Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
In order to help to avoid devastating conflicts and national political unrest, education
and proactive information from communities, populations, and decision-makers is re-
quired. Education should aim at enhancing knowledge about the whole of the coastal zone
and shelf sea areas, including economic aspects, the interdependencies of uses and users,
and the economic and social consequences of sound management and of mismanagement
of disaster risks. Often communities are well aware of environmental and resource condi-
tions and interdependencies. Their need is education regarding norms, legal instruments,
laws, and how to achieve communication with authorities and other communities. This will
help enforcement and application of the instruments so as to achieve functioning law and
order with proper protection of community interests, including improved equity of distri-
bution and use of resources. In the globalized economy, resources and uses are often con-
trolled outside the local and subregional environment and their communities. This situation
needs to be balanced through enhanced local and subregional knowledge about existing
rights, laws, norms, and requirements for the sustainability of resources, environment, in-
frastructure, human life protection, and security. Education needs to include information
about procedures that give communities an appropriate voice in decisions over the use of
coastal resources, the distribution of incomes, and on industrial and infrastructure develop-
ments. The need for related education has been demonstrated repeatedly in connection with
disaster risk prevention and reduction. Law and order includes practical matters related to
daily life and survival, and these need to be put into the hands of ordinary people through
adequate education and skill development.
The coastal areas and the EEZs are multipurpose zones, hence education should also
be multipurpose. Users and managers should be made aware of the diversity of marine
activities, their interdependencies, and increasingly important roles in global, regional, and
national economies, and thus for peace and comprehensive human security. When prac-
tised over any extended period of time, it appears that any ocean use - fishing, aquacul-
ture, oil and gas drilling, construction and mineral resources exploitation or mining, energy
extraction, desalination, tourism development, transportation and ports, habitats and land
reclamation, and many other land-based activities generating pollution and other impacts
