Browsing by Author "Sturrock, Anna"
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Item The SEA-UNICORN European COST Action: Advancing Knowledge on Marine Connectivity to Support Transition to a Sustainable Blue Economy(Marine Technology Society, 2022-06-08) Darnaude, Audrey M.; Seker, Yael Teff; Constantini, Federica; Tanner, Susanne; Sturrock, Anna; Lopez-Lopez, Lucia; Manuel, Hidalgo; Beger, Maria; Turkmen, Ant; Peck, Myron; Volkaert, Filip; Hunter, EwanThe European COST Action “Unifying Approaches to Marine Connectivity for improved Resource Management for the Seas” (SEA-UNICORN, 2020‐2025) is an international research coordination initiative that unites an interdisciplinary community of scientists and policymakers from over 100 organizations across Europe and beyond. It is establishing a globally harmonized framework to deliver actionable, transdisciplinary knowledge of marine functional connectivity, promoting a sustainable blue economy and ocean conservation. Planning sustainable development in rapidly changing oceans requires a thorough comprehension of marine biodiversity and the processes underpinning the functioning of ecosystems. Connectivity among marine populations and habitats facilitates the persistence and resilience of vulnerable species and ecosystems and controls the spread of invasive species. Constructing effective networks of restoration or conservation areas and promoting sustainable harvesting requires knowledge of connectivity. SEA-UNICORN advances worldwide collaboration by coordinating the collection, sharing, and application of knowledge on species, community, and ecosystem connectivity at sea and at the land‐sea interface. It engages scientists from diverse areas and early-career researchers and creates a stronger match between natural and social science and policy needs to better address key environmental issues that challenge the future of our planet.Item Unifying approaches to Functional Marine Connectivity for improved marine resource management: the European SEA-UNICORN COST Action(Pensoft Publishers, 2022-02-22) Darnaude, Audrey M.; Arnaud-Haond, Sophie; Hunter, Ewan; Gaggiotti, Oscar; Sturrock, Anna; Beger, Maria; Volckaert, Filip A.M.; Perez-Ruzafa, Angel; Lopez-Lopez, Lucia; Tanner, Susanne E.; Turan, Cemal; Dogdu, Servet Ahmet; Katsanevakis, Stelios; Costantini, FedericaTruly sustainable development in a human-altered, fragmented marine environment subject to unprecedented climate change, demands informed planning strategies in order to be successful. Beyond a simple understanding of the distribution of marine species, data describing how variations in spatio-temporal dynamics impact ecosystem functioning and the evolution of species are required. Marine Functional Connectivity (MFC) characterizes the flows of matter, genes and energy produced by organism movements and migrations across the seascape. As such, MFC determines the ecological and evolutionary interdependency of populations, and ultimately the fate of species and ecosystems. Gathering effective MFC knowledge can therefore improve predictions of the impacts of environmental change and help to refine management and conservation strategies for the seas and oceans. Gathering these data are challenging however, as access to, and survey of marine ecosystems still presents significant challenge. Over 50 European institutions currently investigate aspects of MFC using complementary methods across multiple research fields, to understand the ecology and evolution of marine species. The aim of SEA-UNICORN, a COST Action within the European Union Horizon 2020 framework programme, is to bring together this research effort, unite the multiple approaches to MFC, and to integrate these under a common conceptual and analytical framework. The consortium brings together a diverse group of scientists to collate existing MFC data, to identify knowledge gaps, to enhance complementarity among disciplines, and to devise common approaches to MFC. SEA-UNICORN will promote co-working between connectivity practitioners and ecosystem modelers to facilitate the incorporation of MFC data into the predictive models used to identify marine conservation priorities. Ultimately, SEA-UNICORN will forge strong forward-working links between scientists, policy-makers and stakeholders to facilitate the integration of MFC knowledge into decision support tools for marine management and environmental policies