14 November 2014: The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has collaborated with Wily Online Library to release a special issue of the journal Aquatic Conservation, which features ‘Building Networks of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs): New Insights from the Third International MPA Congress (IMPAC 3).’ The special issue aims to provide data, information and science to support decision-making and goals on ocean protection.

The rate of MPA establishment is currently inadequate, especially in geographic and habitat coverage, Sylvia Earle, IUCN Patron of Nature, and Paul Giacobbi, President of the French Agency for MPAs, write in the issue’s preface. They urge political leaders to deliver on existing pledges on marine conservation, such as by taking steps to manage resources within Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs).

The publication compiles peer-reviewed articles by conservation professionals on MPAs, which show MPAs’ positive impacts on biodiversity, marine resilience and productivity. Articles address, inter alia: methodologies for defining progress towards MPA coverage for Aichi Biodiversity Target 11; large MPAs; MPAs in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ); creation of a more balanced and representative Marine World Heritage list; challenges related to connecting MPAs; migratory marine species; governance challenges in scaling up from individual MPAs to MPA networks; development of ecologically or biologically significant areas (EBSAs); and MPAs and fisheries. Articles also discuss regional and national challenges, including on: MPA management in the Caribbean and Mediterranean Seas and a case study on ecological coherence in the North-east Atlantic Ocean.

IUCN and Wiley plan to continue their collaboration to produce data and ideas to maintain momentum on MPA creation and improved management. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and Parks Canada provided financial contributions for the publication.

The special issue was timed to coincide with the IUCN World Parks Congress, which is taking place in Sydney, Australia, from 12-19 November 2014. [IUCN Press Release] [Publication: Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems: November 2014, Volume 24, Issue S2] [IISD RS coverage of World Parks Congress]