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16
Peter Prokosch, MD of GRID-Arendal, in Blue Carbon debate at Eye on Earth Summit in December 2011 (photo by Robert Barnes)
7.2
Management of the
marine environment
The focus that the extended continental shelf work has
given to sustainable marine management, and the con-
tacts established through that programme, will underpin
the Marine Ecosystem Management (MEM) part of the
Marine Programme going forward.
10
In this context, the
Sustainable Seas Programme
is a follow up of the UNEP
Shelf Programme targeting “downstream” activities to
support developing states in the sustainable management
of the marine environment. A partnership is envisioned
with UNEP, IOC, Norwegian institutions and others and,
building on the network of contacts developed through
the UNEP Shelf Programme, the first phase will focus on
the same geographic areas. A Memorandum of Under-
standing has already been signed with the Abidjan Con-
vention and a pilot workshop is planned in West Africa to
identify capacity development priorities and needs in five
thematic areas.
11
The aim of GRID-Arendal’s
Blue Carbon Initiative
, a sig-
nificant strategic outgrowth of the MEM since 2010, is to
integrate Blue Carbon-related ecosystem management
into national and regional policy design. There is a great
need to assist coastal and island states to meet UN Mil-
lennium Development Goals, promote the sustainable
management of coastal Blue Carbon ecosystems through
climate change adaptation and mitigation, recognise
and value coastal ecosystem services, and strengthen
institutions and capacity for sustainable management
practices.
During 2011, the following Blue Carbon-related activities
were initiated:
•
Arabian Peninsula Assessment Project
– Under con-
tract to the Abu Dhabi Global Environmental Data Ini-
tiative (AGEDI), GRID-Arendal undertook a first level
policy and science exploration of Blue Carbon for the
Arabian Peninsula. Over 40 meetings were held with
local, national, and regional authorities and organisa-
tions throughout the region, including in the United
Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Kuwait, and Jordan. The
Blue Carbon -
First level Exploration of Natural Coastal
Carbon in the Arabian Peninsula
report
12
was launched
at the Eye on Earth Summit in Abu Dhabi in Decem-
ber 2011. It focuses on opportunities to advance Blue
Carbon in Abu Dhabi and the UAE and also explores
the concept in a regional context.
•
Eye on Earth Summit
– In partnership with AGEDI and
the Washington DC-based non-profit, Blue Climate
Solutions, GRID-Arendal put the spotlight on Blue
Carbon at the Eye on Earth Summit, a major interna-
tional event held in December 2011 and jointly hosted
by the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD) and
UNEP. The summit promoted the theme of knowl-
10. The MEM currently has 5 focus areas: Shelf + Blue Carbon; Sus-
tainable Seas Programme; EbM/Spatial Planning; Green Economy in a
Blue World; Natural Resources
11. Marine data and information management, marine assessments,
outreach and communication, green economy, and offshore oil and gas
environmental management
12.
http://www.grida.no/publications/blue%2Dcarbon%2Darabian%2Dpeninsula/