2026
Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), especially “no-take” reserve zones, are among the most valuable tools we have for protecting marine biodiversity, improving ocean governance, and managing the adverse effects of climate change. However, the benefits of MPAs are severely constrained by conflicting geopolitics and economic incentives, compounding climate stressors, species migration out of protected areas, and rising anthropogenic pressures such as industrial fishing and deep-sea mining.
MPAs need to be designated with consideration for how they operate at the intersection of these overlapping issues, not just on the basis of biodiversity significance. The Oxford Marine Protection Project proposes a governance-integrated multi-spatial designation process structured around five key security lenses: food, climate, regulatory, economic and energy.
These five are selected as each can be operationalised through globally available satellite imagery, geospatial datasets and administratively compiled evaluations. Furthermore, health security, cultural and identity security, and full biodiversity assessment are included in tandem with a focus on in-situ data collection, since they depend on field science, community-held knowledge and Indigenous knowledge systems. Indeed, there are also opportunities that come with integrating security into marine spatial planning, allowing for dual-use of security assets in marine protection.
The Philippines is an illustrative case study, where cyclone exposure, fisheries dependence, offshore energy expansion and contested maritime sovereignty converge. This work is part of an ongoing project with WWF Philippines and Kainos, to create a geospatial analysis tool that integrates these siloed data forms in one for communities and policymakers.
