The journey to the publication of this book started back in 2013, right after OceanCanada Director Dr Rashid Sumaila finished his term as director of the then Fisheries Centre (now Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries) at the University of British Columbia, when he initiated a conversation with members of his lab (the Fisheries Economics Research Unit) on how to develop a winning project proposal to address a significant challenge. This conversation was later expanded to leaders in the field of interdisciplinary social and natural sciences pertaining to oceans and fisheries. These conversations culminated in the formation of the OceanCanada Partnership (OCP), which went on to successfully win one of the coveted Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Partnership Grants.
The OceanCanada Partnership ran from 2014 until 2022, and provided us the platform to develop the ideas, concepts, insights and policy recommendations reported in this book. It also afforded us the opportunity to publish several contributions while training a sizable number of students and postdoctoral fellows who have gone on to create their own research programmes or join government, Non Governmental Organisations, and the private sector – contributing to sustaining fish and fisheries throughout Canada’s three coasts and beyond (see www.oceancanada.org).
SEA CHANGE: Charting a Sustainable Future for Oceans in Canada aims to help Canadian society understand, prepare and plan for the challenges that lie ahead for our oceans and our coasts. The chapters in this volume are a core outcome of the OceanCanada Partnership, composed of 22 formal research partners, including universities from coast to coast, community organizations, and Fisheries and Oceans Canada. The chapters in this volume seek to identify future policy options and to develop shared understandings that are crucial for the sustainability of Canada’s coastal and ocean ecosystems. While the insights and recommendations emerging from these chapters are situated in the present, they reflect decades of experience among the authors and their collaborators seeking positive social, economic and ecological outcomes. The contributions thus offer insights that reflect a rich history of scholarship and action across our three oceans and coasts, as well as a direct recognition that the future of our oceans is fundamentally linked to reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, partners and nations.
SEA CHANGE: Charting a Sustainable Future for Oceans in Canada will be available to purchase in 2024.