Constance Schéré

Constance M. Schéré is a PhD student from Brittany (France), studying marine conservation biology. Her research focuses on the effectiveness of marine protected areas as a conservation tool. Constance has a MSc in Biodiversity, Territory, and Environment (BIOTERRE) from the Sorbonne (Université de Paris 1 : Panthéon-Sorbonne, 2017) and a MSc in Environmental Policy from SciencesPo Paris (2013). She completed environmental and research internships at Clean Water Action (2012), Dassault Systèmes (2013-2014), and Harvard University (2014). From 2014 to 2015, she was a sustainability specialist for Sodexo, where she worked in partnership with the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (USA) to promote the sustainable harvest of seafood. Constance did her PhD internship (2021) with the LPO (French partner of BirdLife International), where she worked on the Sept-Îles marine protected area in northern Brittany. Constance is a graduate teaching assistant in the Geography Department at King's College London. She previously worked as a GTA at Tufts University (USA) in the School of Engineering. She also teaches through the Brilliant Club and Realising Opportunities programmes. Constance is an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (Advance HE).

Research

Thesis title: The role of ecosystem management in how effectively marine protected areas in the Irish Sea reach their biological conservation objectives while maintaining sustainable use.

A wide array of methods is currently applied to adequately manage and protect marine resources, such as establishing marine protected areas (MPAs). MPAs should meet both biophysical objectives while maintaining sustainable use; in other words, they must ensure long-term ecological conservation of species and habitats while also considering socioeconomic outcomes. Ecosystem management and good governance are necessary for MPA success. This doctoral project will assess MPA effectiveness in the Irish Sea, which has almost 200 MPA designations across 112 sites.

To explore the state of MPAs in the Irish Sea, Constance's research will first identify gaps in management and monitoring in Irish Sea MPAs to determine whether there are any paper parks. She will then assess equity (as called for by the Convention on Biological Diversity) in three case-study MPAs (Strangford Lough, Carlingford Lough, and the Solway Firth) to better understand stakeholder perceptions. Finally, Constance will use remote sensing via satellite imagery to evaluate the state of mudflats, an important yet threatened habitat in European MPAs, at Strangford Lough and the Solway Firth, and look at population trends for bioindicator and priority species such as Branta bernicla (Brent goose) to understand some of the related impacts of declining mudflat conditions in MPA ecosystems.

Constance's work draws on the fields of marine biology, ocean and coastal management, and marine governance to understand how different environmental management approaches impact MPA effectiveness. The outcome of this doctoral work hopes to give MPA managers, policy makers, scientists, and other stakeholders evidence on which to base more effective management of MPAs. This research is funded by UK Research and Innovation through the LISS-DTP.

PhD supervision

• Principal supervisor:  Kate Schreckenberg
• Secondary supervisor: Terry Dawson

Further details

See Constance's research profile