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Back to Wider Policy Activities

Legacy Projects

SCAR has led several initiatives that have had a direct link to policy, created to address environmental protection and practices in Antarctica, as well as global agreements regarding impacts of climate change.

Here are just a few examples:

25th Anniversary of the Madrid Protocol

At the SCAR Open Science Conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in August 2016, a mini-sympoisum was held to look at the progress made since the establishment of the Madrid Protocol which led to the creation of the Committee on Environmental Protection of the Antarctic Treaty System. For more on the symposium and resulting efforts, see the 25th Anniversary mini-symposium page.

The Monaco Assessment

In June 2015, SCAR, in partnership with the government of the Principality of Monaco, and Monash University, held a meeting of biodiversity, legal and policy experts to assess Antarctic and Southern Ocean biodiversity and its conservation status in the context of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011 to 2020. See The Monaco Assessment page for the full background to the meeting.

To date, Antarctica and the Southern Ocean have not been adequately represented in global biodiversity assessments undertaken as part of Strategic Plan Activities. The meeting considered the current status of biodiversity conservation in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean, available evidence for this status, and both their trajectory and evidence for this trajectory, in the context of each of the 20 Aichi Targets of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011 to 2020.

The full assessment was completed and appeared in the journal PLoS Biology in the 28th March 2017 issue (https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.2001656), along with comprehensive evidence underpinning the assessment.

Flipped Symposium

At the SCAR Open Science Conference in Auckland, New Zealand in August 2014, a mini-symposium was held to discuss science and policy in Antarctica:

Flipped Symposium presentations

A Systematic Conservation Plan for the Antarctic Peninsula

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Overview of the Project

As human activity grows across Antarctica and as environmental change becomes more pronounced, it becomes increasingly pressing to determine how to best conserve its unique biodiversity and environments. The Antarctic Peninsula, home to much of the continent’s biodiversity, has a comparatively mild climate and close proximity to South America, making it the most visited region of Antarctica for both science and tourism. Improving the management of human activity in the region is a key priority for the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) and many Antarctic Treaty Parties, where an integrated approach is required to facilitate management of multiple values and stakeholders, particularly where human activity is highly concentrated. SCAR and IAATO have developed an integrative, evidence-based approach to site management, incorporating all activities (science and tourism) and all known biodiversity features (such as breeding seabird colonies, vegetation, and invertebrates).

Systematic Conservation Planning (SCP) is a routine approach employed by conservation biologists to aid decision makers in managing whole landscapes involving multiple stakeholders and multiple objectives. SCAR, IAATO and project partners have utilised the SCP approach to develop an SCP for the Antarctic Peninsula that delivered quantifiable, evidence-based solutions for the simultaneous management of tourism, science and biodiversity in the Antarctic Peninsula region.

Coordination Group

A Coordination Group, consisting of SCAR and IAATO members, with observers from Monash University, was formed to help oversee the project. The coordination group met regularly and was chaired by Dr Chandrika Nath (SCAR) and Amanda Lynnes (IAATO).

Liaison Group

SCAR and IAATO established a liaison group for the project. The aim of the liaison group was to provide the project with input, advice and where appropriate, further data, from all interested stakeholders, and to keep the stakeholder community informed. Examples include advice on targets for biodiversity protection, or identification of key tourism and scientific values and objectives in the region.

Project Updates

A post-doctoral researcher, Dr Jasmine Lee, was appointed to the project and officially commenced work in April 2019 at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia.

A methodology was identified using some of the latest and most advanced spatial planning tools available to conservation scientists. Work was also undertaken to define the objectives of the project, to identify and collect relevant data, identify appropriate conservation decision support software, and establish where stakeholder engagement is required. Stakeholders were engaged to define broad objectives for each stakeholder group (science, tourism, biodiversity) and discuss targets and thresholds for different zones and features.

The project is now drawing to a close and a peer-reviewed publication is expected later in 2024.

Contact Details

For more information about the project please contact Dr Chandrika Nath or Amanda Lynnes at IAATO.

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