From Seagrass Conservation to Sustainable Livelihoods: Community-Based Spirulina Farming in Indonesia
Along the coast of Tarabitan in North Sulawesi, seagrass meadows provide vital ecological and socio-economic benefits. They support fisheries, shelter marine biodiversity, and provide essential feeding grounds for dugongs. For coastal communities, these ecosystems are closely tied to everyday life, livelihoods, and food security. Yet across the region, seagrass habitats face increasing pressure from coastal development, pollution, fishing and boating activities, and climate change.
The decline of seagrass ecosystems is therefore not only an environmental concern, but also a direct threat to the resilience and economic wellbeing of the communities that depend on them.
The IKI Seagrass Ecosystem Services (SES) Project responds to this challenge. Funded by the International Climate Initiative (IKI) and implemented under the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) through its Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation and Management of Dugongs (Dugong dugon) and their Habitats throughout their Range (Dugong MOU), the project works across India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Timor-Leste to strengthen the conservation of seagrass meadows and the biodiversity they support.
At its core, the project is guided by a simple principle: seagrass conservation is more sustainable when local communities are actively involved, when ecosystem services are better understood, and when conservation is linked to practical livelihood opportunities.
Creating alternative livelihoods linked to conservation
In Indonesia, this approach has been translated into community-based spirulina farming. Established in Tarabitan and Yogyakarta, the initiative provides alternative income opportunities for coastal communities while strengthening the connection between livelihoods and marine system stewardship.
Spirulina, a nutrient-rich microalgage cultivated in controlled pond systems, was selected as a viable livelihood option that can diversify household income and reduce dependence on direct marine resource extraction. It complements existing economic activities, including small-scale fisheries and emerging ecotourism.
This approach reflects central challenges in community-based marine conservation: protecting ecosystems while supporting the people who depend on them. Where conservation is based solely on restrictions, it is often difficult to sustain. When communities see tangible benefits from conservation, local support and long-term sustainability are strengthened.
Local women rely on gleaning along seagrass meadows as an important source of food and income for their families. © YAPEKA
From pilot initiative to community enterprise
The spirulina initiative began as a pilot in North Sulawesi, led by Yayasan Pendidikan Konservasi Alam (YAPEKA) with technical support from EnerGaia. A parallel training farm was also established in Yogyakarta to build technical capacity among local partners and communities.
In Tarabitan, the model was further developed with a conservation financing mechanism designed to allocate a portion of income directly to local seagrass conservation efforts.
By 2024, the initiative had transitioned from pilot testing to full implementation, with locally operated spirulina farms established in both Tarabitan and Yogyakarta in collaboration with local partners, including YAPEKA, PT Niras and local communities.
These farms are now operated by local villagers with support from a community-based field coordinator. Beyond production, they function as training hubs where community members learn cultivation, harvesting, drying, packaging, and marketing processes.
Community members and project partners during a spirulina production workshop. © YAPEKA
Building local ownership and skills
Community ownership is central to the long-term sustainability of the initiative. Women and other community members play an active role in production, processing, and sales, ensuring that local people are directly engaged in the enterprise.
Beyond the technical training, YAPEKA supported communities in branding, marketing, and building partnerships with universities and potential commercial buyers. These elements are essential, as long-term success depends not only on production but also on market access, product visibility, and sustained demand.
By August 2024, the farms had achieved a production capacity of more than 4,000 portions per day, with products distributed across Indonesia and potential for wider market expansion.
Construction of the spirulina farm 2023. © PT Niras
© Erik Lukas
Connecting income to conservation
A key feature of the model is its conservation financing mechanism. Under the Mermaid Spirulina business model, 10 percent of profits are reinvested into marine ecosystem conservation.
Rather than treating income generation and environmental protection as separate objectives, the model integrates them into a single locally managed enterprise. In Tarabitan, this reinvestment complements the work of Kelompok Masyarakat Pengawas (POKMASWAS), a local community-based environmental monitoring group supporting marine resource management and volunteer data collection.
This creates a direct link between enterprise, local stewardship, and ecosystem conservation, demonstrating how small-scale, community-led businesses can contribute to ecosystem protection.
Community members separating spirulina from water during the production process. © YAPEKA
Supporting seagrass and dugong conservation
The value of the spirulina initiative lies in its connection to seagrass conservation and dugong habitat protection. Seagrass meadows are critical feeding grounds for dugongs and provide essential ecosystem services, including fisheries productivity, carbon storage, and coastal protection.
The SES project does not position spirulina farming as a substitute for direct conservation action. Instead, it forms part of a broader integrated approach that includes seagrass monitoring and assessment, participatory science, policy engagement, capacity building, and awareness raising.
Across participating countries, local NGOs and communities are trained to collect seagrass data and identify important habitats. These datasets inform conservation planning and support policy development at national and regional levels.
In Indonesia, project-generated data has contributed to marine spatial planning processes in North Sulawesi and supported updates to national seagrass and dugong conservation planning frameworks, including updates to Indonesia’s National Action Plan (NAP) and conservation database.
Community-led monitoring © YAPEKA
A model for community-based conservation financing
Many conservation initiatives rely heavily on external funding, which can limit long-term sustainability beyond the project lifetime. By linking enterprise revenue directly to conservation contributions, the spirulina model provides a modest but consistent mechanism for local financing.
The model also highlights practical challenges, including the need to expand markets, maintain product quality, strengthen business partnerships, and ensure sustained income.
However, its significance lies in demonstrating that conservation can be integrated into local economic development rather than treated as a separate activity.
The Indonesian spirulina initiative demonstrates how conservation financing can be embedded into local economic systems.
© Erik Lukas
Lessons from the Indonesia case
The spirulina farms in Tarabitan and Yogyakarta offer several broader lessons for community-based marine conservation.
Conservation outcomes are more likely to succeed when they align with local livelihood needs. Communities are more willing and able to support seagrass and dugong conservation when sustainable income opportunities are also available.
Even small-scale conservation finance mechanisms, such as reinvesting a portion of profits, can strengthen local stewardship and ownership.
Livelihoods initiatives are most effective when integrated into wider conservation systems that include monitoring, policy engagement, and community participation. On their own, they cannot protect seagrass ecosystems or dugongs, but together they reinforce broader conservation outcomes.
Alternative livelihood initiatives require more than technical training. Marketing, branding, business development, and market access are equally critical to ensure future viability beyond project support.
Linking livelihoods and ecosystem stewardship
The community-based spirulina farms in Indonesia demonstrate how the IKI Seagrass Ecosystem Services Project connects conservation with local economic resilience.
Their significance lies not only in spirulina production, but in the system built around it: community management of enterprise, technical support from partners such as YAPEKA, and reinvestment of profit into marine conservation activities.
This integrated model reflects a core message of the SES project: long-term seagrass conservation is most effective when communities are not only participants in conservation, but also direct beneficiaries of it.
To see the community-based spirulina farms in action, watch the video here.
By linking livelihoods, local stewardship, and ecosystem protection, the spirulina model offers a practical and scalable example of how conservation can become part of a community’s economic future.