Centering Coastal & Island Communities in Marine Science: Epistemic Justice, Equitable Governance, and Transformative Stewardship

Ocean literacy is more than awareness of the ocean: it also concerns whether knowledge and public understanding actually inform decisions, and whose knowledge counts when they do. Public campaigns have raised broad awareness of ocean threats, yet this awareness rarely translates into governance structures that grant coastal and island communities a genuine role in decision-making. This Research Topic addresses that gap by centering these communities as knowledge holders, decision-makers, and stewards, rather than as subjects of outside management plans.For generations, coastal and island communities have cared for ocean ecosystems through customary practices, local ecological knowledge, and direct dependence on marine resources for food, livelihood, and cultural identity. Yet conventional marine science and blue-economy frameworks have often treated this knowledge as anecdotal rather than authoritative, and have marginalized the customary rights, lived experience, and governance systems these communities have built over generations. As blue-economy investment accelerates and ocean-related policy decisions multiply, the risk is that communities are consulted late, if at all, while the frameworks that govern their waters are designed elsewhere. Durable ocean stewardship depends on reversing this pattern and giving coastal and island communities real leadership over decisions that affect them. This Research Topic brings together interdisciplinary contributions on epistemic justice, blue-economy equity, and gender-transformative stewardship, aiming to place community agency, plural knowledge systems, and lived experience at the center of ocean governance research and practice.We welcome contributions addressing, among others:- Co-producing marine spatial plans with Indigenous, local, and traditional knowledge holders as equal partners, not consultees- Valuing plural livelihood values (cultural, relational, spiritual, subsistence) alongside market-based metrics- Indigenous-led science, equitable data ownership, and community leadership in marine research design and delivery- Power asymmetries and justice frameworks (procedural, distributive, recognitional) in blue-economy development and investment- Ocean grabbing, spatial conflict, and tenure insecurity affecting customary marine rights- Community-beneficial alternatives to industrial growth, such as small-scale fisheries, regenerative seaweed farming, and ecotourism- Benefit-sharing mechanisms, restorative justice, and inclusive governance models for shared marine resources- Women's and gender minorities' ecological knowledge, labor, and leadership in fisheries and blue-carbon ecosystems- Gender-transformative approaches linking conservation outcomes to shifts in agency power, and social norms- Intersectional barriers facing women, youth, and gender minorities in ocean stewardship and marine policyManuscripts of interest include empirical research, case studies, policy analysis, and conceptual or methodological frameworks that connect ocean literacy, epistemic justice, and equitable governance to concrete stewardship outcomes for coastal and island communities. Topic editors: Lota Creencia, Jennifier Diamante Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/86701/centering-coastal-island-communities-in-marine-science-epistemic-justice-equitable-governance-and-transformative-stewardship