Last April 9th, we participated at the UNOD satellite event “Knowledge-based Climate-smart Maritime Spatial Planning for Ocean Sustainable Development” under the topic “Science to policy, how research is used for Climate Smart MSP”. This very dynamic event engaged with experts from six EU projects (MSP-OR, REGINA-MSP, MSP-GREEN, ReMAP, eMSP-NBSR and us, MSP4BIO), as well as the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change from Brazil and the MSPglobal initiative of IOC-UNESCO.
After a ‘fish bowl’ approach (see image below 😉) to discuss Climate Smart Maritime Spatial Planning, the agreed outcomes were:
- Climate Change(CC) adaptation and mitigation have diverse impacts across sectors, highlighting the significance of a holistic approach like Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP). However, MSP alone cannot address these challenges; further research is essential to tackle the complexities of CC.
- MSP plays a crucial role in identifying blue carbon sinks and sensitive areas, analysing land-sea interactions for CC adaptation, and influencing policies to promote sectoral transition for CC mitigation.
- Projects offer solutions that must be integrated /mainstream at national and regional levels. In this last realm, Regional Sea Conventions are key.
- Climate-smart MSP requires dynamic ocean management across scales and comprehensive data, including ecosystem distribution and socio-economic factors, crucial for just & fair transition and addressing climate change costs.
- The MSP Community is strong and growing. There is a need to engage beyond its boundaries. CC is complex: start simple but start; MSP needs to be empowered to be courageous!
