Keynote Speakers

Speakers confirmed to date. More will be announced as soon as they are confirmed.

Barbara Horta e Costa

Investigator at CCMAR, PortugalTitle: Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and their conditions for success (at local and global scales)–View Abstract

Donal Griffin

Fair Seas Campaign Coordinator, IrelandTitle: Ireland’s Fair Seas: Building a Movement of Ocean Stewardship–View Abstract

Helena Sims

Project Manager at Seychelles Marine Spatial Planning Initiative, SeychellesTitle: Achieving Marine Protection goals through the Seychelles Marine Spatial Plan–View Abstract

Jenn Casell

Principal Investigator at UCSB Marine Science Institute, California, USATitle: California’s Network of Marine Protected Areas: lessons learned from design to monitoring.–View Abstract

Susan Steele

Executive Director at European Fisheries Control Agency, SpainTitle: The European Fisheries Control Agency–View Abstract

Tom Bech Letessier

Lecturer at University of Plymouth, School of Biological & Marine Sciences, UKTitle: Considering pelagos and benthos in MPA spatial planning–View Abstract

Dr Rashid Sumaila

Professor at Fisheries Economics Research Unit, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries and rhe School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. University of British ColumbiaTitle: Leveraging MPAs to balance trade-offs in living and non-living ocean blue economy sectors–View Abstract

Dr Barbara Horta e Costa
Marine ecologist at CCMAR, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal

CCMAR link: https://ccmar.ualg.pt/users/bbcosta

Title: Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and their conditions for success (at local and global scales)

Short summary: Users’ legitimacy and participation in the MPA planning process are recognized as central for MPA acceptance and success. Hence, the planning of an MPA following a participatory process informed by scientific information was tested in southern Portugal. This area is located in a biodiversity richspot that is important for human activities and was the first MPA designated in the XXI century in mainland Portugal. BHC has been highly involved in the co-construction and co-design of this new MPA – aiming to be an example for future MPAs in Portugal (and even abroad). In this presentation, Dr Barbara Horta e Costa will share this experience.

Dr Susan Steele
European Fisheries Control Agency (EFSA) Executive Director

EFSA link: https://www.efca.europa.eu/en

Title: The European Fisheries Control Agency

Short summary: The European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA) coordinates national operational activities in fisheries and assists member states in applying the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). The EFCA’s mission is to promote the highest common standards for control, inspection, and surveillance under the CFP. It organizes and coordinates cooperation between national control and inspection activities and trains national inspectors and trainers. The EFCA aims to enhance close cooperation between EU Member States, ensuring a compliant, efficient, and uniform implementation of the policy. This contributes to a Europe-wide level playing field for the fishing industry and sustainable fisheries. In this presentation, Dr. Susan Steele will speak on these objectives, the role of fisheries restricted areas in the CFP, and how EFCA supports their effective management and protection including in the use of technologies.

Dr Tom Letessier

Lecturer

University of Plymouth, School of Biological & Marine Sciences

Link: https://www.plymouth.ac.uk/staff/tom-letessier

Title: Considering pelagos and benthos in MPA spatial planning

Short Summary: Assessing the effectiveness of marine protected areas (MPAs) across seascapes is limited due to challenges in surveying heterogeneous habitats underwater. This presentation will address this challenge by deriving fish size indicators from 17,411 stereo baited-video deployments to test for differences between pelagic and benthic responses to remoteness from human pressures and to MPAs. Whereas effective protection of benthic size structure can be achieved in MPAs near markets, recovery of the world’s largest and most endangered fishes in pelagic systems can benefit from the creation of highly protected areas in remote locations. These findings show the benefits of fully protecting both benthic and pelagic environments in MPA.

Dr Donal Griffin

Fair Seas Campaign Coordinator

Fair Seas link: www.fairseas.ie

Title: ‘Ireland’s Fair Seas: Building a Movement of Ocean Stewardship’

Short summary: Fair Seas is a coalition of leading environment non-governmental organisations and networks. Our ambition is to see Ireland become a leader in marine protection, giving our species, habitats and coastal communities the opportunity to thrive. To achieve our ambition, Fair Seas has embarked on a long and strategic campaign engaging all sections of society including the fishing and offshore renewable energy industries, arts and cultural collectives, politicians, eco-tourism as well as coastal communities deeply invested in the health of the seas and coast around them. With a particular focus on Ireland’s forthcoming marine protected area legislation, this presentation will reflect on Fair Seas’ successes and lessons learned as we continue to advocate for 30% of Ireland’s seas to be designated within effective marine protected areas by 2030.

Dr Helena Sims

Regional Programme Manager, Oceans & MSP, The Nature Conservancy Africa

The Nature Conservancy link: https://www.nature.org/en-us/

Title: Achieving Marine Protection goals through the Seychelles Marine Spatial Plan

Short summary: The Seychelles is a Small Island Developing State in the Western Indian Ocean encompassing an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 1.35 million Km². Marine biodiversity is one of Seychelles’ most important natural assets, supporting a globally renowned tourism industry and more than six different fisheries. The Seychelles Marine Spatial Plan (SMSP) Initiative is focused on planning for, and management of, the sustainable and long-term use and health of the Seychelles’ ocean. The SMSP initiative is for the entire EEZ of Seychelles and is a necessary output of the award winning, government-led ocean debt conversion in which the Government committed to expanding marine biodiversity protection to 30% of the EEZ by 2020. The process began in 2014 and the 30% protection target was reached by 2020. Similar to the SMSP zoning, implementation will be a phased approach to allow for the development of management plans, operationalising the MSP governance authority and other key steps to implementation.

Dr Jennifer Caselle

Principal Investigator at Marine Science Institute, University of California Santa Barbara, CA, USA

Caselle lab link: https://labs.eemb.ucsb.edu/caselle/jennifer/

MSI link: https://msi.ucsb.edu/

Title: California’s Network of Marine Protected Areas: lessons learned from design to monitoring.

Short summary: Over the period of 2007 to 2012, the state of California – driven by enabling legislation called the Marine Life Protection Act – designed and implemented a network of 124 Marine Protected Areas, protecting 16% of California’s 1350 km of coastline with 9.4% in no-take reserves. The network design used fundamental scientific principles and guidelines combined with data driven models and was heavily community based, including stakeholders from a diversity of groups. In the years following implementation, the network has been adaptively managed by a group of interested state agencies. Periodic evaluations of MPA network success against specific criteria have been undertaken, with the most recent ‘decadal’ evaluation completed in 2022. Monitoring has enabled analyses of the rate of ecological recovery, effects of fished species, fishery benefits, connectivity, and climate change resilience. I will summarize these findings and the lessons learned from two decades of planning, implementing and adaptively managing a Marine Reserve network in the face of rapidly changing climate.

Dr Rashid Somalia

Professor at Fisheries Economics Research Unit, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries and rhe School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. University of British Columbia, Canada

FRSC: https://oceans.ubc.ca/2023/05/19/rashid-sumaila-frsc/

Title:Leveraging MPAs to balance trade-offs in living and non-living ocean blue economy sectors.

Short summary: Ambitious blue economy (BE) targets aim to extract more goods and services from the ocean while driving economic growth, yet the ocean space is already heavily burdened. Currently, around 66% of ocean surfaces and 77% of Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) are impacted by human activity. Overfishing, pollution, and climate change stress marine ecosystems, creating a need for strategic approaches to ensure sustainable oceans. BE activities divide into those dependent on living marine resources, like ecotourism, and those that don’t, such as deep-sea mining. Two critical issues arise: first, sustaining a “living ocean” requires suitable habitats and conditions, yet rising temperatures and pollution threaten marine species and ecosystems, impacting livelihoods and human well-being. Second, BE sectors relying on non-living ocean resources typically generate market-traded goods and services, while living ocean activities yield significant non-market values. For example, in British Columbia, non-living BE sectors contributed 81% to GDP compared to 19% from living ocean sectors in 2015. This disparity risks skewing policy trade-offs in favor of non-living sectors, intensifying competition. Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), if designed with these trade-offs in mind, could help balance economic and ecological objectives in the BE.

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MPA in MSP Registration

PARTNERS

Grant Agreement 101059988 – MPA Europe

MPA Europe project has been approved under HORIZON-CL6-2021-BIODIV-01-12 — Improved science based maritime spatial planning and identification of marine protected areas.

Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or UK Research and Innovation. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.