Localizing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development for the Barents Sea-Lofoten ecosystem in a changing climate

The #LoVeSeSDG project pulls together the credibilty, legitimacy and saliency needs for sustainable coastal development by working concretely on a case on the island of Andøya in Vesterålen. We have finished the field work for the Q-sort analysis which collects a diversity of views on the topic of sustainability in the municipal capital, Andenes. The aim of this research component is to identify and examine the discourses on sustainable coastal planning in Andøya, framed within the three dimensions of sustainability and social-ecological systems, for the purpose of localizing the SDGs. The research question is what are the discourses on sustainable coastal planning in Andøya? We used four general steps to conduct this Q-study. Firstly the PhD candidate developed the concourse, or the list of statements, using background interviews she conducted with local stakeholders. The strategic sampling yielded 15 stakeholders who each completed a Q-sort of 25 statements in April-July 2021. These individuals were the people the PhD candidate had already interviewed prior to the Q-study as well as some new individuals she identified during her month stay in Andøya in June 2021. This type of analysis leads to a description, or social narrative, of each Factor which represents a generalized view of all the individuals who are most strongly associated to that Factor. Thus, Factor 1 can be summarized as a group that is positive towards the fishing industry, whereas Factor 2 can be viewed as a group that sees the environment and development as not mutually exclusive, and Factor 3 is a group that has more of a management and governance perspective. This study has allowed us to discern the different discourses on Andøya that are related to sustainable coastal planning. We have done that here by identifying three distinct discourses on sustainable coastal planning that all share environmental values but differ in relation to sustainability and sustainable development: 1) fishing positive, 2) environmentally-conscious development, and 3) power in management and governance perspective. The results of this study can be used to break barriers in discussions on sustainable coastal planning in the community and offer an avenue through which SDG localization can be introduced. In the case of this study, the purpose of using Q was to critically reflect on the concept of sustainable coastal planning in Andøya in order to identify gaps and ways to move forward, which will serve to inform the next methodological step of the PhD on social-ecological network analysis. We have incorporated this knowledge into the new "SDG Wizard" SDG reporting tool which has developed within the auspices of this project. We will then how SDG reports from different businesses in various sectors in Andøya will help inform the spatial planning and prioritization of development projects in the region. To do this, we have established a collaboration with Andøy Kommune and Nordland Fylkeskommune and are planning a multi-stakeholder workshop across several sectors, including public health and education, in late the 2nd or 3rd quarter 2023.

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How can cultural heritage and cultural environments be used and managed in an integrated and sustainable way? This is the main research question in the 2018 MILJØFORSK call and the central focus we address in the LoVeSe-SDG proposal. Other question we address are: How would diverse societal and industrial actors engage in a credible science-based process? Are current societal, political, sectorial and scientific cultures currently fit for this purpose? The Norwegian and Barents Seas are hotter than ever, literally and figuratively. The once frozen and remote sea is today a contested area among oil and gas sectors, the maritime shipping sector, fishing sector and marine conservation groups. Technology, along with melting ice cover, makes the Barents Sea accessible to Norwegian and international actors. These aspects underscore the importance of the Barents Sea Management Plan, to understand the importance of ecological and human perspectives of the vast area. The marine ecosystem of the Norwegian and Barents Seas is the foundation and backdrop of the cultural heritage sites of Lofoten, Vesterålen and Senja (commonly referred to as LoVeSe). The future of the thriving fishing and tourism industries and cultural heritage in the LoVeSe region is dependent on sustainable utilization and management of the marine renewable resources. Since the north Atlantic and Barents Sea region of the Ocean is warming at an unprecedented rate, sustainable management must take climate change into account in order to be credible (acknowledging the latest science), legitimate (acknowledging Norway’s commitments to the Paris Treaty among other climate commitments) and salient (acknowledging public debates, local cultures and local governance).