- Details
- Published: 06 November 2025
Projeto MPA4Sustainability
NEWS
ABSTRACT
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Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) will play a crucial role in the successful implementation of the European Biodiversity Strategy and the European Green Deal. While significant attention has been given to the best approaches for designing and establishing MPAs, less than a quarter have clear management plans. Managing complex socio-ecological systems (SES) is challenging and steering them toward sustainability is even more so. This is particularly true for MPAs, where biodiversity objectives and the exploitation of regional ecosystem services must be balanced. There is an urgent need to focus on practical and efficient ways to manage and monitor MPAs to ensure benefits for both nature and people.
This project seeks to provide practical solutions to guide MPA managers toward the most effective approaches for delivering positive biodiversity outcomes while maintaining the capacity of coastal communities to sustainably utilize marine ecosystem services. MPA managers from Madeira, France, Denmark, and Sweden, together with scientists, will co-create the necessary vision to develop this guidance, based on a global synthesis of MPA data and detailed functional analyses across three case study sites.
PROJECT SHEET
https://doi.org/10.54499/DivRestore/0011/2020
CODE
TITLE
Enhancing MPAs’ role in restoring biodiversity while maintaining access to ecosystem services
MAIN OBJECTIVE
Assess how existing MPAs can be used not only to achieve biodiversity targets but also to maximize their contributions to the blue economy, respecting Nature.
TOTAL COST
€ 1 337 770.00
PARTNER COST
€ 89 943.30
ELIGIBLE COST
€ 89 943.30
PARTNERS
- Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
- EPHE/CNRS/Perpignan University, Perpignan, France
- Spanish National Research Council, Barcelona, Spain
- Mathematical Research Center, Cerdanyola del Valles, Spain
- Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Lysekil, Sweden
- Instituto de Florestas e Conservação da Natureza (IFCN), Madeira, Portugal
FINANCING
100% Financed by the European Program Biodiversa+ through “Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia” (FCT)
PROJECT WEBPAGE
https://www.biodiversa.eu/2022/10/25/mpa4sustainability/
https://sites.dtu.dk/mpa4sustainabilitySPECIFIC OBJECTIVES AND JUSTIFICATION
PROJECT RATIONALE
T.01.1 MPA ES and biodiversity mapping.
T.01.2 MPA governance and management mapping.
T.02.3 SES dynamics sensitivity analysis.
T.03.1 Estimation of biodiversity indicator robustness.
T.03.2 Validation of remotely sensed indicators of ecosystem services.
T.03.3 Beta-testing of citizen monitoring.
T.04.2 Develop integrative management guidelines.
T.04.3 Feed-in regulatory process of case studies.
Currently, there are more than 17,000 marine protected areas (MPAs) around the world covering close to 9% of the oceans. Yet only 23% of them have a clear management plan and only about 1% of them have had management effectiveness evaluations. Such management plans are crucial for the success of MPAs, but the development and implementation of those plans often meet financial and infrastructure obstacles. Even if guidelines exist, they do not systematically explain how to measure, monitor, and manage trade-offs between biodiversity targets and socio-economic impacts of MPAs. Particularly, there are currently no guidelines for developing adaptive plans to ensure the transformative change that MPAs are to bring for ecosystem restoration and conservation, biodiversity improvement, and to meet UN SDG targets. This is the key gap mpa4sustainability will address by conceptualising MPAs as interventions on complex socio-ecological systems and trying to appraise how they affect their journeys towards sustainability.ACTIONS
Estimate how changes in biodiversity associated with MPA establishment, and embedding in existing spatial management, and management are related to ecosystem service (ES) exploitations. We will use a retrospective approach to estimate how biodiversity indicators are associated with ES exploitation richness, yield and resilience in existing MPAs depending on their characteristics and objectives.
2. Modeling Socio-Ecological Dynamics and Tipping Points in Marine Protected Areas
Estimate the dynamics of these socioecological networks of biodiversity and ES exploitation, the variety of states they can occupy, and the detection of possible cases of socio-ecological systems close to tipping points, using prospective analytical and computational approaches. We will particularly focus on estimating the role of MPA management actions and human pressure in driving those changes.
3. Evaluating Indicators for Adaptive Monitoring and Management of MPAs
Assess whether readily available indicators can be used to monitor progress and adjust management of MPAs to ensure sustainability and the achievement of biodiversity targets.
4. The Added Value of MPA Networks: Policy Analysis for Regional Biodiversity and Ecosystem Service Goals
Carry out policy analyses to evaluate how networks of MPAs, that can come from varied regulatory frameworks, can have added value for regional biodiversity and ES targets.EXPECTED RESULTS
2. The Decision Support System (DSS) will be a user-friendly simulation platform. Consisting of guidelines, this tool will support the development of integrative MPA management plans by helping identify socioecological trade-offs, define appropriate management actions, design monitoring programmes, and explore synergies among adjacent MPAs. the development of integrative MPA management plans by helping identify socioecological trade-offs, define appropriate management actions, design monitoring programmes, and explore synergies among adjacent MPAs.
3. MPA4Sustainability will generate direct impacts in three case studies: by identifying the best area-management approach for Øresund, improving the SCI “Cetáceos Madeira” management plan and integrating it with other MPAs in Madeira, and aligning the management plan of the Marine Park with the Cerbère-Banyuls Reserve to enhance their combined socioecological value.
