Two
Days National Seminar on
Knowledge
Sharing of Coastal Ecology and Fisheries in Gujarat and India
Issues of Equity, Justice, and Participative Governance
The world’s population surpassed 8
billion in 2023, and this rapid growth has intensified anthropogenic pressures
on the environment, leading to escalating risks for both ecosystems and human
societies. The marine ecosystem plays a crucial role in human survival, and
marine habitats have a vital role in sustaining life on Earth (Barnes and
Hughes, 1999). Among the diverse marine habitats, the coastal waters occupying
7% of the oceanic area gains immense significance for their high productivity
supporting rich fishing grounds (Pauly et al., 2002).
India, while
possessing less than 0.25% of the world’s coastline, has a disproportionately
high coastal population. An estimated 211.93 million people live in India’s 76
coastal districts, accounting for roughly 17% of the national population
(Sharma & Khan, 2023). Additionally, nearly 250 million people reside
within 50 kilometers of the coastline, placing immense stress on marine and
coastal ecosystems while heightening exposure to climate change impacts,
industrial encroachments, and socio-economic vulnerabilities.
There are
legal and Governance aspects to ecology and marine fishing and fishing
communities. The management of India’s coastal zones is governed primarily by
the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification, first issued in 1991, and most
recently revised in 2011 and 2019 under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
The CRZ Notification 2019 introduces liberalized norms allowing for more
construction and tourism-related development, including in ecologically
sensitive areas, under the guise of “ease of doing business.” Under this
framework, all coastal states are required to prepare and implement Coastal
Zone Management Plans (CZMPs) that demarcate CRZ areas and determine
permissible activities. However, planning and regulatory inconsistencies,
exclusion of community lands and customary rights, and non-transparent public
consultations have drawn widespread concern.
In the above
context, the Centre for Culture and Development, Vadodara, is organising
a two-day seminar that aligns with India’s commitments to Sustainable
Development Goals, the Paris Climate Agreement, and constitutional values of
equity, justice, and participation, while responding to an urgent and growing
ecological crisis. It seeks to ensure that coastal development is sensitive to
coastal ecology and the traditional fisherfolk communities that live there and
sustain them. The coastal development does not come at the cost of the most
marginalized, and that law and policy become instruments of justice, not
displacement.
The seminal aims to critically examine the issues
of coastal ecology, coastal development and the fisherfolk living on the coast
line of India. It aims to scrutinize existing legal and governance mechanisms
and their adequacy to recognize the customary rights, ecological knowledge, and
socio-economic vulnerabilities of coastal communities. It aims to chart
pathways for a just transition that can ensure both environmental
sustainability and social justice, particularly in the context of climate
change, displacement, and coastal industrialization.
Papers are invited from the academicians,
researchers, grassroots leaders, practitioners, students, representatives of
community-based organizations (CBOs), civil
society groups, and local cooperatives who are working in the fields of
environmental studies, social sciences, fisheries, environmental justice,
livelihoods, and governance or those working with coastal and fishing
communities or interested in coastal ecology, just transitions, and community
rights. The interested people can send their abstracts on the following major
themes and sub-themes.
Themes and sub-themes of the Seminar
1. Coastal Ecology and Environmental Degradation
ü Ecosystem that protects marine life
- sustainability and threats: Coastal ecosystems – (mangroves, estuaries,
intertidal zones, and coral reefs),
ü Ways and means of supporting marine
biodiversity, buffering against climate impacts, and sustaining fisheries-based
livelihoods.
ü Development, large-scale
infrastructure (e.g. thermal power plants, desalination units, and tourist
infrastructure) and human habitat and marine pollution.
ü Climate change, rising sea levels,
extreme weather events, and changes in oceanic conditions pose risks to India’s
coastal ecology – and its responses.
ü The status of ecological integrity –
impact on marine life, the socio-cultural and economic fabric of traditional communities
and the coast.
2. Fisheries Livelihoods and Economic Exclusion
ü Small-Scale and Artisanal Fisheries,
Coastal Livelihoods: Status, Challenges, and Threats.
ü The expansion of industrial fishing
fleets, mechanized trawlers, and export-oriented seafood industries – conflict
of profit and development, economy and societies,
ü Social systems and discrimination –
role and impact on the development and well-being of communities,
ü Visible and invisible labour in
fishing and fishery industries: communities and women in particular are involved
in post-harvest processing, vending, and unpaid labour,
ü Recognition, Rights, entitlement and
issues of inclusion and exclusion:
ü The traditional and customary rights
of coastal communities (e.g. use of creeks, drying grounds, beach space for
landing boats) – needs and challenges,
3. Policy and Legal Frameworks – CRZ, CZMP, CRA and Beyond
ü Multiple changes in regulating
coastal development, the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ), Coastal Zone Management
Plans (CZMPs) – who is favoured?
ü The CRZ 2019 Notification and the
recent CZMP processes - concerns about public consultation, transparency, and inclusion
of community-based knowledge.
ü Mapping techniques and procedures –
concerns about customary land and marine use practices, especially in local
languages and formats accessible to fisher communities.
ü Violation of Rights and Legal
recourse: legal complexity, concern about access to justice, institutional
apathy, and political favours.
ü Growing demand for a comprehensive Coastal
Rights Act (CRA) similar to the Forest Rights Act (FRA) – providing a legal
safeguard rooted in ecological justice and customary tenure.
4. Participatory Mapping and Community Rights-Based
Approaches
ü Use of participatory mapping and
data creation, a tool for asserting community rights and making invisible
livelihoods visible in policy processes.
ü Role and responsibilities of fisher
cooperatives especially those led by women and youth, in democracy and
participation in governance,
ü Role and responsibilities of coastal
monitoring networks comprising community volunteers, legal experts, and
environmental researchers in just and inclusive coastal development,
5. Pathways towards Just Coastal Transitions
ü The notion of a “just coastal
transition” implication and impact in coastal development, planning, implementation
and accountability,
ü Rule of law and Judiciary in the context
of coastal area – recognition of traditional rights of coastal communities,
restoration of ecosystems, safeguarding democratic spaces for decision-making,
ü Development of inclusive climate
resilience strategies and concerns of vulnerable groups (women-headed
households, migrant fish workers, and landless fishers),
ü Developing sustainable blue economic
policies that go beyond profit metrics to include ecological sustainability and
social equity.
ü Policy recommendations: do they
match the ground realities?
ü Coastal life and governance in the
process of transition – role of participatory research, local leadership, inclusion,
lessons learnt, and opening pathways for dignity, resilience, and regeneration.
GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSION:
Conference Date: 20 - 21 February 2026
Timeline:
Submission
of Abstract: 20th November 2025
Notification
of Acceptance: 30th November 2025
Submission
of Full Paper: 15th
January 2026
Abstract/Synopsis: Word limit: 300-400 words (Must
include: Title, objectives, methodology, key arguments, and expected
contribution)
Full Paper: Word limit: 4,000-5,000 words (including
references). Should be original, unpublished, and based on sound academic/research
standards. Referencing style: APA (7th edition)
SUBMISSION & CONTACT:
Please
submit abstracts and papers via email to: ccdseminar@gmail.com
For
queries, contact: Dr. Kanchan; ccdgujarat@gmail.com
Centre for Culture and Development
XTI Campus, Sevasi Post
Vadodara, 391 101
Director : +91-265 2962001
Office : +91-265 2961354
http://ccdgujarat.com/
