Ocean governance for human health and the role of the social sciences
Authors: Richard Meissner
Journal: The Lancet Planetary Health (2018)

An interdependent association exists between the planet's oceans and human health. The oceans are responsible for most of the planet's biological activity and biomass production while supplying humans with sustenance and oxygen that are vital for the existence of human societies.1Sandifer PA Sutton-Grier AE Connecting stressors, ocean ecosystem services, and human health.Nat Resour Forum. 2014; 38: 157-167Crossref Scopus (39) Google Scholar Teeming with life, the oceans have the potential to supply marine-derived biopharmaceuticals.2Malve H Exploring the ocean for new drug developments: marine pharmacology.J Pharm Bioallied Sci. 2016; 8: 83-91Crossref PubMed Scopus (201) Google Scholar However, aspects of the oceans can be harmful; for example, eating contaminated seafood and inhaling aerosolised ocean toxins can contribute to paralytic shellfish poisoning and chronic liver disease caused by microcystins.3Tyson FL Rice DL Dearry A Connecting the oceans and human health.Environ Health Perspect. 2004; 112: A455-A456Crossref PubMed Scopus (12) Google Scholar The maintenance and deterioration of oceans is dependent on human activities and practices such as ocean governance. Governance requires a wide range of people involved in ocean management and is the result of interactive forms of socioeconomic and political governance that create opportunities and solve problems.4Meissner R The governance of urban wastewater treatment infrastructure in the Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality and the application of analytic eclecticism.International Journal of Water Governance. 2015; 3: 79-110Google Scholar, 5Kooiman J Bavinck M Chuenpagdee R Mahon R Pullin R Interactive governance and governability: an introduction.Journal of Transdisciplinary Environmental Studies. 2008; 7: 1-11Google Scholar Ocean governance manifests in strategic plans, conferences, target setting such as Sustainable Development Goal 14 (Life Below Water), and the signing of memorandums of understanding to achieve such goals.6UNDPUNDP and Cousteau Society join hands to protect and restore oceans for sustainable development.http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/news-centre/announcements/2017/06/15/-undp-and-cousteau-society-join-hands-to-protect-and-restore-the-oceans-for-sustainable-development.htmlDate: June 15, 2017Date accessed: March 28, 2018Google Scholar Ocean governance is directly linked to the social sciences since ocean governance activities involve the public's needs and visions. For example, natural scientific research focuses on the molecular machinery of pathogens and transmission risks,7Janes CR Corbett KK Jones JH Trostle J Emerging infectious diseases: the role of social sciences.Lancet. 2012; 380: 1884-1886Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (69) Google Scholar whereas the social sciences highlight how human behaviour (economic, political, and sociocultural activities) and social perspectives influence the ocean vectors of pathogens.8Kilpatrick AM Randolph SE Drivers, dynamics, and control of emerging vector-borne zoonotic diseases.Lancet. 2012; 380: 1946-1955Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (417) Google Scholar Increased nutrient loading of oceans from inland human activity is probably causing an increase in the frequency, geographic range, and variability of harmful algal blooms and their toxic influence at individual, communal, regional, and state levels. Algal blooms could directly affect the food chain of people dependent on marine ecosystems.9Fleming LE Broad K Clement A et al.Oceans and human health: emerging public health risks in the marine environment.Mar Pollut Bull. 2006; 53: 545-560Crossref PubMed Scopus (176) Google Scholar The oceans also receive huge volumes of plastic pollution that threaten marine and human health because different plastics are broken down in the oceans and are absorbed or colonised by marine organisms and ecosystems that include human and non-human food chains. These microplastic compounds pose a threat to individual and global human health because they can cause acute toxicity and can release ecotoxins associated with carcinogenesis.10Efferth T Paul NW Threats to human health by great ocean garbage patches.Lancet Planet Health. 2017; 1: e301-e303Summary Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (20) Google Scholar The social sciences investigate the multifaceted dimensions of these threats and the social systems that sustain them; the complexities of their causal mechanisms; social relation patterns at the individual, communal, organisational, country, and global levels to address these threats; and their associated structural conditions like inequality and poverty. Although the differences between natural and social scientific worldviews, assumptions, methodologies, and variables could be obstacles for the contribution of the social sciences to human health and ocean governance research, it need not be the case.11Bachrach CA Abeles RP Social science and health research: growth at the National Institutes of Health.Am J Public Health. 2004; 94: 22-28Crossref PubMed Scopus (35) Google Scholar Social scientific research with in-depth analysis of worldviews and perspectives affecting policies and strategies12Meissner R Paradigms and theories influencing policies in the South African and international water sectors. Springer, Cham, Switzerland2017Crossref Scopus (0) Google Scholar can contribute to policy changes and influence human behaviour within ocean governance.11Bachrach CA Abeles RP Social science and health research: growth at the National Institutes of Health.Am J Public Health. 2004; 94: 22-28Crossref PubMed Scopus (35) Google Scholar The PULSE3 analytical framework is an example of an analytical tool that identifies the research worldviews and perspectives affecting governance policies and strategies and their recommended remedial actions. A PULSE analysis of the UNDP's Ocean Governance focus area revealed that the knowledge content was predominantly based on natural scientific assumptions and predictions.3Tyson FL Rice DL Dearry A Connecting the oceans and human health.Environ Health Perspect. 2004; 112: A455-A456Crossref PubMed Scopus (12) Google Scholar This focus is understandable because the oceans—as natural environments—lend themselves to natural scientific analyses on the basis of objectivity. However, the oceans also have meaning to the people who use them for various purposes such as food production and as waste sinks.12Meissner R Paradigms and theories influencing policies in the South African and international water sectors. Springer, Cham, Switzerland2017Crossref Scopus (0) Google Scholar By use of social scientific worldviews as guidelines for developing specific perspectives and groups of assumptions for knowledge production, social scientists can uncover such meanings systematically, enabling ocean governance policies and strategies to be created. Thus, research worldviews can productively encourage people to develop conceptual and operational approaches to governance activities and functions that are human centric and based on attitudes to the oceans.13Pearse H Brother, can you spare a paradigm? The theory beneath the practice.Studies in Art Education. 1983; 24: 158-163Crossref Google Scholar Developing alternative perspectives through such in-depth analysis is also possible. This development is directly linked to governance activities since perspectives form the basis of organising activities that identify and tackle problems embedded in peoples' attitudes towards the oceans, thereby influencing their actions when interacting with oceans. Peoples' view of reality has ramifications for human health policies linked to ocean governance. Ecosocial theory, for example, assumes that people biologically embody social conditions and, in turn, constitute inequitable health distributions.14Krieger N Epidemiology and social sciences: towards a critical reengagement in the 21st century.Epidemiol Rev. 2000; 22: 155-163Crossref PubMed Scopus (118) Google Scholar Through perspectives humans create knowledge by explaining the meaning, nature, and challenges of experienced yet unexplained events.15Lynham SA The general method of theory-building research in applied disciplines.Adv Dev Hum Resour. 2002; 4: 221-241Crossref Scopus (212) Google Scholar Research worldviews and perspectives influence policy development and implementation since policy developers rely on the meanings, nature, and problems in an issue area to cultivate operational approaches to address harms. The social scientific practice of reviewing research worldviews and perspectives could lead to increased equitable health disseminations to improve ocean environments. The sciences need truly critical approaches such as PULSE3Tyson FL Rice DL Dearry A Connecting the oceans and human health.Environ Health Perspect. 2004; 112: A455-A456Crossref PubMed Scopus (12) Google Scholar to increase understanding of the issues plaguing our oceans, their governance, and the collection of knowledge to address problems threatening these life-giving environments. RM developed the PULSE analytical framework and analysed the UNDP's Ocean Governance focus area using the tool.