Full Immersion MPAs

GOAL

Enhance the importance of Italy’s Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) through outreach, research, conservation and professional development activities.

Marine Protected Areas: the insurance policy of our sea

Full Immersion MPAs took the form of various research and dissemination activities aimed at spreading the importance of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) as a key tool for marine environmental protection and a platform for sustainable development.

MPA stakeholders such as diving centers, fishermen and local governments were involved in the project, along with students, recent graduates and citizen scientists.

Project activities:

Training course

We created a training course for MPA operators on the regulations, importance, and biological and ecological characteristics of MPAs.
The information were summarized in infographics, which were also translated into English for foreign tourists.

download the infographics

University internships

Hosted by diving centers, students had the opportunity to participate in diving courses and a research project on coastal marine monitoring promoted and managed by Reef Check Italy, gaining experience and practical professional knowledge related to MPAs.

Custom research

Several students and recent graduates have had the opportunity to design and develop with us a research tailored to their interests: from ecology and marine biology to sociology, economics and communication.

QuantumGIS Course

We conducted a research methodology course focused on the use of QuantumGIS software to learn about geo-referenced data, their potential in spatial analysis of the marine environment, and how to plan and carry out a spatial analysis in QGIS.

Outreach events

We have organized dissemination events aimed at raising awareness among citizens, tourists and children about the importance, functioning and characteristics of MPAs, to raise awareness of the beauty and fragility of our sea, but also the tools at our disposal to protect it.