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Integrating climate adaptation and transboundary management: Guidelines for designing climate-smart marine protected areas
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Integrating climate adaptation and transboundary management: Guidelines for designing climate-smart marine protected areas

Nur Arafeh-Dalmau, Adrian Munguia-Vega, Fiorenza Micheli, Ainoa Vilalta-Navas, Juan Carlos Villaseñor-Derbez, Magdalena Précoma-de la Mora, David S. Schoeman, Alfonso Medellín-Ortíz, Kyle C. Cavanaugh, Oscar Sosa-Nishizaki, …
One earth (Cambridge, Mass.), v 6(11), pp 1523-1541
Nov 2023
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2023.10.002
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
url
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oneear.2023.10.002View
Published, Version of Record (VoR) Open

Abstract

biophysical guidelines California Current System climate adaptation strategies conservation planning kelp forests larval dispersal models marine reserves marine spatial planning post-2020 conservation targets
Climate change poses an urgent threat to biodiversity that demands societal responses. The magnitude of this challenge is reflected in recent international commitments to protect 30% of the planet by 2030 while adapting to climate change. However, because climate change is global, interventions must transcend political boundaries. Here, using the California Bight as a case study, we provide 21 biophysical guidelines for designing climate-smart transboundary marine protected area (MPA) networks and conduct analyses to inform their application. We found that future climates and marine heatwaves could decrease ecological connectivity by 50% and hinder the recovery of vulnerable species in MPAs. To buffer the impacts of climate change, MPA coverage should be expanded, focusing on protecting critical nodes for the network and climate refugia, where impacts might be less severe. For shared ecoregions, these actions require international coordination. Our work provides the first comprehensive framework for integrating climate resilience for MPAs in transboundary ecoregions, which will support other nations’ aspirations. [Display omitted] •We provide 21 guidelines for designing climate-smart transboundary protected areas•Future climates could decrease connectivity by 50% and hinder species recovery•Climate-smart networks require protecting critical sites and climate refugia•Adapting to climate change requires transboundary coordination in shared ecoregions Protecting nature is an essential measure to support the recovery of biodiversity from the impacts of climate change. For networks of marine protected areas (MPAs) to be climate smart, their design needs to address the vulnerability of biodiversity to current and future climate-change impacts. However, establishing these networks requires transboundary management when species move across international borders. Here, by providing guidelines and recommendations for designing climate-smart transboundary MPAs, we emphasize that nations should increase the coverage of MPAs, protect critical transboundary sites for the future functioning of the network, and protect those places less impacted by climate change. With new global protection targets aiming to preserve 30% of the planet by 2030, our work provides a framework and practical recommendations to guide nations embarking on climate-smart conservation and transboundary management. Climate change is impacting marine biodiversity globally, and the international community recognizes the need to implement climate-adaptation strategies and increase conservation efforts. We provide 21 guidelines for designing climate-smart marine protected areas and recommendations for their application in the transboundary California Bight, a shared ecoregion between the United States and Mexico. With a post-2020 global protection target recently approved, our framework for integrating climate adaptation and transboundary management will help nations’ aspirations of protecting 30% of their oceans by 2030.

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8 Record Views
28 citations in Web of Science
25 citations in Scopus

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UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This publication has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

#15 Life on Land
#14 Life Below Water

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
International collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Environmental Sciences
Environmental Studies
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
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