Ocean Governance and Policy

Catalog description

This course offers a deep dive into ocean and coastal governance and policy. As residents of the Ocean State, how well do we understand how society interacts with ocean spaces and resources, from local to national and global scales? We will investigate how marine policy planning and implementation processes interact with particular political, social, and economic contexts through case study examples, local practitioner guest speakers, and in-class debates. Using a variety of marine policy sectors (e.g., fisheries, energy, and biodiversity management), we will critically evaluate management tools (e.g., market mechanisms, regulations, area-based management, and community-based management). We will unsettle “established” policy assumptions, asking: Who governs oceans? How does power relate to ocean policy creation and outcomes? What are the roles of science, knowledge, institutions, history, and context in how ocean governance plays out on the ground (or in the waves!)?