Socio-Economic Analytical Frameworks for Marine Spatial Planning: Evaluating Tools and Methodologies for Sustainable Decision Making

Marine strategy requires a high level of understanding of the interrelationships and processes occurring between the various social and ecological systems that coexist in the same environment, given the high degree of complexity of such a system. Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) is a process for implementing ecosystem-based management in the marine and coastal environment, expressing the ambitious goal of protecting the natural capital of the oceans and promoting sustainable economic growth in the maritime sectors from a holistic perspective. One of the main challenges in MSP is to identify methods and tools for integrated assessments of socio-economic aspects with physical and environmental variables, attempting to assess the economic costs and benefits of a plan and to detect a cause-and-effect relationship between MSP and the performance of the blue economy. Depending on the specific features of areas where planning takes place and the objectives of the assessment, there is a wide spectrum of different approaches and tools that allow the assessment of the economic impact of MSP with varying levels of precision and detail. The objective of this paper is to present a comprehensive analytical framework that will facilitate the understanding of, and development of, appropriate socio-economic instruments and analyses for estimating the economic effects associated with MSP. A comprehensive information base will be constructed based on the findings of studies and analyses conducted by research institutions and relevant national and international organizations. This is intended to identify the principal characteristics, scope, strengths, and weaknesses of decision-support tools in order to identify best practices for measuring socio-economic impacts of management plans and to facilitate a holistic view of marine ecosystems.