Ocean-focused frameworks for a sustainable future Earth
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| Abstract |
Growing political and economic interest in ocean and coastal development needs advances in international collaboration because of the interconnectivity of ocean spaces and ecosystems. Visions of our blue planet in public and political imaginations generate leverage for leaders to act, as with efforts to clean up ocean plastics and to adopt a global high seas treaty to advance protection of biodiversity across the two-thirds of our ocean that is a shared global commons. Ocean-focused development concepts are typically presented as “sustainable” Blue Economy approaches but are contested and often include elements that appear inconsistent with sustainability. Petroleum exploitation, for example, is a common economic priority despite driving climate change. Petroleum could, however, support climate action if revenues are used to finance an accelerated transition to zero-carbon and reduce the final total of greenhouse gas emissions. There are also serious gaps between what policies or laws intend and what happens in practice. Reconciling conflicts and contradictions is crucial to enable action and to ensure sustainability principles are met across environmental, social, and economic considerations. This chapter explores how that might be done, through nuanced compromises and robust governance, and argues that collaborative working toward a successful Blue Economy should be seen as an opportunity beyond ocean spaces to build capacity and momentum for action toward a society-wide sustainable future. |
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