Skip to main content
  • European Centre for Environment & Human Health

  • University of Exeter Medical School
  • Menu
  • Search
  • Home
  • About us Our mission and vision
    • Our Mission, Vision and Purpose
    • WHO Collaborating Centre on Natural Environments and Health
    • Peninsula Environment & Human Health Forum
    • Public Engagement
    • Our Mission, Vision and Purpose
    • WHO Collaborating Centre on Natural Environments and Health
    • Peninsula Environment & Human Health Forum
    • Public Engagement
  • Research Learn about our science
  • Impact Informing policy and practice
  • Education Explore our MSc and CPD courses
  • People Meet our staff and students
  • News & blog Updates from people and projects
  • Contact

GCRF Blue Communities

Tagged:
  • Blue Environments and Health

Blue Communities is a 4 year research capacity-building programme for marine planning in East and South-East Asia, funded by UK Research and Innovation’s Global Challenges Research Fund.

The programme has 12 interconnected research projects, which will be actively integrated to support marine planning, and 10 cross-cutting capacity building activities.

Visit the project website here

Millions of people across the globe rely on marine and coastal ecosystems for their livelihoods: food, employment and their general well-being. However, the marine environment is under immense pressure from the multiple, and often conflicting, needs of the people that use it. In E/SE Asia, where marine activities are important contributors to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), marine spatial planning involving coordinated decision-making has been highlighted as a key requirement for a sustainable future.

Through academic-stakeholder collaborations, community co-creation and co-delivery, Blue Communities will support the development, implementation and ongoing management of initiatives that promote the sustainable use of marine resources by multiple users, whilst protecting the fragile marine ecosystems and supporting the livelihoods food security, health and well-being of the people in these coastal communities.

The vision of the Blue Communities Programme is to develop interdisciplinary research capability and lasting collaborations that:

  • Facilitate innovative application of integrated planning in the marine environment within the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme, and other marine parks and their communities, in East and Southeast Asia.
  • Respond to the UN Sustainable Development Goals of no poverty, zero hunger and good health and well-being for coastal communities through the sustainable use of marine resources.
GCRF Blue Communities

Authors

  • Prof Lora E Fleming

    Prof Lora E Fleming

  • Dr Mathew White

    Dr Mathew White

  • Prof Karyn Morrissey

    Prof Karyn Morrissey

  • Prof Ruth Garside

    Prof Ruth Garside

  • Timur Jack-Kadioglu

    Timur Jack-Kadioglu

  • Anastasia Voronkova

    Anastasia Voronkova

  • Dr Jacqui Eales

    Dr Jacqui Eales

  • Dr Beth Roberts

    Dr Beth Roberts

Related content

Research project

BlueHealth

A transdisciplinary international consortium that investigated how aquatic environments can affect the health of Europe’s population.

Research project

Seas, Oceans and Public Health in Europe

A pan-European initiative to coordinate research into the links between the marine environment and human health.

News

Blue Communities heads to Asia

International partners kick-off their ambitious four-year plan to boost the health and wellbeing of coastal communities in SE Asia.

Contact details

European Centre for Environment and Human Health

University of Exeter Medical School

Peter Lanyon Building 12

Penryn, Cornwall, TR10 8RD

  • T: +44 (0) 1326 371859
  • E: ECEHHAdmin@exeter.ac.uk

Sign up to our mailing list

Fill in our form to receive updates on our latest projects, events and publications.

Subscribe

Follow us

  • @ecehh.bsky.social
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • @ecehh
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy
  • Accessibility

Copyright © 2025. European Centre for Environment & Human Health. All rights reserved.