Role of Technology in a Sustainable Blue Economy
摘要
Oceans have been an important resource to humanity through millennia, for food and transportation of goods and people. However, their uncontrolled overexploitation of more recent times has brought them to the brink of ecological collapse. World organizations have embarked on “sustainable oceans” management practices as a common goal after realizing the damages caused to marine ecosystems and the consequences causing a possible destruction of humanity if business-as-usual continues. To achieve a sustainable ocean, the knowledge of anthropogenic stressors causing unsustainability is essential for creating awareness. However, derived public awareness alone cannot deliver a sustainable ocean due to their dynamic nature and ensuing reactions with anthropogenic stressors. Furthermore, as science, technology, and innovation can provide a possible solution to environmental deterioration, hasten the understanding of oceans, and encourage sustainable interactions with the oceans to achieve a sustainable Blue Economy, such procedures and technologies need to be developed. It is with this understanding that the chapter reviews the numerous studies to first create the desired awareness about the anthropogenic stressors that are the root cause of an unsustainable ocean and then discuss the technological developments achieved and those desired to enable a meaningful study of the oceans and help achieve their desired sustainability. This study contributes to improving the understanding of the anthropogenic stressors and the oceans alike so as to achieve a sustainable Blue Economy through the use of science, technology and innovation. To strengthen the argument that science, technology, and innovation can actually help achieve ocean sustainability, three case studies have been discussed. The study shows that this goal cannot be achieved by science, technology, and innovation alone as they are only facilitators. The desired results are possible only if there is political will, which requires strengthening of policy and regulatory frameworks; knowledge and best practices sharing, and collaboration at the regional level with due importance given to the role of the “person on ground.” In effect, achieving a sustainable ocean economy can be said to reside in the hand of science, technology, and innovation as a facilitator duly supported by policymakers as implementers.