Why are strong platforms needed in the Coral Triangle Region?
Strong platforms provide a common, trusted location or institutional source of resources that can inform and build consensus where all Coral Triangle countries share a stake and can meet to continue the exchange and integration of ideas with coordinated efforts. Platforms are defined as multi-country associations of agencies, organizations, and/or individuals for the purpose of sharing experiences, information, and best practices and developing common approaches, action plans, and policies for addressing regional challenges and issues. The development and strengthening of a platform refers to improved organizational structure, clarification of platform goals and vision, development of platform agenda action items, training of platform members, or increased awareness of platform activities including workshops and forums.

How does the U.S. Government help strengthen regional and national platforms in the Coral Triangle?
The US Government, through the US CTI Support Program, is strengthening regional and national platforms in the Coral Triangle through the following activities:

• Provides technical, logistical and management support to the CTI Council of Ministers, Senior Officials Meetings, Regional Secretariat, National CTI Coordination Committees and Technical Working Groups to complete their work in implementing the CTI Regional and National Action Plans
• Supports the development of a CTI Toolkit that provides tools for planning and implementing an integrated approach to ecosystem based fisheries management, marine protected areas, and climate change adaptation. The CTI Toolkit will include existing tools developed by US CTI Support Program Partners as well as new tools developed to fill gaps.
• Supports regional and national associations of local governments to strategically integrate marine and coastal management at the local level
• Supports the Coral Triangle countries and partners in developing and sustaining a CTI Regional Learning Network to collect and share tools, case studies, curricula, and other knowledge products on marine resource management through an interactive online portal.
• Supports activities to engage private sector constituencies in CTI through public-private partnerships in the regional, country and community level.

Milestones Achieved in Strengthening Regional and National Platforms in the Coral Triangle
The US Government, through the US CTI Support Program, is strengthening regional and national platforms in the Coral Triangle through the following activities:

• Supported meeting of CT6 country representatives to the UNFCCC to discuss climate change negotiations and impact on the Coral Triangle
• Provided scientific expert and information on climate change at SOM4 to help prepare CT6 government officials for COP15
• Developed a strategy to address priority issues of regional concern for conducting policy forums in consultation with CTI bodies
• Developed policy briefs on priority policy issues of regional concern in consultation with regional experts and CTI bodies
• Conducted regional exchange activities on marine protected area management, climate change adaptation strategies and live reef fish trade sustainability, fisheries law enforcement and Support networking of regional exchange participants to continue sharing lessons learned
• Provision of small grants to organizations in the Coral Triangle countries to support regional exchange activities and support local implementation.
• Launched efforts to engage public and private sectors through a regional learning and planning exchange at the CTI Business Summit and identify existing and potential linkages between public and private sectors