Participatory research in complex marine conservation settings: A review of recent trends and lessons for the future

The conservation of marine ecosystems and species is inherently complex, plagued by social, political, economic and ecological uncertainty. Navigating these challenges to sustain marine systems requires the understanding, consideration and uptake of multiple knowledge systems within decision-making processes. Participatory research approaches, such as knowledge co-production, are advocated given their potential to generate knowledge with those who are most affected by the issue at hand and, based on that knowledge, develop and implement meaningful conservation practices collaboratively. In doing so participatory research is positioned to make marine research more democratic and impactful, and as such, has been a field of growing research enquiry. The aim of this study, therefore, is to synthesise (via a systematic scoping review) the existing literature to generate guidance that can help researchers and practitioners plan and apply participatory research approaches in a complex marine context. Results from systematically identifying and analyzing 337 articles show that the implementation of participatory research approaches are most common in the global north. Participatory research approaches most frequently included representatives from government, industry and civil society (e.g. community groups), while indigenous groups and communities were rarely included. A diversity of participatory research approaches have been used in relation to marine conservation in different settings and at various stages of the participatory process, each with their own challenges and benefits, that can lead to either positive outcomes for actors (e.g. social learning) or negative outcomes (e.g. disempowerment). We draw on our findings to provide guidance for improving the implementation of participatory research approaches in marine conservation such as taking the time to understand context before commencing participatory research approaches, and ensuring transparency with all actors throughout the process. We highlight key implications for researcher and practitioners implementing participatory research approaches including the importance of a diversity of approaches and methods to ensure access, supporting two way communication, addressing power imbalances, and the need to recognise, report on and address pre-existing barriers. Many of these require greater investment in terms of money or personnel, and new funding models are needed with a focus on longevity and sustainability

A Citizen Science Community of Practice: Relational Patterns Contributing to Shared Practice

Citizen science networks are a recent global phenomenon, with associated communities of practice that have emerged to support growth in the field and the development of practices. Effective communities of practice are dependent on the interactions from the social network underpinning the community. We examined the Australian citizen science practitioner network, using a combined social network analysis and survey approach. Our goal was to understand the structure and characteristics of this network, to establish who participates in this network, where and how interactions occur, and explore what participation achieves for the users. The Australian citizen science practitioner network has benefited from face-to-face citizen science events to make important connections that have been leveraged to benefit other working relationships and positive outcomes, especially for early-career practitioners and women within the network. How the community of practice continues to navigate successful knowledge exchange across society and science, whether through interactions in face-to-face or virtual settings, will need to be addressed as the community continues to grow in scope and size. In particular, the network will need to consider supporting key individuals who play important bridging functions across the citizen science practitioner network. The emergence of transdisciplinarity amongst those working in citizen science is a promising property of this learning community that is worth working strategically to maintain

Attributes of climate resilience in fisheries: from theory to practice

In a changing climate, there is an imperative to build coupled social-ecological systems—including fisheries—that can withstand or adapt to climate stressors. Although resilience theory identifies system attributes that supposedly confer resilience, these attributes have rarely been clearly defined, mechanistically explained, nor tested and applied to inform fisheries governance. Here, we develop and apply a comprehensive resilience framework to examine fishery systems across (a) ecological, (b) socio-economic and (c) governance dimensions using five resilience domains: assets, flexibility, organization, learning and agency. We distil and define 38 attributes that confer climate resilience from a coupled literature- and expert-driven approach, describe how they apply to fisheries and provide illustrative examples of resilience attributes in action. Our synthesis highlights that the directionality and mechanism of these attributes depend on the specific context, capacities, and scale of the focal fishery system and associated stressors, and we find evidence of interdependencies among attributes. Overall, however, we find few studies that test resilience attributes in fisheries across all parts of the system, with most examples focussing on the ecological dimension. As such, meaningful quantification of the attributes’ contributions to resilience remains a challenge. Our synthesis and holistic framework represent a starting point for critical application of resilience concepts to fisheries social-ecological systems

World squid fisheries

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Marine recreational fishing and the implications of climate change

Marine recreational fishing is popular globally and benefits coastal economies and people's well-being. For some species, it represents a large component of fish landings. Climate change is anticipated to affect recreational fishing in many ways, creating opportunities and challenges. Rising temperatures or changes in storms and waves are expected to impact the availability of fish to recreational fishers, through changes in recruitment, growth and survival. Shifts in distribution are also expected, affecting the location that target species can be caught. Climate change also threatens the safety of fishing. Opportunities may be reduced owing to rougher conditions, and costs may be incurred if gear is lost or damaged in bad weather. However, not all effects are expected to be negative. Where weather conditions change favourably, participation rates could increase, and desirable species may become available in new areas. Drawing on examples from the UK and Australia, we synthesize existing knowledge to develop a conceptual model of climate-driven factors that could impact marine recreational fisheries, in terms of operations, participation and motivation. We uncover the complex pathways of drivers that underpin the recreational sector. Climate changes may have global implications on the behaviour of recreational fishers and on catches and local economies

Assessment of the likely sensitivity to climate change for the key marine species in the southern Benguela system

Climate change is altering many environmental parameters of coastal waters and open oceans, leading to substantial present-day and projected changes in the distribution, abundance and phenology of marine species. Attempts to assess how each species might respond to climate change can be data-, resource- and time-intensive. Moreover, in many regions of the world, including South Africa, species may be of vital socioeconomic or ecological importance though critical gaps may exist in our basic biological or ecological knowledge of the species. Here, we adapt and apply a trait-based sensitivity assessment for the key marine species in the southern Benguela system to estimate their potential relative sensitivity to the impacts of climate change. For our analysis, 40 priority species were selected based on their socioeconomic, ecological and/or recreational importance in the system. An extensive literature review and consultation with experts was undertaken concerning each species to gather information on their life history, habitat use and potential stressors. Fourteen attributes were used to estimate the selected species’ sensitivity and capacity to respond to climate change. A score ranging from low to high sensitivity was given for each attribute, based on the available information. Similarly, a score was assigned to the type and quality of information used to score each particular attribute, allowing an assessment of data-quality inputs for each species. The analysis identified the white steenbras Lithognathus lithognathus, soupfin shark Galeorhinus galeus, St Joseph Callorhinchus capensis and abalone Haliotis midae as potentially the most sensitive species to climate-change impacts in the southern Benguela system. There were data gaps for larval dispersal and settlement and metamorphosis cues for most of the evaluated species. Our results can be used by resource managers to determine the type of monitoring, intervention and planning that may be required to best respond to climate change, given the limited resources and significant knowledge gaps in many cases

Climatic change drives dynamic source–sink relationships in marine species with high dispersal potential

While there is now strong evidence that many factors can shape dispersal, the mechanisms influencing connectivity patterns are species‐specific and remain largely unknown for many species with a high dispersal potential. The rock lobsters Jasus tristani and Jasus paulensis have a long pelagic larval duration (up to 20 months) and inhabit seamounts and islands in the southern Atlantic and Indian Oceans, respectively. We used a multidisciplinary approach to assess the genetic relationships between J. tristani and J. paulensis, investigate historic and contemporary gene flow, and inform fisheries management. Using 17,256 neutral single nucleotide polymorphisms we found low but significant genetic differentiation. We show that patterns of connectivity changed over time in accordance with climatic fluctuations. Historic migration estimates showed stronger connectivity from the Indian to the Atlantic Ocean (influenced by the Agulhas Leakage). In contrast, the individual‐based model coupled with contemporary migration estimates inferred from genetic data showed stronger inter‐ocean connectivity in the opposite direction from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean driven by the Subtropical Front. We suggest that the J. tristani and J. paulensis historical distribution might have extended further north (when water temperatures were lower) resulting in larval dispersal between the ocean basis being more influenced by the Agulhas Leakage than the Subtropical Front. As water temperatures in the region increase in accordance with anthropogenic climate change, a southern shift in the distribution range of J. tristani and J. paulensis could further reduce larval transport from the Indian to the Atlantic Ocean, adding complexity to fisheries management

Preparing for climate change on marine systems in Australia and India.

Australia and India have coastal marine waters warming at a rate faster than 90% of the world’s oceans. Both countries have extensive coastlines and marine jurisdictions with the majority of the population living adjacent to the coast (Box 1). Marine industries play important roles in sustaining the livelihoods of people in coastal rural towns. Increasing food production, minimising carbon emissions and prioritising carbon sequestration opportunities are key issues facing both countries and form the basis of this research plan. In addressing these issues India and Australia are well placed to become leaders in the development of adaptation options, and pioneers of transformational industries

Australasia

Observed changes and impacts Ongoing climate trends have exacerbated many extreme events (very high confidence). The Australian trends include further warming and sea level rise sea level rise (SLR), with more hot days and heatwaves, less snow, more rainfall in the north, less April–October rainfall in the southwest and southeast and more extreme fire weather days in the south and east. The New Zealand trends include further warming and sea level rise (SLR), more hot days and heatwaves, less snow, more rainfall in the south, less rainfall in the north and more extreme fire weather in the east. There have been fewer tropical cyclones and cold days in the region. Extreme events include Australia’s hottest and driest year in 2019 with a record-breaking number of days over 39°C, New Zealand’s hottest year in 2016, three widespread marine heatwaves during 2016–2020, Category 4 Cyclone Debbie in 2017, seven major hailstorms over eastern Australia and two over New Zealand from 2014–2020, three major floods in eastern Australia and three over New Zealand during 2019–2021 and major fires in southern and eastern Australia during 2019–2020