Marine protected areas could help to reduce poverty, increase food security, create employment and protect coastal communities.

1. An ocean of opportunity
Marine protected areas could help to reduce poverty, increase food security,
create employment and protect coastal communities.

2. An ocean of opportunity
Ocean ecosystems are renewable assets which, if maintained in a
healthy state, would continue to provide goods and services in
perpetuity.
Substantial economic and social gains could be realized by protecting
and improving them, and from using them sustainably and equitably to:
Enhance food security, health and well-being.
Deliver more secure and cost-effective public services.
Build more resilient economies and businesses.
Generate economic growth where it is needed.

3. Enhance food security, health
and well-being
making equitable access to food and raw materials from a healthy ocean
would improve quality of life for hundreds of millions of people, as well
as generating substantial savings from averted healthcare and social
costs.

4. Deliver more secure and cost-
effective public services.
Ocean ecosystems are a core part of a nation’s infrastructure portfolio,
and should be invested in accordingly. Protecting and improving them to
secure service supply would generate multibillion-dollar savings
through reduced need for man-made alternatives and avoided socio-
economic costs.

5. Build more resilient economies
and businesses.
Improved access to a sustainable supply of raw materials would insulate
economies, businesses and supply chains from resource shocks, price
volatility and disaster risks.

6. Generate economic growth
where it is needed
Through new businesses and job creation in coastal areas (for example
in fisheries and tourism) – areas that often suffer from a lack of
economic opportunities.

7. Conclusion
Marine protected areas (MPAs) that effectively protect critical habitats,
species and ecological functions are an essential tool for ensuring ocean
ecosystems can deliver services and benefits to current and future
generations.
Brander et al. (2015) show that well-managed MPAs could help to
reduce poverty, increase food security, create employment and protect
coastal communities. They modelled a range of scenarios to examine
the net benefits of expanding MPAs.
Increasing MPA coverage to 30 per cent of marine and coastal areas
could generate between US$490 billion and US$920 billion by 2050 and
150,000-180,000 full-time jobs in MPA management over the 2015-
2050 period.

8. Thanks for attention
Marine protected areas could help to reduce poverty, increase food security, create
employment and protect coastal communities.
Protecting our ocean makes economic sense