Eyes on the Sea: How Bantay Dagat Volunteers Protect Philippine Marine Life

Target 14.2 – Sustainably manage and protect marine and coastal ecosystems

The Philippines is home to one of the most biologically rich marine environments in the world. But for decades, overfishing, coral bleaching, pollution, and illegal practices like dynamite fishing have threatened its coastlines. In many areas, marine life declined sharply. Local fishers were catching less, travelling farther, and struggling to earn a living.

But along the shores of Palawan, a quiet kind of protection has taken root. It doesn’t come from national navy patrols or big-budget conservation programmes. It comes from Bantay Dagat, community-based “sea wardens” who volunteer their time, boats, and knowledge to protect the ocean they depend on.

The Bantay Dagat programme started in the 1990s as a response to illegal fishing. But in the past decade, it has evolved into something far more impactful, a people-powered system for marine ecosystem protection, resource monitoring, education and law enforcement.

Take Barangay Binduyan, just north of Puerto Princesa. In 2016, a group of residents decided to reactivate their local Bantay Dagat unit. At first, they had little equipment, one small pump boat, no uniforms, and borrowed binoculars. But they had something more valuable: deep knowledge of the tides, reefs, and patterns of local fishers.

They began patrolling every other night, working with local authorities to monitor Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). When they spotted illegal gear or boats fishing in no-take zones, they logged the activity and filed reports. In some cases, they confronted violators directly, carefully and within legal channels.

Within a year, the difference was visible. Coral beds once scarred by dynamite began to recover. Fish stocks returned. Sea turtles were spotted more frequently. The wardens even found a way to engage younger volunteers by holding weekly ocean awareness talks in local schools and on the beach.

By 2020, the Binduyan team was coordinating with NGOs, marine biologists and the city fisheries office. They received new training, better equipment, and recognition from the mayor’s office. But most importantly, they earned the trust of their own community.

Local fishers began to see the results in their own nets. Catches increased. Conflicts over territory dropped. Some illegal fishers even joined the programme, turning their knowledge into service.

The key to the programme’s success is that it’s built for and by the community. Volunteers are not flown in from outside. They are the neighbours, cousins, and fellow fishers of the people they protect the waters from. This creates a level of accountability, and effectiveness, that formal enforcement alone cannot match.

Bantay Dagat units now exist in hundreds of coastal communities across the Philippines. Each one adapts to its local context, but all share a common mission: protect the marine ecosystem not as a distant idea, but as a daily practice. The Philippine government supports the programme through the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), but the power sits with the people.

This is what SDG 14.2 looks like when it’s led from the water’s edge. Not a glossy marine park brochure or drone footage of pristine reefs, but real people in real boats, making small decisions that add up to ecosystem-level change.

These sea wardens are unpaid. They often face long nights, rough weather, and limited recognition. But ask them why they do it, and the answer is always the same: because the ocean feeds us, and if we don’t protect it, no one will.

Your Voice. Your Target. Your Legacy.

If your school, town, or coastal group wants to help protect the ocean, begin by learning from those already watching it. Support local guardians. Fund a boat. Offer training. Raise awareness. Or start your own shore patrol and let the people who depend on the sea lead the way.

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We’ll help you keep eyes on the water, and fish in the sea.