Oct 24 – University Of Gibraltar At Marcons Meeting In Zagreb
The University of Gibraltar’s Dr Darren Fa last week attended a meeting of MarCons in Zagreb, Croatia.
MarCons (Advancing Marine Conservation in European and Contiguous Seas http://www.marcons- cost.eu/) is one of several European Cooperation in Science and Technology COST Actions, which are networking instruments for researchers, engineers, scholars and other stakeholders to cooperate and coordinate research activities as well as establish synergies with EU-funded research projects.
The MarCons meeting brought together researchers and stakeholders in marine conservation, with the aim of advancing the science in a range of areas, in particular to bridge the gap between conservation science and policymakers and substantially contribute to the challenge of halting biodiversity loss in the European Seas by 2020. Each of six identified areas was allocated to a specific working group (WG), which will work collaboratively over four years to provide a range of deliverables. The working groups included:
WG1 – Prediction of human cumulative impacts on ecosystems
WG2 – Present challenges and limitations in marine conservation
WG3 – Marine conservation and biological systems
WG4 – Integrated conservation planning across realms
WG5 – Regional coordination and transboundary conservation
WG6 – Governance of marine protected areas
Dr Fa, Director of Academic Programmes and Research was invited as an expert in marine conservation, and participated in several of the workgroups. MarCons will continue till 2020 and will result in the creation of a collaborative network of experts that will help build a critical mass to drive scientific progress in marine conservation, the provision of advice and engagement with policymakers and marine managers, novel frameworks and decision support tools, proposals for concrete conservation plans, the development of resolution strategies, as well as providing new opportunities for early career investigators.
A spokesperson said that the representation of the University of Gibraltar in this high-profile initiative “highlights the important role of our university academics in helping to formulate international frameworks and policies.”
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