Panel 1.11. Adaptive ocean governance: novel approaches for navigating complex institutional and property rights arrangements

This paper looks at the boom and bust of small-scale pelagic fisheries in Saint Louis, located on the Senegalese-Mauritanian border. During the last 15 years this Senegalese fishery mainly provided input for the Mauritania-based fishmeal and fishoil industry. New arrangements of property rights, new ways of financing this cross-border business emerged but also collapsed with the short period of time. Since 2017 the activities of Senegalese fishers have declined constantly. This rather short business cycle cannot be described as being sustainable, nor did it solve any food and nutritional insecurity problems existing in Senegal. Rather the opposite, the process might be described as nutrient and capital grabbing. The paper analyses, using a qualitative case study approach, the changes that have taken place in the contractual arrangements of Saint Louis pelagic fisheries, to understand the capital grabbing observed. It started with the early arrival of the first purse seiners in the 1970s. They were independent artisanal fishers, owning their boats, being wealthy people and leading the supply chain. Their wealth was built on abundant resources, in territory, including that which now has become Mauritanian waters. The fleet has exploded to various hundreds of purse seiners, who are mostly financed through international capital and who used to feed the Mauritanian, largely Chinese owned, fish meal industry, before fish stock started to decline. The previously independent sector has become highly indebted and patron client relationships are the norm. The paper describes this complex process and aims to deepen understanding using theories of institutional change.

Sechura Bay, Peru is a highly productive marine resource system, but rapid institutional changes and increasing climate impacts make the future uncertain for local livelihoods dependent on the bay. In the last two decades following the introduction of high-value scallop mariculture for export to international markets, the previous largely informal and open-access system in the bay has transformed towards formalization. What has emerged is a complex arrangement of formal institutional structures dominated by large processing firms and private property regimes, yet still characterized by many informal arrangements and activities, and simultaneously facing a high degree of uncertainty from warming ocean temperatures, harmful algal blooms, and other climate impacts. In this study, we apply participatory modeling, specifically fuzzy cognitive mapping, through a series of iterative workshop activities to model this complex social-ecological system from the perspective of local people. These people are embedded in various marine resource subsectors which are often competing, conflicting, coexisting, and codependent on each other. We synthesize and reflect on benefits and limitations of participatory modeling for (1) navigating conflict and consensus-making in marine resource governance, by exploring similarities and differences between mental models, social group identity, and normative values, and for (2) navigating uncertainty in marine resource governance, by using mental models and “what-if?” simulations to inform discussion and deliberation with local people regarding viable policy and adaptation strategies under potential future governance and environmental actors scenarios.

Integrating place-based knowledge in environmental management is increasingly critical, particularly in marine ecosystems where community involvement offers localized insight. However, the rise of social media complicates these efforts, exposing both managers and communities to external influences. As management moves toward legitimizing place-based conceptualizations, managers face challenges from the interconnectedness of social media platforms, where external actors—unconnected to specific environments—can influence public perception and policy from afar.

This paper examines the theoretical gap emerging between marine management and social media-based dynamics, highlighting how platforms shift the conceptual boundaries of "public" which may threaten the effective implication of place-based management. Drawing on how researchers have conceptualized publics, I explore how marine managers may struggle to legitimize local knowledge while contending with the vast reach and emotional dynamics of social media. Managers who adopt place-based policies without considering the risks emerging from social media may inadvertently reinforce dominant narratives and alienate the very communities they aim to empower. Moreover, the decentralized and rapid nature of social media communications amplifies this dilemma, as managers are often constrained by policies that limit their engagement with affective and networked publics.

By exploring these dynamics, this paper argues that marine managers need a deeper understanding of the socio-technical networks of social media to navigate the complexities of place-based management effectively. Without adapting their strategies to address new formations of public emerging from social media use, they risk undermining the very goals of community empowerment and sustainable environmental management.

We provide the first global assessment of the status of preferential access areas (PAAs), a relatively understudied policy tool to govern small-scale fisheries. We find 44 countries, most of them of low or low-middle income, have established a total of 63 PAAs encompassing 3% of continental shelf area worldwide. The analysis of an ad-hoc subsample of twelve countries in three continents for which data were available (2016-2017) revealed that PAAs supported greater amounts of small-scale fisheries marine catch volume, landed value, fishing for self-consumption, and more nutritious species than marine areas outside PAAs. This preliminary assessment suggests that if appropriately enforced through shared governance with fishers and responsible fishing practices, relatively small areas of the ocean could provide important nutrition security, economic, and employment benefits to millions of people living in coastal areas. We offer an agenda for future research and policy action based on our findings.

The diverse characteristics and contexts of small-scale producers underpin their multidimensional contributions to sustainable development, including food provision, resilience, poverty alleviation, and cultural heritage preservation. However, their diversity is often oversimplified, limiting their impact on global development and hindering effective food systems transformation. We use the case of small-scale fisheries, a diverse subsector capable of feeding one in four people globally, to challenge the dominant narrative that small-scale producers are too complex and context specific to be effectively categorised. Our analysis of over a thousand small-scale fisheries representing 66% of global marine small-scale fisheries using a model-based clustering approach, found five global archetypes of small-scale fisheries. Each archetype was characterised by different operational, socioeconomic, technological, and post-harvest attributes. Our findings start to unlock small-scale fisheries’ potential to contribute meaningfully to food systems transformation. Our approach is low-cost, simple to apply and well-suited for decision-making processes in data-limited contexts, particularly in the Global South. The case of small-scale fisheries is fully transferable to small-scale producers across other food sectors, paving the way for more precise policy-making and enabling their full contributions to sustainable development potentially benefiting millions of people globally.

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are a mainstay of marine conservation but are often inequitable and their focus on permanence is a poor fit for adaptive management. International agreements have committed to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030 (“30x30”), which includes MPAs but also so-called “OECMs” (Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measures) that open the door to alternative forms of marine protection, including temporary closures, which build adaptation into their governance. This has led to an urgent need for research on how and when temporary closures are appropriate, effective and equitable. Temporary closures have the potential to be dynamic and adaptive to climate change, but have been critiqued for being too short and small to benefit fisheries. Here we present results from a systematic literature review of temporary fisheries closures around the world, providing an overview of their context, designs, and effects. Overall, published cases of temporary closures tend to be small (0.5-2 km2) and ranged from 2-8 years in length. Most occur in places with de facto exclusive fishing rights, involve local leaders and fishers in governance, and have high compliance. These areas overwhelmingly lead to increases in biodiversity, biomass, and size compared to control sites. We present a cluster analysis identifying two core 'types' of temporary closures. We discuss implications for temporary closures to contribute both to 30x30 as OECMs and as a keystone of adaptive ocean management, particularly in the global South.

Anthropogenic involution in coastal areas jeopardises the coastline's quality, endangering the region's Ecosystem Services (ESs). Transforming the region into Marine Protected Areas (MPA) and enabling sustainable tourism initiatives might be a solution for protecting the ESs and leading to the sustainable development of the destination. The study intends to measure the synergetic interaction, conservation pattern, and sustainability in the socio-economic inclusion of the host community in the MPA tourism initiative at Kadalundi- Vallikunnu Community Reserve. The study utilises the potentiality of a qualitative approach to the theoretical background of Amartya Sen’s Capability Approach and concept of real freedom. The findings reveal that the ecotourism initiative has enriched the labour market, replacing traditional employment opportunities with sustainable employment opportunities, resulting in a multiplier effect on the local economy as well as the per capita income of the host community members, which has significantly impacted the host community's socio-economic and socio-cultural aspects. Furthermore, real freedom disseminates through mutual participation, continuous cognitive interaction, escalating the functioning and capabilities of the local community, which ultimately leads to the socio-economic development of the destination. The Authority's socio-cognitive measures and capital investment snowballed the stakeholders' synergetic interaction.

Keywords: Marine Protected Areas, Ecotourism, Community Management, Tourism Development, Sustainable Tourism Development, Synergy

Coastal areas have become more prone and vulnerable due to natural occurrences and human interferences.The study emphasizes the shoreline analysis of long term changes of shoreline in Chellanam Coastal Village area. Five Landsat images covering the Chellanam Coastal area examined the shoreline changes and identified the accretion and erosion of coastline. Digital Shoreline Analysis System were used to find out shoreline changes. Remote sensing methods of satellite imagery analysis and GIS based mapping for examining the coastal attributes. The Statistical methods of End Point Rate, Linear Regression Rate and Net Shoreline Movement were applied for the Chellanam Shoreline change rate. This paper envisages GIS based resources maps of Chellanam Village in the Ernakulam District of Kerala, India. This paper analysis measurement of transects, performs rate calculations and pointed out the uncertainties associated with rate of change. This paper examined the complete exploration of shoreline change analysis of Chellanam Coast. The resulted outcome of all calculations summaries explores the nature of shoreline changes and the relevance for sustainable coastal management. The significant impact was lost houses and property damages and another huge negative impact is the reduction in the quality of life in the coastal communities and lack of their livelihood. Based on the outcome of this study pave way for significance of understanding the evolution of shoreline changes and the pivotal role to ensure sustainable coastal management strategies and also for the disaster risk reduction management. The best method to safeguard the coast is through natural methods. The establishment of coastal green belts must take into account both the socioeconomic stability of coastal communities and ecological stability in addition to minimizing other natural dangers and preventing coastal erosion.

Keywords: Coastal erosion, Shoreline changes, Digital Shoreline Analysis System, Fishing Community

Chellanam is Kerala’s one of the worst affected fishing village due to coastal erosion. The study identified the challenges and the impact of coastal erosion in the coastal communities in Chellanam. This project examined the reviews on the concept of sustainable coastal management and the major reason for coastal erosion in Chellanam. The risk of coastal erosion on the coastal community and the sustainable measures taken to protect Chellanam are assessed with the study on coastal vulnerability. Secondary and primary data were used for data collection and explained the relationship between risk perception and other independent variables that represents the vulnerability of coastal people. The study examined the livelihood opportunities of coastal communities in Chellanam, which is constantly threatened by sea erosion and flooding which in turn adversely affect the livelihoods of the people. The study examined the major livelihood problems and the existing alternative livelihood practices of the fisher community. The study suggested that the government should provide sustainable livelihoods which enable them to earn a stable income and train them for other skilled jobs. The increasing intensity and frequency of coastal erosion make clear the need for a public-private partnership to implement innovative ideas for good governance and disaster risk reduction management and the necessity for proactive planning to evolve the sustainable management for coastal protection.
Keywords: Coastal erosion, shoreline changes, coastal vulnerability, risk assessment, sustainable measures. Livelihood activities, fishermen community.