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Supporting managers and decision makers in Ocean Governance and Marine Spatial Planning

GEF-UNDP/UNEP-IOC IW:LEARN

By IW:LEARN

December 23^rd, 2020

Ocean governance is one of the most critical areas to improve sustainable development of marine resources and services. Complimentary to this, Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) is a significant tool to help implement ocean governance goals, including the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Lack of capacity in these areas is detrimental to sustainability. For key actors to drive and implement reform, strengthening knowledge to support delivery at a programmatic and institutional level is vital. Knowledge products and courses that shed light on ocean governance and marine spatial planning play a significant supporting role in policy development and enhancing the ability of marine practitioners to attract further financing.

Since their development in 2018 under the GEF-supported LME:LEARN project, the online courses focusing on Ocean Governance and Marine Spatial Planning & Sustainable Blue Economy have attracted the attention of participants from government ministries, NGOs, UN Agencies, intergovernmental organizations, and GEF-funded projects from various focal areas. In the year that these courses were available, these knowledge products reached 403 participants from 72 countries. With a clear demand, it became necessary to ensure that the courses were available beyond the lifetime of the GEF LME:LEARN training programme.

As of November 2020, GEF IW:LEARN is pleased to announce that these online courses are back in service with a fresh, new look thanks to our partner, UNDP Cap-Net Virtual Campus. Designed for practitioners and technical staff from governments, academia, NGOs, and professionals of GEF-funded projects, these courses offer support to marine and coastal managers and decision makers.

Supporting managers and decision makers in Ocean Governance and Marine Spatial Planning

Developed in collaboration with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the International Council for Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the Ocean Governance online course sets out to familiarize marine and coastal practitioners with key components of ocean governance. The course provides an introduction into governance concepts relevant for practitioners working within Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs) and their Coasts and contains practical approaches, lessons on governance, and illustrative case studies. Furthermore, it serves to promote an integrated, collaborative approach to ocean and coastal management.

By the end of the course, participants will understand and become familiar with:

Key principles of good governance;
The importance the role of values and ethics in supporting good governance;
The role and process of stakeholder engagement;
Approaches to sustainable finance;
International legal and institutional frameworks relevant to ocean governance on a global and/or regional scale;
The role of national and international agencies in implementing these global and regional instruments;
Key elements of effective governance;
The importance of and tools for effective communication as a component of effective governance;
Ways to integrate science into Large Marine Ecosystem governance and assess science needs;
Ways to assess governance measures

The course requires an investment of 12 hours and once a participant has completed the modules and quizzes, they may download their certificate of completion.

This course is available in English and can be accessed via the following link.

Developed in collaboration with the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC-UNESCO), the course on Marine Spatial Planning & Sustainable Blue Economy familiarizes participants with an understanding of what marine spatial planning is about, what benefits it can have, and what results you can expect. Furthermore, the course is designed to present the basic steps of MSP process, actors and responsibilities, legislation and finances needed, the MSP tools and techniques, and finally transboundary and cross-border contexts for MSP with a special emphasis on Large Marine Ecosystems.

By the end of the course participants will:

Have a broad understanding of the key elements that constitute Marine Spatial Planning at national and LME/transboundary scale, and be able to relate these to the organisations and countries in which they work;
Understand the relevance of marine spatial planning as a topic for coastal and marine development and management;
Be able to balance interests of different stakeholders on the basis of clear and transparent criteria.

The course requires an investment of 12 hours and once a participant has completed the modules and quizzes, they may download their certificate of completion.

This course is available in English, French, and Spanish.

GEF IW:LEARN project manager, Mish Hamid, emphasizes, “Capacity building in support of ocean governance and marine spatial planning needs to go beyond strengthening knowledge. Our role is to help instill a mindset that empowers practitioners to be more effective. The ocean and its living marine resources will surely benefit from the committed cadre of practitioners that GEF IW:LEARN and its partners are helping to build through these courses.”