Repost | Congratulations to Ocean Nexus Student Fellow Abigael Kim
So grateful to have this research featured in a recent Ocean Nexus post. Check out this full story below!
Congratulations to Ocean Nexus Student Fellow Abigael Kim on completing her Master of Marine Management at the Dalhousie University Marine Affairs Program and publishing “Local perspectives on marine ecotourism development in a water-insecure island region: the case of Bocas del Toro, Panama"
“In developing, conducting, and publishing this research it was very important to us that the stories, experiences, and opinions of those we spoke to in Bocas del Toro were directing the project. There exist too few instances where the potential implications of Blue Economy policies and plans are evaluated through the eyes of those that are most closely impacted by their development.
What we found is that while many locals see the promise of an enhanced marine ecotourism industry, their current experiences with it, in relation to accessing fresh water, is greatly tainted by the lasting impacts of colonialism, a misalignment of community vs. government development priorities and eroded political trust. This further shapes opinions of sustainable development and perceptions of the ability of marine ecotourism to address issues of water insecurity.
As a Visiting Researcher at the The School for Field Studies, Center for Tropical Island Biodiversity Studies I also had the opportunity to teach a class on the importance of equity in a Blue Economy to a cohort of undergraduate students with primarily biological science backgrounds, introducing them to topics of international power disparities, sustainable development, and large ocean states [photo]. I think it is critical that students are taught about the Blue Economy within the context of equity—without it, the next generation will be operating under the false pretence that sustainable development and blue economies can in fact be sustainable without centering social equity, which is simply not the case.”
— Ocean Nexus Student Fellow, Abigael Kim
Overall, Abi and co-authors Cinda P Scott & Wilf Swartz recommend that future Blue Economy plans should re-center issues of equity as their primary goal by addressing systemic power disparities through a socio-historical lens and anti-inequity approach.
Commentaires