Learning to Think Like Marine Protected Area Managers

From May 11 to 22, students at the University Centre of the Westfjords took part in the course Marine Protected Area Management, taught by Dr. Bradley W. Barr.

The course focused on the design, implementation, and evaluation of marine protected areas (MPAs), with students exploring the real-world challenges and opportunities involved in managing coastal and marine resources. Around the world, marine protected areas are increasingly seen as important tools for addressing the impacts of human use and overuse of marine ecosystems, including commercial and recreational fishing, marine transportation, offshore development, mineral extraction, renewable energy, marine mammal conservation, pollution, and global climate change.

Throughout the course, students learned how marine protected area managers around the world are confronting these complex challenges. They also gained practical insight into the tools used in MPA management and considered the issues that have yet to be effectively addressed.

A key focus of the course was helping students develop a deeper understanding of the realities of marine protected area management. Students were encouraged to critically evaluate problems, assess available information, and think creatively about possible solutions. In short, the course challenged them to “think like a manager” and apply lessons learned from marine protected areas in the broader context of marine and coastal conservation.

The course was taught by Dr. Bradley W. Barr, who has more than four decades of experience as a practitioner in marine and coastal protected area management and preservation. Brad received his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the Universities of Maine and Massachusetts, and his PhD from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He is currently a Senior Advisor in the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries’ Maritime Heritage Program.

Brad has taught at UW from the very start, offering courses on marine protected areas, underwater cultural heritage preservation, and Arctic Ocean governance, as well as advising many UW students on their thesis research. He is also an Affiliate Professor at the University of New Hampshire School of Marine Science and Ocean Engineering.

He is a member of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas, serves on the IUCN Marine Mammal Protected Areas Task Force, and is a founding member of the International Committee on Marine Mammal Protected Areas. His research and publications focus on marine protected areas science and management, ocean wilderness, and place-based heritage preservation in the Arctic.

Reflecting on his long connection with UW, Brad describes teaching and advising students at the University Centre as highly rewarding. He values the opportunity to share more than four decades of on-the-water experience as an international ocean conservation practitioner, manager, and researcher with students who represent the next generation of ocean conservation professionals.

This course also marks Brad’s final time teaching at UW after 20 years with the University Centre. We are immensely grateful for the time he has spent with us as an instructor, advisor, external reader, and not least as a wonderful ambassador for the Westfjords. His long-standing contribution to UW and to our students has been deeply valued.