The urgency of Sustainable Ocean Studies in management

Abstract

Seemingly infinite, and above all so far away from our daily worries, the ocean may look like it can put up with all anthropic pressures: plastic, warming, acidification, resources overconsumption, novel entities, biodiversity and habitat loss. But science keeps showing it cannot. There is an urgent need to address these pressures that threaten both natural and human ecosystems. In this context of urgency, it appears crucial to develop Sustainable Ocean Studies, whose keystone could be management science. Unfortunately, while natural sciences have largely contributed to our understanding of marine issues and their solutions, management scholars on the contrary have rather neglected the ocean. In this special issue, we focus on the need for Sustainable Ocean Studies through three original highlights: scuba diving, marine wild meat consumption and interdisciplinary ocean research.