Blue Burdens and Opportunities: Actioning Equity, Sustainability, and Economic Viability in the Blue Economy

The blue economy is often framed as a pathway to social and environmental sustainability, balancing economic growth with achieving positive social equity and environmental outcomes. Yet industries seeking to align with this vision face challenges translating equity and sustainability principles into practice while maintaining economic viability.

The core equity, environmental, and social principles of the blue economy, stem from international negotiations, guiding national governments in meeting global obligations. National policies must align with broader regulatory frameworks, creating overlaps with non-blue economic activities. This results in a complex regulatory, social, and ecological landscape where industries must balance economic viability with their environmental and social commitments.

This thematic issue, Blue Burdens and Opportunities, critically examines the practical realities of being a “blue” industry. How do industries operationalise equity and sustainability principles? What incentives do industries have to engage in these principles, and what tensions arise when these ideals meet real-world constraints? Are blue industries held to a higher standard than others and what are the implications of this? While policies and frameworks emphasise buzzwords and high-level concepts such as just transitions, nature-positive design, and participatory decision-making, there is often little guidance on how to practically implement these. What does this mean in practice?

We invite interdisciplinary perspectives that explore how blue industries interpret and implement social, economic, and environmental objectives. Contributions may consider but are not limited to, governance mechanisms to support emerging industries, navigating community conflict, moving past blue growth, tensions in resource accessibility, trade-offs between environmental, equitable and economic outcomes, and examples of equity in practice.

By bringing together diverse insights, this issue deepens understanding of the challenges and strategies shaping an equitable and sustainable blue economy. In doing so, it moves beyond high-level aspirations to explore the burdens and opportunities of blue economy industries.

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