In a remote coastal village in Zamboanga del Sur, the task of protecting a marine sanctuary falls upon a six-person team of environmental workers who keep the sea and mangrove forest safe from greedy commercial fishers. But the job is made triply difficult by pirates, warlords and insurgents lurking in the surrounding conflict-ridden pockets of Mindanao, according to officials. For meeting and rising above these challenges, the Tambunan Marine Protected Area (MPA) in the small fishing town of Tabina was declared the most outstanding at the 4th Para el Mar Awards and Recognition held at InterContinental Manila in Makati City last week.

Yap, D. (2013, August 25). Defenders of marine sanctuary win award . Philippine Daily Inquirer, pp. A1, A14.