Coastal Futures: Advancing Coastal Sustainability and Climate Adaptation
TALKS
- Understanding the complex intersection of marine environment and coastal community system vulnerabilities to co-design ocean sustainable development and community empowerment narratives
Dr. Baker Matovu, Ph.D. Researcher in Sustainable Development, Amrita School for Sustainable Futures (ASF), Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Amritapuri Campus, Kerala, India
The role of coastal communities and marine resources in creating avenues for sustainable livelihoods and development across different scales can never be underestimated. This perspective is especially relevant to sedentary communities; notably in the global south or tropics that are heavily dependent on ocean goods, services, and resources. About 90 percent of coastal communities in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean rely on coastal fisheries (mostly small-scale fisheries) for their livelihood. Sustaining these livelihood indicators is key to attaining sustainable development goals (SDGs), blue economy, and the Ocean Decade (2021-2030) targets e.g., on equity. Unfortunately, there is growing evidence that most coastal communities in the tropics have remained vulnerable to human-environmental shocks and stressors, thus creating uncertain futures. This is partly due to an overt lack of sustainability safety nets e.g., on climate change (CC)-induced vulnerabilities; worsened by historical injustices and limited marine social science research on/among marginalized coastal communities. Urgent pathways to reverse these unsustainable systemic injustices are needed. Recognizing this missed opportunity in leveraging social and natural science in charting sustainability outcomes and futures in the ocean-coastal interface, my research intends to contribute to scholarly discourse by using a transdisciplinary approach, that harnesses the power of co-designing sustainable interventions using micro-level narratives or perspectives of coastal vulnerable communities and key stakeholders. This can help in the identification of coastal risks, shocks, and barriers to inclusion or sustainability, key actors, and the development of collaborative actions to co-design preferred futures or best management interventions to enhance fair transitions, equity, collaborative governance, and better stakeholder interactive networks.
- Creating Resilience among Coastal Communities: Communication Outreach and Climate Change
Prof. Pradeep Nair, Professor of New Media Studies at Central University of Himachal Pradesh, India
Climate change and ocean are intrinsically linked and sustaining the oceans is a way to ensure global health as ocean plays a critical role in global carbon cycle. This presentation will explore the relationship between communication media and climate change with a focus on the information needs of the coastal communities. Based on community outreach campaigns, this interaction will help individuals and institutions to understand the impact of climate change on coastal ecologies. It further helps to expand the understanding and awareness of macro and micro ecological interventions in terms of economic stability, climate resilience and maintaining the coastal biodiversity. This presentation will be centered on coastal communities and the expertise in this area stems from the ability to work on the ground in meaningful ways with partners in government, industry, local communities and NGOs, and to connect that work to influence global policy, market and finance to advance work at scale. The strategy focus will be on using the ocean and coastal ecosystems to mitigate and adapt to climate change. The purpose will be to make the coastal communities aware about degradation of coastal wetlands and to help them to learn how to conserve these natural coastal ecological systems to increase the amount of blue carbon to sequester the adverse impact of climate change on oceans. Through scientific research, site-based demonstrations and policy reforms, this presentation intends to educate, inform and engage the stakeholders about natural climate solutions for mitigation.
Our speakers
Dr. Baker Matovu
Dr. Baker Matovu is an Early Career Researcher and a part of the Future Earth family. His doctoral research focuses on the Blue Economy (BE) and the empowerment of coastal vulnerable communities e.g., women in the global south. Through this research, he uses a transdisciplinary approach to ocean sustainability, where he aims at co-designing sustainable interventions and nature-based solutions to complex ocean human-environmental challenges based on the perspectives and narratives of vulnerable micro settings/people. Using this approach, he has published over 10 articles in reputable journals. He has won notable research awards and been invited to global conferences such as the 2024 PICES grant to participate in the 2024 MSEAS, the 2024 MAXQDA Research for Change Award, the 2023 Marine Policy Research Grant, the 2023 TERRA School award in Japan, the 2022, 2023 & 2024 Korea Maritime Institute Award, 2022 ABCD Global Future Environmental Leaders Fellowship, among others. He is currently a collaborating researcher with the Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT)- Bremen, Germany focusing on developing climate resilience resource nexus pathways in the BE.
Prof. Pradeep Nair
Pradeep Nair is a Communication Scientist and Professor of New Media Studies at Central University of Himachal Pradesh, India. He is a member of Climate Advocacy Lab, which helps climate and clean energy advocates, organizers, funders, social scientists, data experts and others save time, money and energy by centralizing and transferring knowledge created by the climate community. He is a communication expert at International Panel on the Information Environment (IPIE) and a Global Outreach – Contributing Member of the American Society for Microbiology and is affiliated to FEC Cyber-Coast Working Group, Water Resource Working Group of World Climate Research Programme (WCRP), Planning Committee of National Adaptation Forum, Saint Paul, Minnesota. His study focuses on Climate and Health Nexus, Climate Change Impacts, Adaptation, Resilience, Governance and Policy. His main research areas are critical communication theories, new media in shaping public opinion and behavior in the context of energy decision-making process。
The event is free to attend and open to all. It will take place at 7 AM to 8 AM UTC on June 20th.
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