Project outline
The South Pacific region represents a unique context in which local communities and their political representatives are increasingly committed to integrated management of marine resources. This holds especially true for fisheries, the main field of activity in this oceanscape and a critical component of local livelihoods, national and regional economies, and global fish supplies. Fisheries remain one of the most important concerns on the national and regional policy agendas in the Pacific.
SOCPacific will investigate the multi-faceted aspects of Pacific fisheries beyond ecological and economic perspectives by exploring the large web of socio-cultural, geopolitical and policy connections within which fishing and conservation practices occur.
SOCPacific will conduct an interdisciplinary and multi-level analysis across diverse scales and dimensions of fisheries, fisheries management, marine governance and conservation in three study areas: New Caledonia, Vanuatu and Fiji.
The project will apply a multi-stakeholder and multi-level approach, using ethnographic, participatory, ecological and geological methods, to understand (1) social values of places and resources, (2) links and tensions between fishing and conservation interests, and (3) integration of fisheries and management tools for marine spatial planning efforts. Investigations will include local perceptions and practices, global changes and drivers, and national and regional management frameworks and strategies.
Projected benefits
- Policy briefs and peer-reviewed transdisciplinary publications on thematic areas;
- Knowledge advancement and exchange pathways between local marine resource users, local students and other fisheries and marine governance stakeholders;
- Help building new forms of integrative governance of the sea, in which both Pacific countries + territories and the EU are closely working together;
- Strengthening existing working ties between the French, German and Pacific partners.
Project Partner |
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| Dr. Elodie Fache and Dr. Estienne Rodary (French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development - IRD, Montpellier, France) |
Contacts