Sustainable Oceans and Coasts Tasmania Perspectives Sustainable Oceans and Coasts
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Sustainable Oceans and Coasts Tasmania Perspectives Sustainable oceans and coasts In 2020, the United Nation declared this coming coasts, as many sectors will need to work together decade as the ‘United Nations Decade for Ocean to achieve our goal: social services, tourism, industry, Science for Sustainability’. Their vision for the coming land use experts, ocean and coastal researchers, and decade is underpinned by participative and decision makers from all levels of government. This transformative values: Outcomes Paper reports on the deliberations of a broad cross section of sectors in Tasmania. “The Decade is embracing a participative and transformative process so that scientists, policy makers, managers, and service users can work The importance of a national strategy together to ensure that ocean science delivers Australian oceans and coasts are threatened by the greater benefits for both the ocean ecosystem fragmented way we manage and govern the and for society. ecological and social processes that connect them; This Decade will be designed to facilitate global we do not have a clear path forward to ensure that communication and mutual learning across these areas are healthy and resilient. The national research and stakeholder communities. It will strategy will outline clear, actionable pathways for work to meet the needs of scientists, policy achieving healthy and resilient oceans and coasts for makers, industry, civil society and the wider all of Australia, incorporating common themes from public, but it will also support new, collaborative the series of consultative workshops held by Future partnerships that can deliver more effective Earth Australia throughout 2020. science-based management of our ocean space and resources.”1 This initiative has been generously funded by the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation. Critically, the UN vision and activities that underpin it recognise the interconnectedness of land and sea. For Australia, explicit recognition and appreciation of Context setting this connectedness of our oceans and coasts is Prior to the online workshop, an introductory video essential for our future prosperity. The oceans was circulated to all participants. This video set the surrounding Australia are vast and comprise a scene for the workshop, providing local perspectives multitude of economic, social, environmental, and on Tasmania’s oceans and coasts from experts in the cultural interests, and a majority of our population field. Speakers were asked to reflect upon their lives in coastal zones. Indeed, what we do on inland vision for sustainable oceans and coasts in Australia has consequences for our coasts and Tasmania, the unique features of Tasmania’s oceans oceans; our waterways flow into our coastal and and coasts, and how their expertise guides their ocean space and are important connectors of land visions and goals for the future of oceans and coasts and sea. in Australia. The speaker was Dr. Jess Melbourne- In light of this, in May 2018 the Future Earth Australia Thomas, a Transdisciplinary Researcher and Steering Committee elected that the 2020 focus for Knowledge Broker at CSIRO Oceans and the Future Earth Australia secretariat and Future Atmosphere, and we thank her for her thoughtful Earth network be a ten-year national strategy for contribution. Australia’s sustainable oceans and coasts. The strategy will outline the steps we need to transform how we think about, govern, and protect oceans and coasts across Australia. Importantly, we take a systems approach to transforming oceans and Sustainable Oceans and Coasts Tasmania Perspectives 2 Tasmania workshop On 11 September 2020, Future Earth Australia hosted • civil society and community, including natural the first in a series of online consultation workshops resource management and advocacy groups. in each state and territory across the nation, for its This document summarises discussions held around Oceans and Coastal Sustainability initiative. the fundamental elements, both from a Tasmanian 35 attendees in Tasmania contributed to the perspective and pertaining to Tasmania and discussion, representing: Australia more broadly, which will define the National • the research sector, from CSIRO and the University Strategy: vision, knowledge, institutional design and of Tasmania governance, community engagement, and implementation. • all levels of government working across climate, fisheries, local planning, conservation, and primary industry • industry and business, including aquaculture and tourism Sustainable Oceans and Coasts Tasmania Perspectives 3 Vision Participants were asked to consider their vision for a ‘Smart’ was offered as meaning that Tasmania’s sustainable future for oceans and coasts in Tasmania oceans and coasts need to be used in a strategic, and the nation. They entered applicable words into deliberate way, and that communication around their an online poll to generate a word cloud, then use also needs to be well thought through. discussed the thought processes behind those ‘Stewardship’ is an aspiration for the broader public visions. to take on this mission, along with having better literacy about oceans and coasts. In the face of a Vision for Tasmania range of long-term and profound drivers of change for oceans and coasts and our communities reliant Tasmanians discussed a vision for the future of on them, ‘resilience’ was suggested as ocean and oceans and coasts that was sustainable, smart, and coastal systems will need to be more robust and cared for. able to cope with change. ‘Sustainability’ referred not only to protection of environments, but the social and economic facets which contribute to, and feed from, oceans and National vision coasts. Sustainability was also explained to be the The concept of ‘integration’ emerged saliently as a product of effective institutional and governance vision for both Tasmania and the nation. Integration arrangements. was said to incorporate a range of dimensions, What is your vision for the future of oceans and coasts in Tasmania by 2030? What is your vision for the future of oceans and coasts in Australia by 2030? Sustainable Oceans and Coasts Tasmania Perspectives 4 including multi-sectoral integration, integration of stewardship for the marine, irrespective of whether diverse knowledge systems, and integration across they live on the coast or further inland. governance regimes (both within and between levels The idea of ‘contributing’ arose from the idea that of government). ‘Resilient’ was offered in the context Australia has a richness of underutilised resources of a nation that must deal with climate change, when compared to other places in the world. With a economic disparities, and multiple concurrent growing population, we need to be smart about pressures on and users of oceans and coasts. using these resources in a resilient, sustainable way. The term ‘valued’ was used to contrast with the Australia should be a good global citizen by current perceived low interest in oceans and coasts contributing these resources and knowledge of how on the national agenda. Stakeholders in marine and to use them. coastal environments hold a vast range of priorities, Another attendee pointed out that the conversation and they will be unable to work on governance, around oceans and coasts is often negative and knowledge building, and management without focused on risks, such as withstanding pressures raising the profile and having a higher valuation of and coping with increasing demand. By contrast, these areas. referring to these areas as ‘thriving’ promotes the ‘Marine citizenship’ was related to the idea of idea that the future of oceans and coasts can be stewardship, but intended to mean that all people exciting and engaging, as opposed to focusing only across Australia can feel attachment and a sense of on threats. Sustainable Oceans and Coasts Tasmania Perspectives 5 Knowledge Key points: Participants also spoke about a demand for improved mapping, standardisation, and accessibility • We need a systematic means of identifying key of data not only across research institutions, but also knowledge gaps, as the approach to prioritising in private, public, and non-government holdings. knowledge gaps in both Tasmania and Australia While data repositories and systems did exist in the is piecemeal past, some attendees felt they were ineffective, given • We need to work better with different knowledge that their impermanence undermined trust that data systems, including First Nations ways of knowing and intellectual property could be safely stored. and doing on their terms, and mainstream However, across attendees there was wide interdisciplinary and cross sectoral approaches recognition and praise for the Australian Ocean Data • We need a dynamic understanding of the Network (AODN), the Integrated Marine Observing cumulative impacts, changes, and behaviours System (IMOS), and Terrestrial and Earth Resource across oceans and coasts Network (TERN), with comments made that an • Priority areas for capacity building are IMOS for coastal knowledge was required. communication about oceans and coasts, Attendees asserted that we will not be able to make leveraging different forces for collaborative progress in ocean and coastal sustainability without progress, and better integration of community working more effectively with a range of knowledge values, knowledge, and preferences within and expertise holders. Importantly, this involves knowledge building. better understanding Traditional Owners’ way