(PACAM News report)- “At first, I thought it was impossi- ble to do the job. It involves count- ing the fish eggs being hatched in the tanks. But I learned how to do it: we pour some eggs over a net, count them up, and do the math formulas to calculate the number of eggs. Now, I enjoy my work. I pay atten- tion to the tanks and follow all the rules. It can be challenging working with the men. Sometimes, they don’t want to listen to me; but if they’re not following the hatchery rules, the [moi fish] ‘babies’ could get sick and die. Then we’d all be out of a job. I’m learning more about aquacul- ture, and becoming more respon- sible as Aquaculture Technologies of the Marshall Islands (ATMI) grows. There is so much to learn about aquaculture. My six broth- ers are already in the U.S., but right now I am happy to be here in Majuro and have a good job.”
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USAID’s Pacific-American Climate Fund is supporting ATMI to diversify the income of fishers by growing and exporting commercially valuable moi fish. ATMI is also manufacturing fish feed to support the aquaculture sector, and training the local workforce in aquaculture — including training more women like Sonya to partici- pate in male-dominated aquaculture activities. PACAM is helping to improve the livelihoods of the communities of the Marshall Islands’ low-lying atolls to boost their resilience in the face of a changing climate.
The Pacific-American Climate Fund (PACAM), is a grant-making facility funded by the U. S. Agency for International De- velopment (USAID) and administered by Partners for Global Research and Devel- opment, LLC (PGRD) that assists 12 Pa- cific Island countries to reduce long-term vulnerabilities associated with climate change. PACAM awards grants to civil society organizations in support of climate change adaptation measures and related “co-benefits,” such as livelihoods enhance- ment, improved health, food security, disaster risk reduction, or sustainable natural resources management. [/restrict]