The excessive complexity of national marine governance systems - Has this decreased in England since the introduction of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009?

With successive Government restructuring and the introduction of the Marine and Coastal Access Act in 2009, this paper revisits a previous set of organograms created in 2006 indicating the government departments with responsibilities relating to the marine and coastal environment in England in 2014. The 2009 Act presented an opportunity to harmonise marine management by simplifying the complexity in England through a radical restructuring of marine governance; however this is apparently not the case with many overlapping responsibilities still existing. This paper provides an overview of the 2009 Act, discussing some of the significant changes like the creation of the Marine Management Organisation (MMO), examines the current structure of marine management in England following its enactment and highlights the continued overlaps in jurisdiction, responsibilities and complexity of the government agencies with a marine remit. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd

Brexit: The marine governance horrendogram just got more horrendous!

On Thursday 23rd June 2016, the British people voted in a referendum on the following question: ‘Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?’ Of the 33,551,983 who voted, 51.9% (17,410,742) voted to leave (48.1% voted to remain). Although there is an agreed basic framework, as there is no precedent for a country leaving the European Union (EU), there is a lack of clarity surrounding the process and timetable for Brexit.1 The UK has to reformulate its relationship with the rest of the EU during a 2-year period triggered by the request to leave under Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty (effective 2009). The start of that ‘divorce settlement’ is triggered by the Member State (the UK) and as yet (July 2016) the UK Government position is not to trigger Article 50 until their negotiating position has been defined internally. The 2-year period is separate to the ‘framework agreement’ with the rest of Europe which will take an undefined time to negotiate. The latter will be a reversal of the lengthy process of joining the EU to ensure alignment of the Member State laws with EU law, and could possibly take between 10 and 20 years. So what does all this mean for the future of the marine environment of a dominant maritime state such as the UK? Building on our previous work in the Marine Pollution Bulletin and elsewhere (Boyes and Elliott, 2014, 2015), we take the current legislation giving protection and management to the UK marine environment and consider how this could and should change depending on the exit scenario chosen and the impact this would have on UK marine environmental governance. We define governance here as the policies, politics, administration and legislation and reflect on the importance of the vertical hierarchy of legislative instruments from the local to the global (Elliott, 2014)

Integrating management tools and concepts to develop an estuarine planning support system: A case study of the Humber Estuary, Eastern England

© 2015. Estuaries are important because of their multiple uses and users which often makes them challenging to manage since management must strike a balance between the needs of users, the estuaries' ecological and economic value and the context of multiple legislative drivers. To facilitate management we have therefore developed an Estuarine Planning Support System (EPSS) framework using the Humber Estuary, Eastern England, as a case study which integrates the current legislation tools and concepts. This integrated EPSS framework is an improvement on previous approaches for assessing cumulative impacts as it takes into account legislative drivers, management tools and other mechanisms for controlling plans/projects specific to the estuary. It therefore enables managers and users to assess and address both the current state and the way in which a new industrial, port or urban development could impact an estuary in an accessible and understandable framework

Marine legislation - the ultimate 'horrendogram': international law, European directives and national implementation

The EU is a pre-eminent player in sustainable development, adopting more than 200 pieces of legislation that have direct repercussions for marine environmental policy and management. Over five decades, measures have aimed to protect the marine environment by tackling the impact of human activities, but maritime affairs have been dealt with by separate sectoral policies without fully integrating all relevant sectors. Such compartmentalisation has resulted in a patchwork of EU legislation and resultant national legislation leading to a piecemeal approach to marine protection. These are superimposed on international obligations emanating from UN and other bodies and are presented here as complex ‘horrendograms’ showing the complexity across vertical governance. These horrendograms have surprised marine experts despite them acknowledging the many uses and users of the marine environment. Encouragingly since 2000, the evolution in EU policy has progressed to more holistic directives and here we give an overview of this change

Is existing legislation fit-for-purpose to achieve Good Environmental Status in European seas?

Recent additions to marine environmental legislation are usually designed to fill gaps in protection and management, build on existing practices or correct deficiencies in previous instruments. Article 13 of the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) requires Member States to develop a Programme of Measures (PoM) by 2015, to meet the objective of Good Environmental Status (GES) for their waters by 2020. This review explores key maritime-related policies with the aim to identify the opportunities and threats that they pose for the achievement of GES. It specifically examines how Member States have relied on and will integrate existing legislation and policies to implement their PoM and the potential opportunities and difficulties associated with this. Using case studies of three Member States, other external impediments to achieving GES are discussed including uses and users of the marine environment who are not governed by the MSFD, and gives recommendations for overcoming barriers

\u3cem\u3eAlderwood Associatesv. Washington Environmental Council\u3c/em\u3e: State Action and the Washington State Constitution

In Alderwood Associates v. Washington Environmental Council, the Washington Supreme Court reversed a temporary restraining order forbidding the defendant\u27s solicitation or demonstration on plaintiff\u27s privately owned shopping mall. Although there was no majority opinion because the court split four-one-four, the result of the several opinions is that the Washington constitution now bars private as well as state action that interferes with the gathering of initiative signatures on certain private property. However, four justices also concluded that the free speech sections of the Washington constitution restricts private as well as state action. The Alderwood result is desirable, but could have been reached without an abandonment of the state action requirement. Such an abandonment, although subscribed to by less than a majority, strays from principled constitutional analysis and inhibits further reasoned development of the state constitution

\u3cem\u3eAlderwood Associatesv. Washington Environmental Council\u3c/em\u3e: State Action and the Washington State Constitution

In Alderwood Associates v. Washington Environmental Council, the Washington Supreme Court reversed a temporary restraining order forbidding the defendant\u27s solicitation or demonstration on plaintiff\u27s privately owned shopping mall. Although there was no majority opinion because the court split four-one-four, the result of the several opinions is that the Washington constitution now bars private as well as state action that interferes with the gathering of initiative signatures on certain private property. However, four justices also concluded that the free speech sections of the Washington constitution restricts private as well as state action. The Alderwood result is desirable, but could have been reached without an abandonment of the state action requirement. Such an abandonment, although subscribed to by less than a majority, strays from principled constitutional analysis and inhibits further reasoned development of the state constitution

What do we mean by 'older adults' persistent pain self-management'? A concept analysis.

Background: No standard definition exists for the concept “persistent pain self-management” or how it should be defined in relation to older adults. Poorly defined concepts can result in misunderstandings in the clinical setting and can hinder research through difficulties identifying or measuring the concept. Objective: To ascertain attributes, referents, antecedents, and consequences of the concept older adults' persistent pain self-management and develop a theoretical definition. Design: Rodgers evolutionary model of concept analysis was used to systematically analyze articles from the academic and grey literature (N = 45). Data were extracted using standardized extraction forms and analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings: This concept was discussed in three ways: as an intervention, in reference to everyday behaviors, and as an outcome. Five defining attributes were identified: multidimensional process, personal development, active individuals, symptom response, and symptom control. Patients' perceived need and ability to manage pain with support from others is necessary for pain self-management to occur. Numerous physical, psychological, and social health consequences were identified. A theoretical definition is discussed. Conclusions: Our findings have clarified existing use and understanding regarding the concept of older adults' persistent pain self-management. We have identified three areas for future development: refinement of the attributes of this concept within the context of older adults, an exploration of how providers can overcome difficulties supporting older adults' persistent pain self-management, and a clarification of the overall theoretical framework of older adults' persistent pain self-management

College Expectations Among Young Children: The Potential Role of Savings

For many young people, especially minority and low-income children, attending college is a genuinely desired but elusive goal. This paper explores young children’s perceptions and expectations about attending college and potential influences on their formation. Conducted as part of a four-year study of a school-based saving for college program, this paper uses qualitative evidence from interviews with 60 children in second grade, and surveys with their parents. Findings suggest most of the young children in the study have a general understanding of college and have begun the process of choosing higher education. Further, the perception that saving is a way to finance college is associated with an increase in child’s perception that college is within reach. These results lend support for development of interventions that prepare very young children for college

Implementation of a Differentiated Instruction Initiative: Perspectives of Leaders

Differentiated Instruction (DI) is a framework that supports planning for diversity within K-12 classrooms. Research has grown steadily over the past 15 years that explores DI implementation, as well as beliefs and practices. Literature to date has focused heavily on the experiences of educators, with limited attention given to the role of leadership in implementing DI in schools. The current study explores the perspectives of 19 school and board-level administrators regarding the ways in which a differentiated instruction framework was implemented within their school board as well as facilitators and barriers to the implementation and uptake of the framework. Interviews revealed five themes: a) DI continuum, b) differentiated professional learning supports, c) making space for shared professional learning, d) align/integrate/embed, and e) multi-level leadership. Our findings reflect a strong belief system of most of the participants with respect to the foundations of DI as well as an understanding of effective approaches to professional learning and school change.&nbsp