Increasing effective partial protection approaches for tropical marine conservation

Establishing effective marine protected areas (MPAs) is a major goal of many marine conservation programs, with the CBD Aichi Biodiversity Target 11 committing governments to ‘effectively and equitably’ manage 10% of... [ view full abstract ]

Establishing effective marine protected areas (MPAs) is a major goal of many marine conservation programs, with the CBD Aichi Biodiversity Target 11 committing governments to ‘effectively and equitably’ manage 10% of global marine and coastal areas in MPAs by 2020. While many tropical marine conservationists pursue no-take marine protection, in areas with large reef-dependent communities, extensive no-take zones are often incompatible with equitable management. Therefore, increasingly conservationists are implementing spatial and temporal partial protection, with dual aims of conserving reef biodiversity while allowing sustainable extractive fisheries. Approaches can include spatial gear restrictions, periodic harvest closures, and increased local ownership and management rights. However, the effectiveness of partial protection is still untested in many locations, with variable results depending on whether evaluation is framed around human livelihood or biodiversity gains. For partial protection to contribute ‘effectively and equitably' to global coral reef management, a holistic view is required, bringing together an understanding of maintaining reef biodiversity and crucial ecosystem functions, while allowing extractive human uses. This focus group brings together conservationists implementing partial protection approaches from a range of conservation organizations. Participants will discuss and critically evaluate encountered successes and failures for both human livelihoods and the ability of the protection to support long-term reef resilience. The focus group will aim to contribute to a new evidence base for the effectiveness of partial protection approaches.