Utilizing Marine Cultural Heritage for the Preservation of Coastal Systems in East Africa

Georgia Holly; Arturo Rey da Silva; Jon Henderson; Caesar Bita; Wes Forsythe; Zacarias Alexandre Ombe; Christopher Poonian; Hayley Roberts

doi:10.3390/jmse10050693

Utilizing Marine Cultural Heritage for the Preservation of Coastal Systems in East Africa

Georgia Holly, Arturo Rey da Silva, Jon Henderson, Caesar Bita, Wes Forsythe, Zacarias Alexandre Ombe, Christopher Poonian, Hayley Roberts

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Abstract

This paper presents the key contributions of marine cultural heritage to the survival ofcoastal ecosystems and the communities that rely on them in East Africa. Marine cultural heritage(MCH) describes the evidence of past human interactions with coastal and marine space, encom-passing tangible material culture remains and associated intangible cultural expressions withincoastal communities. By incorporating the protection of MCH into local and regional environmentalframeworks, we gain an essential indicator to monitor change dynamics in natural habitats, the cumulative impacts of climate change, and the development of social adaptation strategies. An es-sential aspect of this development is the move away from global sustainability strategies towards community-centric management and stewardship. Such processes utilise a combination of traditionalknowledge systems and scientific approaches designed to harness targeted economic, ecological,and social sustainable development. To argue for the incorporation of MCH into local and regional environmental frameworks in the area, this paper presents four case studies from the Rising from the Depths Network, a challenge-led research network focusing on harnessing the potential of MCH tobring sustainable development strategies to East Africa.

Original language	English
Article number	693
Number of pages	29
Journal	Journal of Marine Science and Engineering
Volume	10
Issue number	5
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse10050693
Publication status	Published (in print/issue) - 19 May 2022

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
The co-creation of knowledge on local environments and marine heritage is currently being pursued through the promotion of social learning events in the Chongoene District, where local schools, farmers, and researchers share knowledge on ecosystems and marine heritage. The Chongoene Archaeological and Biocultural Heritage Park project, funded by the ‘patrimonies’ funding initiative of the German Gerda Henkel Foundation—Stiftung and coordinated by Mozambique University, is a key legacy of this work. The park aims to preserve Chongoene’s archaeological, ecological, and biocultural coastal resources through the creation of a public-use-protected areas and an ecotourism site. The project will employ members of the community as guides, guards, and gardeners, and routine monitoring of exposed archaeological remains and ecological fluctuations will be undertaken.

Funding Information:
This paper focuses on 4 of the 27 innovation projects funded by the Rising from the Depths (RftD) Network in East Africa. Coordinated by the University of Edinburgh, the RftD network aims to promote sustainable economic, social, and ecological development in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Madagascar, through the use, preservation, and understanding of MCH. Running from 2017 to 2022, the network is funded by the UK’s Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) through the Arts and Humanities Research Council’s Network+ scheme. The Network represents a first attempt to look at the marine cultural heritage of East Africa in a coordinated and multidisciplinary way, uniting the various existing capacities in the region and giving agency to local communities in the elaboration of research agendas, project design, and resource management [3].

Funding Information:
Funding: This research was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (grant number AH/R005443/1) through the GCRF Network+ Rising from the Depths.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.

Keywords

marine cultural heritage; Africa; sustainable development; climate change; resilience;traditional knowledge; coastal systems; biocultural heritage
sustainable development
marine cultural heritage
biocultural heritage
traditional knowledge
Africa
coastal systems
resilience
climate change

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.3390/jmse10050693Licence: CC BY

Holly et al 2022 jmse-10-00693Final published version, 5.79 MB

Cite this

@article{36b0d9d1db864e60ae26ada14ce7514f,

title = "Utilizing Marine Cultural Heritage for the Preservation of Coastal Systems in East Africa",

abstract = "This paper presents the key contributions of marine cultural heritage to the survival ofcoastal ecosystems and the communities that rely on them in East Africa. Marine cultural heritage(MCH) describes the evidence of past human interactions with coastal and marine space, encom-passing tangible material culture remains and associated intangible cultural expressions withincoastal communities. By incorporating the protection of MCH into local and regional environmentalframeworks, we gain an essential indicator to monitor change dynamics in natural habitats, the cumulative impacts of climate change, and the development of social adaptation strategies. An es-sential aspect of this development is the move away from global sustainability strategies towards community-centric management and stewardship. Such processes utilise a combination of traditionalknowledge systems and scientific approaches designed to harness targeted economic, ecological,and social sustainable development. To argue for the incorporation of MCH into local and regional environmental frameworks in the area, this paper presents four case studies from the Rising from the Depths Network, a challenge-led research network focusing on harnessing the potential of MCH tobring sustainable development strategies to East Africa.",

keywords = "marine cultural heritage; Africa; sustainable development; climate change; resilience;traditional knowledge; coastal systems; biocultural heritage, sustainable development, marine cultural heritage, biocultural heritage, traditional knowledge, Africa, coastal systems, resilience, climate change",

author = "Georgia Holly and {da Silva}, {Arturo Rey} and Jon Henderson and Caesar Bita and Wes Forsythe and Ombe, {Zacarias Alexandre} and Christopher Poonian and Hayley Roberts",

note = "Funding Information: The co-creation of knowledge on local environments and marine heritage is currently being pursued through the promotion of social learning events in the Chongoene District, where local schools, farmers, and researchers share knowledge on ecosystems and marine heritage. The Chongoene Archaeological and Biocultural Heritage Park project, funded by the {\textquoteleft}patrimonies{\textquoteright} funding initiative of the German Gerda Henkel Foundation—Stiftung and coordinated by Mozambique University, is a key legacy of this work. The park aims to preserve Chongoene{\textquoteright}s archaeological, ecological, and biocultural coastal resources through the creation of a public-use-protected areas and an ecotourism site. The project will employ members of the community as guides, guards, and gardeners, and routine monitoring of exposed archaeological remains and ecological fluctuations will be undertaken. Funding Information: This paper focuses on 4 of the 27 innovation projects funded by the Rising from the Depths (RftD) Network in East Africa. Coordinated by the University of Edinburgh, the RftD network aims to promote sustainable economic, social, and ecological development in Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Madagascar, through the use, preservation, and understanding of MCH. Running from 2017 to 2022, the network is funded by the UK{\textquoteright}s Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) through the Arts and Humanities Research Council{\textquoteright}s Network+ scheme. The Network represents a first attempt to look at the marine cultural heritage of East Africa in a coordinated and multidisciplinary way, uniting the various existing capacities in the region and giving agency to local communities in the elaboration of research agendas, project design, and resource management [3]. Funding Information: Funding: This research was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (grant number AH/R005443/1) through the GCRF Network+ Rising from the Depths. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.",

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N2 - This paper presents the key contributions of marine cultural heritage to the survival ofcoastal ecosystems and the communities that rely on them in East Africa. Marine cultural heritage(MCH) describes the evidence of past human interactions with coastal and marine space, encom-passing tangible material culture remains and associated intangible cultural expressions withincoastal communities. By incorporating the protection of MCH into local and regional environmentalframeworks, we gain an essential indicator to monitor change dynamics in natural habitats, the cumulative impacts of climate change, and the development of social adaptation strategies. An es-sential aspect of this development is the move away from global sustainability strategies towards community-centric management and stewardship. Such processes utilise a combination of traditionalknowledge systems and scientific approaches designed to harness targeted economic, ecological,and social sustainable development. To argue for the incorporation of MCH into local and regional environmental frameworks in the area, this paper presents four case studies from the Rising from the Depths Network, a challenge-led research network focusing on harnessing the potential of MCH tobring sustainable development strategies to East Africa.

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KW - coastal systems

KW - resilience

KW - climate change

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Utilizing Marine Cultural Heritage for the Preservation of Coastal Systems in East Africa

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

MCH of Northern Mozambique

Cite this

Utilizing Marine Cultural Heritage for the Preservation of Coastal Systems in East Africa

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Activities

MCH of Northern Mozambique

Cite this