ZMT - Leibniz Zentrum für Marine Tropenforschung

6.10.16 | The kick-off and first Management Committee meeting of the COST Action “Ocean Governance for Sustainability - Challenges, Options and the Role of Science” initiative took place recently in Brussels. The events marked the starting point of a four-year project funded by the European Union. The COST Action, coordinated by Prof. Dr. Anna-Katharina Horndige includes 22 European countries and 74 institutional partners. The Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT) is represented in the Management Committee by Prof. Hornidge as Chair of the Action and Prof. Dr. Achim Schlüter as head of the working group ‚Land-Sea-Interaction‘ in der Action vertreten.

The COST Action “Ocean Governance for Sustainability - Challenges, Options and the Role of Science” addresses the integration and role of science in ocean governance, in particular the challenges threatening the sustainability and governability of our oceans´ and coasts´. This action recognizes the varied dimensions of European strategies to achieve sustainability, yet the high degree of fragmentation and lack of a cross-scale approach to policy shortcomings.

The COST Action on “Ocean Governance for Sustainability - Challenges, Options and the Role of Science” comprises a unique, transdisciplinary network of 58 proposers with regional and international outreach beyond European borders. Through establishing an integrative vision, utilizing a series of approaches that inform research and future policy directions, the network aims to cross-cut sustainability-driven issues related to the fragmented governance framework of oceans, seas and coastlines within regional waters, and high seas.

This network differs from thematic predecessors in two distinct ways. First, it attends to the multiple flows and connectivities between varied marine systems together with land-and sea-based interfaces that are biologically, culturally, politically and socio-economically entwined. Second, it renders equal importance to strengthening regional and interdisciplinary dialogue, producing scientific output crosscutting the natural and social sciences.

The network creates a distinct multi-scale and cross-sector platform for partnering institutions across academia, bridging policymaking and civil society, presenting inclusive spaces for transdisciplinary dialogue, capacity development and the advancement of practical toolkits. The overall focus of the network will be to attend to science - policy gaps inherent within integrated ocean and coastal governance

In order to implement the COST Action initiatives, six synergistic-driven working groups and four “key roles” have been created, around these main thematic areas:

Thematic Areas as Working Groups:

1. Land-Sea Interactions
2. Area-Based Management
3. Seabed Resource Management
4. Nutrition Security and Food Systems
5. Ocean, Climate Change, and Acidification
6. Fisheries Governance

The EU Cost Action is open to all interested representatives from science, politics and civil society, who are actively dealing with formal and informal driving mechanisms of our oceans and marien resources and like to contribute to the network. Further information can be found at www.cost.eu/COST_Actions/ca/CA15217