On May 14, 2025, MSP4BIO held a national webinar dedicated to the Polish Maritime Administration, showcasing key results of the project and exploring how biodiversity integration can become a strategic strength within Marine Spatial Planning (MSP).
The event opened with an introduction by Prof. Jacek Zaucha (Maritime Institute, GMU), who outlined the four pillars of MSP4BIO — Environment, Policy, Socio-Economic, and Integration — and presented the project’s four core objectives:
- Improving the science base for MSP
- Developing and demonstrating a novel, flexible Ecological-Socio-Economic (ESE) management framework
- Strengthening the role of MSP as an integrative platform
- Enhancing the integration of biodiversity and natural capital into planning processes
Turning Research into Action: Project Tools and Insights
The first presentation, delivered by Prof. Jonne Kotta (University of Tartu), focused on Decision-Support Tools (DSTs)developed under MSP4BIO. These tools are:
- Easy to use and accessible
- Designed to support ecosystem-based decision-making in MSP
- Aligned with EU environmental directives and GIS-based mapping
- Capable of projecting environmental impacts under various human activity scenarios
A key takeaway emphasized how high-quality planning outputs can be achieved even with limited data, supporting informed decisions and lowering conflict risk through better communication between the public and decision-makers. As quoted during the session:
“All models are wrong, but some are very useful.” – George E. P. Box
The second presentation, by Elena Gissi and Eleonore Cambra (CNR, Italy), introduced guidance for building climate change scenarios to support the design of climate-smart MPAs and networks. They highlighted the importance of translating climate science into operational tools for planners, with the ESE Framework presented as the fifth and final step in climate risk integration within MSP.
The ESE tool offers a combined ecological, socio-economic, and environmental perspective, enabling adaptive management strategies responsive to complex marine challenges.
National Dialogue in Polish
The second half of the event, conducted in Polish and moderated by Magdalena Matczak and Jacek Zaucha, encouraged open dialogue around applying MSP4BIO results within Poland. The discussion underlined the importance of participatory development, practical usability, and stakeholder trust-building — all key aspects of MSP4BIO’s approach.
