Collective inquiry into situated food extraction and production issues in marine and coastal social-ecological systems

In problematic situations, our interdependencies with the ocean become tangible, as they draw our attention to the assemblages of human practices, marine life, and environmental dynamics that shape these issues. Following this pragmatist dogma, this paper presents the results of a collective inquiry on the coastline of mainland France. It enrolled workers engaged in marine protected areas, local political structures, academia, non-governmental organizations and the industry. Rather than attempting to identify potential solutions to ocean issues and listing the trade-offs that each solution involves, we aim to comprehend how these problems develop by examining the practices, tensions, and pressures that contribute to their composition. This work emerges from an interdisciplinary project, FUTURE-OBS, federating ten research institutions and five marine nature parks in France. The initiative explores the challenges faced by coastal stakeholders while testing observation tools and methods tailored to their needs. Our approach combines diverse methods and modes of account—interviews, social media analysis, and workshops—paying particular attention to the processes of translation and negotiation between different problematizations. In doing so, we examine the role of social media, not only as a tool for self-documentation or publicization but also as a means of engaging in collective discussions regarding the concerns of coastal workers and inhabitants. In this communication, we will focus on one situated problem: the tensions related to the extraction and production of marine food resources and marine biodiversity conservation in Charente Maritime. We'll follow the interconnections woven by oyster farming and fishing practices across scales and rhythms through trophic and industrial chains.