Blueprint demonstration for co-created effective, efficient and resilient networks of MPAs

Informations projet

BLUE4ALL

N° de convention de subvention: 101094014

DOI

10.3030/101094014

Date de signature de la CE 6 Decembre 2022

Date de début 1 Janvier 2023

Date de fin 31 Decembre 2026

Financé au titre de

• Food, Bioeconomy Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment

Coût total

€ 8 018 806,25

Contribution de l’UE

€ 8 018 806,00

Coordonné par

INSTITUT ROYAL DES SCIENCES NATURELLES DE BELGIQUE
Belgium

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - BLUE4ALL (Blueprint demonstration for co-created effective, efficient and resilient networks of MPAs)

Période du rapport: 2023-01-01 au 2024-06-30

Résumé du contexte et des objectifs généraux du projet

The EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030 (EUBS2030) was launched in 2020 to strengthen biodiversity conservation and restoration. The EUBS2030 aims to establish a coherent network of protected areas and highlights that the existing network of protected areas is not sufficiently large to safeguard biodiversity. The EUBS2030 sets the objective to legally protect at least 30% of the land, including inland waters, and 30% of the sea in the EU, of which at least one third to be under strict protection. These EU targets are coherent with the global targets proposed to the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and with the objectives of the Bern Convention.

BLUE4ALL is a HORIZON Europe Ocean Mission project working towards addressing marine conservation and restoration challenges in Europe. BLUE4ALL is focused on the analysis of the MPA process comprising all steps needed to successfully conserve and/or restore biodiversity by means of MPAs. These steps comprise designation (i.e. delineation, eventual enlargement, identification of conservation objectives and status assessment), management (i.e. identification and implementation of conservation and/or restoration measures, including adaptation to climate change and enforcement) and monitoring (i.e. environmental and ecological status monitoring and auditing). We specifically identify good-practice examples and challenges to achieve effective, efficient and resilient MPA networks throughout the whole MPA process. We will document existing and develop new tools to deal with those challenges in close interaction with real-world examples of existing MPAs and networks of MPAs, comprising (1) Information Sites that offer a representative view on the challenges and tools of the wide diversity of MPAs and networks of MPAs, and (2) Living Labs with which BLUE4ALL will team up. This project places stakeholders at the center of the MPA process, ensuring their needs and concerns are addressed from the outset. BLUE4ALL will ultimately lead to a co-created and tested (proof of concept) Blueprint Platform for effective, efficient and resilient MPAs and networks of MPAs, and to a firm basis of a European-wide roll-out of the BLUE4ALL legacy to achieve the EU Mission to restore our oceans and waters.

Travail effectué depuis le début du projet jusqu’à la fin de la période considérée dans le rapport et principaux résultats atteints jusqu’à présent

BLUE4ALL identified existing and promising frameworks for the co-creation of MPAs and MPA networks, including delineation, expansion, design, management, enforcement, monitoring and auditing. This comprised the following actions:
- a benchmark analysis of policies and institutions involved in establishing MPAs;
- a comprehensive overview of several aspects of stakeholder engagement in MPAs (bottom-up approach, stakeholder engagement frameworks, gender aspects in stakeholder engagement and recommendations for enhancing stakeholder engagement in the Living Labs);
- a review of socio-ecological frameworks and methodologies relevant for MPAs: ecosystem service valuation review, business review, tool and solution review.

An engagement plan was developed and implemented to efficiently leverage the knowledge available in BLUE4ALL’s 25 Information Sites and Living Labs. We conducted the Baseline Assessment, formed Stakeholders Engagement Groups (SEGs - Living Labs only), and conducted a needs assessment to identify key needs and challenges within these (networks of) MPAs. This assessment, crucial for achieving the conservation goals of each Living Lab, involved active stakeholder engagement through workshops and interviews. The findings from this assessment will help in a targeted development of tools to facilitate and enhance the MPA process, which will be tested and validated by 2025.

Following a review of existing solution frameworks and a dedicated workshop, we drafted the structure of the integrated solutions framework, i.e. the structured approach that will guide the selection of tools to address challenges MPA managers are faced with, and which will serve as the basis for the BLUE4ALL’s Blueprint Platform. Three aspects (i.e. essential features by which the tools to address the issues are to be described and catalogued) were identified to be included in the solutions framework: MPA phases, dimensions and components. The four phases comprise the planning, implementation, management and reviewing phases. The four dimensions cover the ecological/environmental, social, economic and governance realms. The twelve components are policy and legal framework, governance, stakeholder engagement and collaboration, education, communication, sustainable financing, capacity building, design and implementation of measures, enforcement and compliance, ecological assessment and monitoring, economic valuation, assessment and monitoring of cultural values.

Progrès au-delà de l’état des connaissances et impact potentiel prévu (y compris l’impact socio-économique et les conséquences sociétales plus larges du projet jusqu’à présent)

BLUE4ALL’s envisions the development of a Blueprint Platform for the co-creation of effective, efficient and resilient (networks of) MPAs. This scheme will separate generically encountered challenges and applied solutions from MPA (network)-specific challenges and solutions, and develop guidance in a user-friendly manner to MPA (network) managers. This guidance will take the shape of an interactive web-based Blueprint Platform directing MPA managers to those challenges and solutions most applicable to their site(s). Based on online questionnaires targeting the BLUE4ALL Information Sites and Living Labs, and a co-creation workshop, we have started identifying the needs and requirements of the BLUE4ALL Blueprint Platform. To this end, we have:
- identified the needs, promising socio-ecological tools, challenges and solutions in BLUE4ALL’s Information Sites and Living Labs in preparation of the ‘tool-testing’ phase;
- formed Stakeholders Engagement Groups in the Living Labs;
- ran a first iteration of the integrated solutions framework, i.e. the structured approach that will guide the selection of tools to address challenges MPA managers are faced with.

BLUE4ALL also launched the "MPA managers & local communities" group in the BlueBioMatch platform to develop an effective MPA Networking Platform. This group will facilitate resource sharing and knowledge exchange, and serve as a community of users for the Blueprint platform.