Delphine Robbe

Gili Eco Trust – Indonesia

Delphine Robbe is a marine and land Conservationist actively involved in the protection of reefs and environment of the Gili Islands of Indonesia. She is a French national who specializes in Coral propagation, coral nurseries, Biorock reef restorations and reef gardening. She shares her passion via workshops and educational events, presentations; working with locals, including the children and volunteers; networking with other environmental organizations; and consulting the Indonesian government for sustainable practices. 

Before the 2000s, the reefs were frequently fished with dynamite and cyanide, destroying all the coral and killing the aquatic life inhabiting the reefs. Coral reefs had been left in a disastrous state after the intense El Niño in 1997-1998. The local population reacted and organized patrols to eliminate and educate against the bad fishing practices. 

Gili Eco Trust‘s main project on land is improving waste management, an ongoing issue for Gili Islands, especially because of tourism: education, recycling and upcycling as well as tackling erosion, humane treatment of horses, and safety for turtles, cat clinics, etc. She is helping to reduce the use of single-use plastics on the island, and works alongside locals collecting and recycling glass bottles, which are then crushed into sand and made into bricks.

Location: Gili Islands, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

Organization: Gili Eco Trust (2002)

Website: 1) https://giliecotrust.com/about/
2) https://marculyseas.wordpress.com/2009/08/12/biorock-delphine…

Podcast: https://www.hashtagimpact.com/podcasts…

Video 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtFeiVFdIRI
Video 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixVx57FhoBE