The Marine Protection Atlas (MPAtlas) is building a comprehensive global database of marine protection to identify, track, and advocate for fully and highly protected areas.
MPAtlas uses The MPA Guide's science-based framework to identify marine protected areas Stage of Establishment and Level of Protection, which are linked to expected conservation outcomes. MPAtlas shows how much of the ocean is currently fully or highly protected, highlights where MPAs are not yet implemented on the water, and much more. By focusing on the quality, in addition to the quantity, of marine protection, MPAtlas supports international progress toward effective marine conservation.
The MPAtlas assessment database is continually growing and will be regularly updated when new assessments are available. For visualization and data analysis, our assessment data is linked to geospatial boundaries from the World Database on Protected Areas and other sources. The dataset does not contain boundaries for all global MPAs, only those that have been assessed.
The MPA Guide is a groundbreaking science-driven, policy-relevant framework to categorize marine protected areas and link their outcomes for nature and people.
We use science-based frameworks to assess the Stage of Establishment and Level of Protection of MPAs across the globe, creating quality metrics that supplement the official World Database on Protected Areas reporting.
We partner with conservation organizations, scientists and governments to apply science-based frameworks to MPAs globally
We use our data to track and visualize fully and highly protected MPAs around the world. We contribute our data to conservation research as well as produce our own global and regional reports on MPA progress.
The MPA Guide provides a scientific framework for categorizing MPAs using consistent criteria based on establishment stage and protection levels that reflect the conservation benefits they provide. It is intended to motivate more meaningful protection and can be used by governments and MPA planners to better understand how the regulations of their MPAs relate to conservation outcomes. Learn more.
9.3%*
of global ocean area has been assessed using The MPA Guide
Blue Parks aim to unite a global ocean refuge system of effective MPAs that covers 30% of the ocean to safeguard marine biodiversity. The Blue Park Criteria are science-based standards for conservation effectiveness, which provide blueprints for effective MPAs and a framework for evaluating the biodiversity benefits of MPAs. By awarding MPAs that meet the Blue Park Criteria, the Blue Parks initiative incentivizes and accelerates effective marine protection.
Learn more about Blue Parks.
27
marine protected areas have received Blue Park Awards.
These areas cover roughly 11% of the total marine protected area in the world.
The Marine Protection Atlas is made possible through the generous support from:
It was created by the Marine Conservation Institute in partnership with Astute Spruce, LLC.