The University of Western Australia's Oceans Institute was proud to contribute to the global conversation on Sustainable Ocean Planning and offer solutions to help address Ocean Decade’s Challenge 4: to develop a sustainable and equitable ocean economy.

Dr Tai Loureiro, from UWA’s School of Biological Sciences and Ocean Institute, facilitated a strategic workshop at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris to discuss Sustainable Ocean Planning’s priority objectives.

The outcomes of the workshop, which identified key activities to help countries in planning, conservation and sustainable use of ocean areas, will be released at the Ocean Decade Conference in Barcelona this week.

Call for action

Recognising the ocean's importance to societal well-being and its critical state — caused by pressures such as pollution, loss of biodiversity, and climate change — the workshop highlighted the urgent need for comprehensive and integrative approaches to ocean governance.

Sustainable ocean plans

The Sustainable Ocean Planning framework aims to streamline all existing ocean governance strategies, such as Marine Spatial Planning, Marine Protected Areas, Integrated Coastal Zone Management and ocean accounting.

It is envisaged the plan will serve as an overarching governance framework that unites sectoral and thematic plans and promotes an integrated, balanced approach to the sustainable use of marine resources.

It is structured around five long-term objectives:

1.    Ensuring 100 per cent coverage of marine areas with area-based plans.
This objective aims to manage the ocean efficiently by mapping out specific areas for different activities, like areas for fishing, shipping routes, and protected zones.

2.    Fostering just ocean planning through diverse knowledge and values.
This emphasises the importance of inclusive planning incorporating a wide range of knowledge systems and values, including scientific data and Indigenous and Local Knowledge.

3.    Promoting adaptive plans backed by data.
Adaptive planning requires a solid foundation of reliable data, emphasising continuous learning and improvement of planning processes based on scientific evidence and monitoring feedback.

4.    Strengthening governance structures for ocean resource reconciliation.
Creating more robust and coherent policy and legal frameworks for ocean management, capable of reconciling conflicting uses and ensuring sustainable and equitable resource use.

5.    Enhancing cross-sectoral and cross-border collaborations.
This underscores the importance of cooperation across different sectors (like fishing, shipping, and tourism) and countries, particularly for issues that transcend national boundaries.

These five long-term objectives will set a solid foundation to ocean governance and sustainable blue economy development. It merges traditional and modern knowledge systems to craft a resilient and equitable blueprint for marine resource management.

Bridging knowledge and practice

A focal point of the workshop was to uncover critical capacity and data gaps that could hinder advancement. This requires a scientific understanding of the ocean and a deep appreciation and integration of Indigenous and Local Knowledge to enhance decision-making.

Empowering local communities to manage marine and coastal areas is critical to resilience, sustainability and equitable sharing of ocean benefits.

A wave of change

Participants from around the world, represented by government, industry, research, and indigenous peoples and local communities, shared insights and experiences.

The workshop underscored the pivotal role of strong legal frameworks, coherent policies and international cooperation. The participants highlighted the need for integrating diverse policies to strengthen the foundation of Sustainable Ocean Planning and management, and the importance of a framework that resonated across national and international landscapes.

The Oceans Institute remains dedicated to propelling the dialogue and initiatives towards a sustainable blue economy.