Governing novel climate interventions in rapidly changing oceans

2025/07/31 by Tiffany H. Morrison, GT Pecl, Kirsty L. Nash +21 · 1 voice · 1 citation
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Environmental Science · #Coastal and Marine Management #Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies #Ocean Acidification Effects and Responses

paper · doi:10.1126/science.adq0174

openalex publication_date 2025/07/31 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01

Abstract

Marine systems are rapidly changing in response to global heating. The scale and intensity of change are triggering a host of novel interventions to sustain oceans and ocean-dependent societies. However, the pace of new interventions is outstripping capacity to prevent unintended consequences because governance systems to ensure responsible transformation of marine systems are not yet in place. Responsible transformation entails transitioning marine systems to sustainable, equitable, and adaptive states through weighing intervention risks against benefits, resolving ethical liabilities, improving social cobenefits, establishing legitimacy, and managing climate policy integrity. Global, national, and local actors must urgently convert responsible transformation principles into rules-and practice-to ensure that novel marine-climate interventions are safe, equitable, and effective.

Citations

• Developing a framework for responsible innovation
• Blue growth and blue justice: Ten risks and solutions for the ocean economy
• Adaptation interventions and their effect on vulnerability in developing countries: Help, hindrance or irrelevance?
• A 20-year retrospective review of global aquaculture
• Implementation of blue carbon offset crediting for seagrass meadows, macroalgal beds, and macroalgae farming in Japan
• Diverse carbon dioxide removal approaches could reduce impacts on the energy–water–land system
• Novel marine-climate interventions hampered by low consensus and governance preparedness
• Guide to Best Practices in Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement Research
• Towards rangatiratanga in pest management? Maori perspectives and frameworks on novel biotechnologies in conservation

Cited by

• Strengthening ocean literacy: marine science education and training to ensure Australia's blue future

Discussions

• The effects of climate change on #marine #ecosystems are increasingly negative prompting many new interventions to sustain the ocean. But, as Morrison et al. point out, #governance systems to prevent [bsky, 1 points, 0 comments]

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