At least one of the islands in the Fiji Group is serious about conservation of its natural resources.
The Ono-i-Lau community is keen to complete its 20-year plan for sustainable development in one of its most isolated districts.
The is to ensure development needs in the district are maintained together with natural resource management and enhancement of community livelihoods.
This is perhaps the first progressive independent attempt made by any district in Fiji.
As part of the broader attempt to protect the island's unique biodiversity, the project primarily targets sustaining community development and livelihoods.
Since October 2007, the Ono community, with the support of the United Nations Development Fund, WWF and the Lau provincial office, have been working to promote better natural resource management on Ono-i-Lau because of the area's significance as a national biodiversity hotspot.
This threatened biodiversity hotspot will be maintained by applying a participatory integrated approach to ecosystem management.
The overall goal is to maintain the productivity of their natural resources for subsistence need, income generation and leverage for development while not hindering the viability of the unique biodiversity on the island.
Kesaia Tabunakawai, of WWF, said one of the major obstacles to the district's development was the island's isolation.
"The isolation of Ono-i-Lau contributes to some of the challenges the island communities face in regards to service access, development and opportunity," said Ms Tabunakawai.
"Taking this variable into consideration, having this plan developed is important as it identifies what exactly the communities need to focus on in terms of self-sufficiency or what can be done by themselves, for example, community food security or renewable energy and directing the more heavy development needs through the Government," she said.
Over the past six months the Ono community has drafted a 20-year district development plan.
It was identified in 2007 that much of what happens on the island in terms of development was on an ad hoc needs basis.
The idea behind this plan is to ensure the community are more strategic in their long term development planning needs and are able to facilitate actions within the plan independently or channel them effectively through their government representatives.
The project partners have been engaging other functional and social bodies on the island for their input into the development of this plan so that they take ownership of it.
This includes the Ono Women's Committee, Ono Youth Association, Ono School Committee, Nursing Station and the church committee each linking back to the Ono District Council.
