LANDAA GIRAAVARU ATOLL BAA, MALDIVES

The Baa Atoll, Maldives has been declared a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve – an area of natural excellence recognised for its unique harmony between man and nature.

It now joins an illustrious list of international Biosphere Reserves including: the Central Amazon (Brazil), Galapagos Islands (Ecuador), Niagara Escarpment (Canada) and Yellowstone National Park (United States) among others.

World Biosphere Reserves are places where conservation, research and development successfully interconnect. They integrate biological and cultural diversity, combining core protected areas with zones where sustainable development – and innovative approaches to it – are fostered, tested and developed by locals and enterprises alike.
During its designation at the 40th anniversary of UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme in Dresden, Germany in June 2011, UNESCO recognised the Baa Atoll’s “great potential for demonstrating sustainable development throughout the Maldives and the region, while relying on a green economy.”
The Baa Atoll is home to some of the richest waters in the Maldives. Like many Baa Atoll inhabitants, the team at Four Seasons Resort Landaa Giraavaru worked on numerous essential plans and assessments to assist the Maldivian government’s Atoll Ecosystem Conservation Project’s (AEC Project) goal for UNESCO status.