Indigenous Peoples' stewardship of seagrass ecosystems
Manca, Federica (Centre d’Estudis Avançats de Blanes - CSIC)
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament de Biologia Animal, de Biologia Vegetal i d'Ecologia
Fernández-Llamazares, Álvaro (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals)
de la Torre Castro, Maricela (Stockholm University. Department of Physical Geography)
Groom, Rachel (Charles Darwin University. Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods)
Lepofsky, Dana (Simon Fraser University. Department of Archaeology)
Pagès, Jordi F. (Centre d’Estudis Avançats de Blanes - CSIC)
Thomas, David N. (University of Helsinki)
Cabeza, Mar (University of Helsinki)

Fecha:	2026
Descripción:	8 pàg.
Resumen:	Seagrass meadows sustain biodiversity, fisheries, and human well-being, yet remain undervalued and often overlooked in marine governance. This review examines the central role of Indigenous Peoples' stewardship in maintaining and restoring seagrass ecosystems, grounded in relational worldviews that recognize humans, seagrass, and associated marine life as kin. Drawing on scientific literature, Indigenous scholarship, and evidence derived from community-led monitoring and restoration plans, we bring together a wide spectrum of stewardship practices that have long supported seagrass health. These include sustainable harvesting protocols, place-based taboos, sacred sites, seasonal closures, protection of large grazers, and ongoing Indigenous-led initiatives in cultural mapping, monitoring, and restoration. With examples from Australia and North America, we highlight revitalization initiatives that weave Indigenous knowledge with Western scientific methods, delivering positive ecological outcomes while restoring cultural relationships disrupted by colonial and postcolonial processes and accelerating environmental change. We argue that realizing just and resilient seagrass futures requires transformative change in ocean governance: legal recognition of Indigenous marine tenure, sustained support for Indigenous-led stewardship, and Indigenous law and knowledge in marine decision-making. Embedding Indigenous models of care grounded in reciprocity and kinship offers pathways that sustain both seagrass ecosystems and the cultures that steward them.
Ayudas:	European Commission 101117423 Agencia Estatal de Investigación RYC2021-034198-I Agencia Estatal de Investigación CEX2024-001506-M Agencia Estatal de Investigación PID2023-151732OA-I00 Agencia Estatal de Investigación RYC2022-036196-I
Nota:	Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2024-001506-M
Derechos:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, sempre que no sigui amb finalitats comercials, i sempre que es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Lengua:	Anglès
Documento:	Article de revisió ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Materia:	SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being ; SDG 14 - Life Below Water
Publicado en:	Current opinion in environmental sustainability, Vol. 83 (December 2026) , art. 101686, ISSN 1877-3435

DOI: 10.1016/j.cosust.2026.101686

8 p, 3.5 MB

El registro aparece en las colecciones:
Documentos de investigación > Documentos de los grupos de investigación de la UAB > Centros y grupos de investigación (producción científica) > Ciencias > Institut de Ciència i Tecnologia Ambientals (ICTA)
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