Spatial Planning on Land and Sea, Environmental Risk Management and Cross-Border Governance
At the forthcoming Conference of Irish Geographers (May 18th-21st, online), I will convene a themed session with Danial Tubridy (UCD Planning) and Liam Carr (NUI Galway Geography) focussed on exploring and developing critical perspectives on coastal and marine governance and their associated geographies.
The final deadline for abstract submissions is 30th April (via the conference website). Read on for further details!
The trilateral Wadden Sea Forum (WSF) has recently initiated the process of developing a Green Coastal Deal for the Wadden Sea Region. The Wadden Sea Forum was established in 2002 as an independent multi-stakeholder partnership for the Wadden Sea region, complementing and supporting the intergovernmental Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation (TWSC). From the beginning, the WSF has sought to facilitate exchange of knowledge, experience and good practice among a broad group of stakeholders across the Wadden Sea region in Germany, the Netherlands and Denmark. Whereas the formal TWSC is focused on the conservation of the Wadden Sea itself, the WSF is concerned with the sustainable development of the wider coastal region, helping to position the Wadden Sea conservation efforts (now a World Heritage site) site within its wider geographical context.
Landschaftsbilder und Landschaftsverständnisse in Politik und Praxis
Edited by Cormac Walsh, Gisela Kangler & Markus Schaffert, Springer VS, March 2021
In the following, I provide an English-language introduction to the book, drawing in particular on the text of the introduction chapter.
Landscape is highly relevant for the policy, practice and politics of spatial planning and environmental management. In the preamble of the European Landscape Convention, (Council of Europe 2000) landscape is attested a “an important public interest role in the cultural, ecological, environmental and social fields”. Landscape management is described as a cross-sectoral task, part of an integrative environmental policy, requiring stakeholder engagement and public participation. The European Landscape Convention has to date, been signed and ratified by over 85% of member states, but not by Germany or Austria. This is particularly surprising, given that German landscape planning is often seen as model of best practice, yet perhaps reflects the high degree of sectoral institutionalisation and professionalisation of landscape policy and planning within the German and Austrian systems.
Continue reading “New edited book on Landscape in Policy and Practice”Following the publication of the comprehensive report of an Advisory Group on the Expansion of Ireland’s Marine Protected Area Network (MPA) in January, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage has opened a public consultation on the planning of MPAs. The consultation takes the form of an online survey with a series of questions, many of ask for detailed, open responses and assume knowledge of the content of the individual chapters of the Advisory Report. I completed my submission this morning. In what follows, I summarise my key recommendations and outline what I view as priorities re. MPA planning and management.
I look forward to participating in this webinar on Maritime Spatial Planning on Wednesday 24th February: Maritime Spatial Planning
Striking the balance: development and protection of our seas and oceans.
The discussion will be hosted by MEP for Ireland South, Grace O’Sullivan and will feature a discussion of the study on Best Practice in Maritime Spatial Planning I was commissioned to write.
To register for the event please click here: https://lnkd.in/dKeuR2p
Or watch on Facebook live: https://lnkd.in/dupijii
