Misool Foundation runs a suite of marine conservation projects

Misool Marine Reserve

Rampant shark finning and unchecked destructive fishing were destroying some of the most important and bio-diverse reefs on earth. In 2005, Misool and the local community reached an agreement to lease the island of Batbitim, which would become the site of the resort.  Misool also leased a large area of sea surrounding the resort island.  This contract evicted the itinerant shark-finners the area.  

Misool Foundation has since expanded and now protects a 300,000 acres/1220 sq km Marine Reserve at the heart of global marine biodiversity.  This is nearly twice the size of Singapore.  The Reserve is comprised of 2 distinct No-Take Zones and a linking restricted-gear blue water corridor.  

The Marine Reserve is patrolled by a team of local Rangers, with backup from Marine Police.  The Rangers move between the base camp and Ranger Stations on Yellit, Kalig, and Daram.  The Rangers maintain constant vigilance over the Marine Reserve with physical patrols, radar, and drone surveillance. Misool Foundation and the Ranger Patrol do not receive any support from the Raja Ampat government or pin tag system. 

Learn more about the Misool Marine Reserve and how it's working.    

Misool community education

Misool Foundation built a kindergarten (called Taman Kanak-kanak Baseftin Al-Ma'arif in Indonesian) in the village of Fafanlap, about 75 minutes from the resort island by speedboat.  In January 2017, renovations were completed and the school welcomed a new class of 39 students and 3 teachers. 

The Foundation also sponsors several primary school teachers in local villages, as well as a dedicated English teacher.  Misool guests can help support this important project by bringing some simple English-language books to donate to local schools.  

Learn more about our Misool Community Education Project here.  

misool manta project

Established in 2011, The Misool Manta Projects’ key objectives are to study, educate, inspire and protect.

The Misool Manta Project teaches our guests, engages local community members, and conducts critical research on both Oceanic mantas (Manta birostris) and Reef mantas (Manta alfredi). The Project provides robust population data to the government, NGO’s, communities and conservationists.  This data has been leveraged to push the protection of mantas and ensure the long-term survival of these charismatic megafauna as well as their habitat.

Guests can help support this project by contributing Manta ID photos to our database.  We'll let you know exactly what we need.  Learn more here.  

Misool Community Recycling Project

Called Bank Sampah in Indonesian, the Misool Community Recycling Project incentivizes small communities to properly dispose of waste.  Misool Foundation purchases 36 types of rubbish directly from underserved coastal communities.  The waste materials are collected and then shipped back to mainland, where the goods are sorted, cleaned, chipped, and packed for recycling.  The Misool Community Recycling Project collected 700 tons of rubbish last year - that's 700 tons of rubbish you won't see on your dives around Misool.  Learn more here.