Our non-governmental organization applied for funding provided by the Municipality of Tivat for NGOs, and the supported project is called Wave Watch Montenegro – Empowering Communities for Marine Conservation.

The project prioritizes environmental protection and sustainable development by engaging key local stakeholders in marine conservation. There is currently no centralized database through which citizens can report sightings or strandings. Instead, the reporting process is confusing, despite the strong interest of the local community in conservation. MDR created a group, first of its kind in Montenegro -WAVE WATCH Montenegro. This group will enable citizens to collect and publicly share data on the sighting and stranding of dolphins, sea turtles, and Mediterranean monk seals via an online WhatsApp group.

Anyone interested can join the group through the following link: https://chat.whatsapp.com/G1wwBDer6LPIAohlvRA9Nl

The goal of the project is to educate the community and raise national and international awareness about the importance of Boka Kotorska for the sentinel species, as well as to create an effective marine protection system. The local population will play a key role in this effort.

The project specifically focuses on the tourism and fisheries sectors, including boat and marina owners, skippers, travel agencies, fishers, fish and shellfish farmers, divers, as well as the general public and relevant local and national institutions.

The project started on May 14 and will last for one year. During its implementation, two formal and two informal meetings will be held with stakeholders to introduce them to the species inhabiting the Adriatic Sea. As part of the project, protocols for sightings and strandings will be developed, along with guidelines for watching whales and dolphins.. Participants in the meetings will be introduced to these protocols and guidelines.

Activities of the project: 

• Creating a list of stakeholders
• Meetings with targeted stakeholders
• Workshops with targeted stakeholders
• Questionnaires
• Designing observation/stranding protocols and aligning them with stakeholders
• Designing guidelines for animal watching
• Creating project visibility materials
• Visual and audio media announcements
• Social media announcements

The proposed project is based on previous scientific research and the experience of our NGO MDR, as well as on identified gaps in knowledge. Sentinel species (dolphins, sea turtles, and Mediterranean monk seals) have been recognized as priority species for protection. The Bay of Kotor is particularly significant because it hosts a resident population of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus), regular sightings of sea turtles, and potential habitats for the Mediterranean monk seal. According to the IUCN all these species are threatened, which makes this location important due to the urgency of implementing conservation measures. There is interest from local stakeholders in marine conservation to support the sustainable economic development of the country. The proposed project builds on previous knowledge and identified needs, with activities aimed at achieving the ultimate goal – setting an example for the entire Adriatic region through locally-led marine ecosystem conservation action.