MOSES at European Maritime Day 2021

Having been invited to be a panel member at the Sustainable Coastal Tourism session for European Maritime Day on the 21^st of May 2021 Stephen Hynes highlighted the work carried out as part of the EU Interreg Atlantic Area Programme project MOSES. The key findings which emerged from the collaborative research on sustainable growth paths for marine tourism were pointed out.

Prof Hynes was particularly keen to point out how vital to the transition management approach examined in MOSES is continued community collaboration which is essential from the outset of any marine tourism initiative development. It was pointed out that regional policy-makers are well-placed to undertake this work and benefit from the exchange of experience with the local communities facing these challenges. For example in the Irish case funding of €19 million was announced in May to build “world-class” facilities at 22 locations across the country where marine-based activities are a key visitor attraction. These plans were developed in partnership between the Irish tourism authority, Fáilte Ireland and Local Authorities.

Prof Hynes also noted that we are currently going through a transformative opportunity to tackle some of the most pressing development challenges facing the sector and it is great to see the coastal tourism industry taking the opportunity to build back better following the pandemic by focusing in a systematic way on the sustainable use of the coastal and marine natural capital, and the local coastal communities that underpins it. For further information on the session see

https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/maritimeday/get-involved/workshops_en