The Role of Participatory Governance and Community-Based Management in Integrated Coastal and Ocean Management in Canada

TLDR

Participatory governance is essential for managing multiple values and outcomes toward ecological sustainability and economic development, yet Canada’s Oceans Act and federal policy provide only limited mechanisms for strong community roles in integrated coastal and ocean management. The study aims to strengthen community participation in integrated coastal and ocean management by recommending nine initiatives. These initiatives include shifting paradigms, overcoming turf protection, ensuring goal compatibility, ensuring sufficient information, addressing internal community stratification, creating cross‑scale linkages, fostering a participatory policy environment, building community capacity, and monitoring local‑level initiatives. Keywords: capacity‑building, community‑based management, cross‑scale linkages, integrated management, oceans policy, participatory governance.

Abstract

Abstract There is compelling evidence that participatory governance is crucial for contending with complex problems of managing for multiple values and outcomes to achieve ecological sustainability and economic development. Canada's Oceans Act, and federal oceans policy provide a strong basis for the participatory governance and community-based management of coastal and large ocean resources. The implementation of the Oceans Act and oceans policy has resulted in some steps toward participatory governance but has not adequately provided the mechanisms for a strong role for communities in integrated coastal and ocean management (ICOM). In order to strengthen and develop community participation in ICOM, nine initiatives are recommended: (1) shifting paradigms, (2) overcoming 'turf protection,' (3) ensuring compatibility of goals, (4) ensuring sufficiency of information, (5) dealing with internal community stratification, (6) creating cross-scale linkages, (7) creating a participatory policy environment, (8) building community capacity, and (9) monitoring and assessment of local-level initiatives. Keywords: capacity-buildingcommunity-based managementcross-scale linkagesintegrated managementoceans policyparticipatory governance Notes 1. On September 17, 1999 the Supreme Court of Canada acquitted Donald Marshall Jr. of three charges relating to federal fishing regulations upholding a 1760 treaty that gave the Mi'kmaq the right to trade products of their hunting, fishing, and gathering for "necessaries."