The marine ornamental trade became active in Solomon Islands in the mid-1980s, primarily through the wild harvest of corals and fish. The initiation of more sustainable techniques (cultured giant clams and farmed corals) did not occur until the late-1990’s through projects initiated under the auspices of ICLARM (former WorldFish. This brief highlights the key features of a 5 year project funded by New Zealand and undertaken by the WorldFish Center and the WWF-SI, working with local villagers to establish marine ornamentals for the aquarium trade as a sustainable supplementary livelihood activity for rural coastal communities.