From One to Many: The Journey to Social and Natural Sciences Monitoring in the Pacific island region

This talk illustrates experiences and lessons learned in the efforts to integrate social and natural sciences in monitoring the conditions of human communities and marine and terrestrial ecologies in the Pacific island... [ view full abstract ]

This talk illustrates experiences and lessons learned in the efforts to integrate social and natural sciences in monitoring the conditions of human communities and marine and terrestrial ecologies in the Pacific island regions. While integrating monitoring is desired and increasingly recognized by different collaborative partnerships at regional and site levels as a better way to gain a holistic view of social-ecological systems, and to generate results to help solve marine environmental problems and to better support human well-being, there have been challenges in designing and implementing integrated monitoring. Better strategic planning for the integrated monitoring design and challenges in interdisciplinary research need to be addressed. Different cases will be used to illustrate challenges and efforts to address them: Community-Based Subsisting Fishing Areas in Hawaii, the NOAA Habitat Blueprint Site Manell-Geus in Guam, the NOAA Socioeconomic monitoring, and socioeconomic monitoring efforts with the Micronesia Challenge countries (including Guam, the Commonwealth of Northern Marianas, the Republic of the Marshall islands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau). The paper shares how the governmental agencies, research partners, conservation organizations, and communities came together to integrate the different types distinct types of monitoring—despite their methodological differences and the various points at which they were initiated—to move towards integrated research practices. The talk will end with recommendations based on the lessons learned that may better help support policy relevant research and better bridge sciences with marine management decision making.