policies such as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and marine spatial planning.
The meeting reinforced LaSMMI’s role as a growing regional community of practice, focused on bridging science and policy and ensuring that seagrass data supports long-term conservation, management, and climate impact across the region.
Seagrass Mapping and Management Workshop - LaSMMI Kickoff
October, 2024
Zanzibar
The 2025 Blue Carbon Ecosystems Science to Policy Workshop hosted by the Government of Seychelles, Seychelles Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT) and Pew, brought together LaSMMI researchers, policy partners and government representatives from Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Tanzania (including Zanzibar) and Seychelles for peer-to-peer knowledge exchange on science, the development of a regional seagrass strategy, and sustainable finance mechanisms for blue carbon ecosystems. The LaSMMI team had the opportunity to share seagrass updates and challenges from each country and to outline plans for future work and the integration of science into policy.
The first convening of the LaSMMI project took place in Zanzibar in October 2024 and brought together WIOMSA, Pew, University of Southampton, IUCN and country research partners to establish a common platform, foster engagement, clarify roles, and build linkages.
Read more about it here.
WIO-Consortium
April 13-15th, 2026
Maputo, Mozambique
Regional LaSMMI Meeting
April 16-17th, 2026
Maputo, Mozambique
Our Ocean Conference
June 16–18, 2026
Mombasa, Kenya
