BAHARI YETU
About Us
Bahari Yetu means “Our Ocean.”
And that’s exactly how we approach everything we do.We are a community-led marine monitoring and restoration initiative based in Zanzibar, working directly with local people to understand and protect the ecosystems they depend on every day.We train and equip local ocean stewards to run surveys themselves.
We pay for that work.
And we build systems that stay in the community long after we’re gone.
WHAT WE DO
We combine simple, field-proven methods with modern technology:BRUV systems to monitor fish populations and biodiversitySonar mapping to understand habitat structureSeagrass and sea urchin monitoring to track ecosystem balance and recoveryThen we layer in AI to process and analyse this data — turning hours of footage and field observations into clear, repeatable insights.
WHY IT MATTERS
A lot of conservation still relies on snapshots, assumptions, or one-off studies.We believe in something different:👉 Consistent data
👉 Local ownership
👉 Real-world actionBecause ecosystems don’t recover from reports — they recover from informed, ongoing management.
GOVERNANCE AND COMMUNITY ROLE
Local communities are involved in:Defining monitoring prioritiesParticipating in data collectionReviewing observations over timeDecision-making authority and benefit-sharing mechanisms are being structured locally, with transparency and traceability as core requirements.
RISK AND LIMITATIONS
Marine ecosystems are dynamic and influenced by natural variability and external pressures.
Baseline uncertainty, attribution limits, and long monitoring horizons remain material risks.Current work is exploratory and observational.
Claims will only be made where evidence supports them.
HOW WE WORK
We are actively adapting Savimbo’s Indicator Species Biodiversity Methodology (ISBM) to marine contexts, using repeatable, community-led sentinel species monitoring with strict governance continuity and automatic pause conditions on delivery lapses.
STATUS
Field observations ongoingMonitoring methods under refinementBase line phase planned for 2026Updates will reflect data availability rather than timelines.
Seagrass Research Centre
The Nyamanzi Seagrass Research & Monitoring Centre is being developed as the East Africa Regional Training & Development Hub for marine biodiversity assurance and community stewardship. Located on owned land in Nyamanzi village, it serves as the physical anchor for the project — combining routine monitoring, guardian training, community workshops, and a scalable replication model for coastal sites across Kenya, Tanzania, and beyond.
Data Collection
We are actively collecting high-resolution marine data using three complementary methods:BRUV (Baited Remote Underwater Video):
Capturing real-time fish communities to generate repeatable biodiversity and biomass indicators such as MaxN.Sonar Mapping:
Mapping seafloor structure and habitat distribution at scale, providing spatial context to biological observations.Sea Urchin & Seagrass Monitoring:
Running controlled and in-situ experiments to understand grazing pressure, ecosystem balance, and recovery dynamics.⸻AI IntegrationAll data streams are processed using AI-driven workflows:
• Automated species detection and counting from video
• Habitat classification and mapping from sonar
• Time-series analysis to track ecosystem changeThis allows us to move beyond observation — toward continuous, scalable, and actionable marine monitoring.
PARTNERSHIP AND WAY FORWARD
We are seeking strategic partners for co-development, seed support to complete the 6-month baseline, activate enforcement, and scale the Nyamanzi Hub model East Africa-wide.
CONTACT
Email - [email protected]
Content updated as field evidence becomes available.
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