Enforcement of Marine Protected Area
An un-enforced MPA is not an MPA. I look into factors that led to effective/uneffective enforcement of marine sanctuaries.In particular, I am interested in how fishers, coastal communities and the local government leader can develop strategies that build upon the strength of each group to strengthen MPA enforcement.During the International Marine Conservation Congress 2009 at Washington DC on May 19-24, 2009, I presented my ideas on how to engage communities in enforcing MPAs in a safer and more strategic role. I propose that fishers and communities be engaged as "eyes and "ears" , rather than taking the law by their own "hands". For more info, please click either the abstract or presentation.
Biological Effectiveness of MPAs
Fishers and local communities expect that fishes are bigger in size and higher in abundance inside than outside the MPAs. I am interested in studying whether such expectations are achieved by MPAs. In 2007, we publish a paper supporting such hypothesis, given that MPAs are well-enforced. Please click here for the paper.
Statistical Analysis of Data with Many Zeroes
Fish count data are typically skewed with many zeroes. For my master and PhD studies, I look into different statistical approach to analyze such data including the use of negative binomial regression, zero-inflated models and zero-altered (or hurdle or Delta-Type Two-Step) models. During the 2010 Association of Tropical Biology and Conservation conference at Bali, Indonesia, I presented the result of my master thesis on estimation of fish abundance using Delta-Type Two-Step model. Using a zero-altered negative binomial model, I showed that abundance of parrotfishes are best predicted by location whereas presence (or absence) is best predicted by season and period of MPA implementation. For more info, please click here for the abstract or presentation