“Blue Communities”: supporting sustainable and resilient marine management for coastal communities in SE Asia

Millions of people rely on marine and coastal ecosystems for food, employment and their general well-being. In recent years, the marine environment has suffered under pressure from the multiple, and often conflicting, needs of the people that use it. In SE Asia, marine activities are important contributors towards household incomes and community livelihoods, and consequently marine spatial planning involving coordinated decision-making has been highlighted as a key requirement for a sustainable future. A 4-year UK-funded interdisciplinary research programme, "GCRF Blue Communities" is supporting the development, implementation and on-going management of initiatives that promote the sustainable use of marine resources. UK academics and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are working with international partners and local stakeholders in this innovative, integrative approach, which is the first to be undertaken on this scale in SE Asia. Whilst we await the preliminary data from this programme, we share the integrated methologies being used, present outputs of linked projects and discuss the challenges to conducting research and implementing plans that collaborators have faced in the region. The focal areas are 'UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Reserves' or marine parks in Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Malaysia. These 'science for sustainability' sites have an established, collaborative infrastructure in which initiatives can be developed and tested alongside local stakeholders, with an aim to trialling further afield with surrounding communities. We present lessons learned from an integrated management plan of the first marine UNESCO Man and Biosphere reserve in the UK and discuss how these may be translated to the SE Asia context. We share outputs of an example integrative community health initiative by a partner NGO working in a marine reserve and explore options for the SE Asia situation. We present the methodologies used for our information gathering exercises, which include Evidence Syntheses, Ecosystem Services Assessments, Stakeholder Analyses and development of Theories of Change/Logic models particular to the region. These on-the ground information gathering exercises provide an empirical basis for the management initiatives. We discuss the need for, and the challenges faced with effective stakeholder engagement, capacity building and community involvement. Culturally-sensitive co-creation will underpin the up-take and implementation of the management plans both within and beyond the scope of this programme.peerReviewe