Protecting Marine Spaces: Global targets and changing approaches
This article examines global efforts to protect marine spaces, focusing on international targets for marine protected areas. It reviews trends in coverage, effectiveness, and representation, highlighting the need to integrate marine protected areas within broader ecosystem‑based marine and coastal management to better conserve biodiversity and ecosystem services.
Subject Tags
- Nature-based solutions
- Marine protected areas
- Climate resilience
Executive Summary
This article provides a comprehensive analysis of global efforts to protect marine spaces, with a particular focus on evolving international targets and approaches for marine protected areas (MPAs). It reviews the policy and legal frameworks that have shaped marine conservation, including commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Aichi Targets. Drawing on global datasets, the authors assess trends in MPA coverage across political jurisdictions, coastal regions, pelagic waters, and benthic ecosystems, revealing significant growth in protected area extent alongside persistent gaps in representation and effectiveness. The article emphasizes that numerical targets alone are insufficient, noting that many MPAs vary widely in management quality, equity, and contribution to biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services. It highlights the need to consider social and economic factors, ecosystem services, connectivity, and integration of MPAs within wider marine and coastal management frameworks. The authors conclude that achieving global conservation goals will require a shift from simple area‑based metrics toward more comprehensive, ecosystem‑based approaches that balance biodiversity protection with human well‑being.
Citation
Spalding, M. D., Meliane, I., Milam, A., Fitzgerald, C., & Hale, L. Z. (2013). Protecting marine spaces: global targets and changing approaches. Ocean Yearbook Online, 27(1), 213-248.
TNC Authors
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Mark Spalding
Senior Marine Scientist • Protect Oceans, Lands and Waters
The Nature Conservancy
Email: mspalding@tnc.org -
Imen Meliane
The Nature Conservancy -
Lynne Z. Hale
The Nature Conservancy