Webinars

Wednesday, July 15, Noon US EDT/9am US PDT/10 am CST/4 pm UTC/5 pm BST/6 pm CEST. Presented by: Sarah Hameed, Jessica MacCarthy, and Leticia de Bonilla of the Marine Conservation Institute; Ratana Chuenpagdee of Memorial University of Newfoundland; Rodolphe Devillers of the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD); and Maylin Mora Arias and Yareth Ledezma of Cahuita National Park. Description: The Blue Park Standard sets a global benchmark for what effective marine protection requires: strategic design, equitable governance, strong protection, evidence-based management, compliance, and capacity. The reality is that most marine protected areas (MPAs) fall short of that bar. Blue Parks is a global initiative working to improve conservation quality alongside quantity, building a representative, connected network of protection that revitalizes ecosystems and recovers wildlife. The Blue Park Awards uses the Standard to encourage decision-makers to raise the bar, while celebrating and elevating successful conservation efforts worldwide. Join Marine Conservation Institute, members of the Blue Parks Science Council, and awarded Blue Park managers for an in-depth discussion of how this initiative is driving meaningful progress toward strategically protecting at least 30% of the ocean.

Tuesday, September 1, 9 pm US EDT/6 pm US PDT and Wednesday, September 2, 1 am UTC/1 pm AEST (Brisbane, Australia). Presented by: David Carrasco Rivera of the University of Queensland and Amelia Wenger of the Wildlife Conservation Society. Description: Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are central to global efforts to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030. Yet emerging evidence indicates that nearly three-quarters of MPAs are exposed to sewage pollution, with typical pollution levels inside protected areas often substantially higher than in surrounding unprotected waters. Drawing on a global assessment of more than 16,000 MPAs – including detailed analysis of 1,855 tropical coastal MPAs across six regions – this webinar examines patterns of total nitrogen exposure from wastewater and the implications for coral reefs, seagrass meadows, and mangrove forests associated with these MPAs. Results reveal marked regional disparities with the highest pollution loads in parts of East Africa and the Middle East and North Africa – underscoring the need for context-specific wastewater management strategies. The findings point to a critical gap in current conservation policy – area-based protection alone cannot achieve biodiversity or resilience goals if land-based pollution remains unaddressed. This session will explore why wastewater pollution reduction must be integrated into 30×30 implementation to achieve effective conservation aims, while simultaneously strengthening ecosystem health, climate resilience, and the wellbeing of coastal communities.

Tuesday, September 29, 11 am US EDT/8 am US PDT/3 pm UTC/4 pm BST/5 pm CEST. Presented by: Amdeep Sanghera and Emily Bunce of Marine Conservation Society, UK. Description: For marine conservation initiatives to be effective and ethical, it is crucial that the views and ideas of local communities and resource users be represented in decision making. Community Voice Method (CVM) is a holistic and inclusive way of stimulating more meaningful and equitable community engagement in natural resource policy development, decision-making and management. Engaging with community members in a way that seeks their views and encourages discussion on marine issues, CVM combines arts-based social research with best practice in stakeholder engagement to deliver insights and conversations which can support positive, constructive, and enduring relationships and improved outcomes for people and nature. This webinar will present an overview of this film-based transdisciplinary approach, its origin, its application within the context of the UK and the Caribbean UK Overseas Territories, and its impact on people and nature. In addition, the webinar will feature an existing project in the Turks and Caicos where significant resources are being applied to the upskilling of local partners on the method, reducing the territory’s reliance on external researchers and resulting in a more locally-led project.

Thursday, October 8, Noon US EDT/9 am US PDT/4 pm UTC/5 pm BST/6 pm CEST. Presented by: Klaudija Cremers, Julien Rochette, and Alexandra Oliveira Pinto of IDDRI. Description: The credibility of future high seas marine protected areas (HSMPAs) established under the BBNJ Agreement will depend on their effective implementation and enforcement. Experiences from existing MPAs and high seas governance show that monitoring, control, and surveillance (MCS) is a decisive factor for compliance and enforcement. While the remoteness of areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ) poses major challenges, recent technological advances offer practical, scalable and cost-effective solutions, provided they are embedded in a broader compliance strategy. States and coalitions championing HSMPAs should therefore integrate a site-specific compliance strategy that includes MCS activities into their proposal from the outset, combining emerging technologies with complementary policy, legal, technical and cooperation measures. Over the past two years, IDDRI has conducted extensive research on MCS tools and services, including through interviews and expert consultations. This work resulted in a Guide that aims to support States and stakeholders in integrating MCS considerations into HSMPA proposals. This webinar will present the key findings of this work.