Projects per year
Personal profile
Research profile
Transition has been an overarching research interest since the beginning of my PhD and carries through to my current projects (e.g., EmpowerUs) and future research directions. A central question in my work is whether coastal communities can fill the void created by diminished fishing opportunities, either by collectively resisting concentration and consolidation or by transitioning to other sectors. Demonstrated through my studies of a variety of marine sectors and policies, I am interested in the changing uses of ocean resources, the multiplicity of management arrangements, and their impact on people and places. The purpose of my work is to illuminate the effects, alterations, and continuities within coastal communities, regions, and nations and their interconnected cultures, marine resources, and seascapes.
In my research on cultural heritage (PERICLES 2018-2021), I concentrated on topics related to intangible cultural heritage, namely the tacit knowledge of techniques connected to commercial activities that have become less practiced. Conflicts, tensions, and differences in perspective often come to light clearly via discussions of intangible cultural heritage and the difficult to quantify changes and challenges facing coastal communities.
The theme of transition is also recognizable in my marine (environmental) governance scholarship and contributions to H2020 and FP7 projects, MERCES, ODEMM, MEFEPO, and MareFrame, and the recently funded Horizon Europe (HE) project, OBAMA Next. This body of work examines policy and governance arrangements on sociotechnical topics, such as marine ecosystem restoration, ecosystem-based management, biodiversity, and oil and gas decommissioning from interdisciplinary perspectives. Transition and adaptation to change are also at the core of my contributions to projects on climate change in Greenlandic fisheries (H2020 ECOTIP) and climate justice (Innovations Fund industrial PhD).
For future research interests, I will build on the theme of transition and investigate change and continuity in coastal communities and regions. I lead an EU HorizonEurope project work package on “just and inclusive transition mechanisms” (EmpowerUs) and am developing a conceptual framework and synthesize the results of six living labs with AAU colleagues and consortium partners.
I am especially interested in doing research on the emerging blue economy, its (dis)connections to coastal and rural contexts and contributing to the literature on periphery and implications of proposed blue growth. I see this work aligning with the faculty’s thematic nexus of sociotechnical problems and solutions and emphasis on sustainability.
Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals
In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):
Education/Academic qualification
Planning, PhD, In Place of Fishing: Coastal Communities in Transition
2012 → 2016
Award Date: 17 Jun 2016
Marine Affairs, PhD, In Place of Fisheries: Coastal Communities in Transition, University of Rhode Island
2011 → 2016
Award Date: 21 May 2016
Social Policy, Bachelor of Science, Northwestern University
2003 → 2007
Award Date: 15 Jun 2007
Keywords
- Geography and Geology
- Local development
- Peripheries
- Rural studies
- Place attachment
- Fisheries
- Sociology and Social Conditions
- Coastal communities
- Research methodologies
- Environment
- Marine governance
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Collaborations from the last five years
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EmpowerUs: Socio-economic Empowerment of coastal communities as Users of the Sea to ensure sustainable coastal development
Ounanian, K., Jacobsen, R. B., Sørensen, J. & Ekstedt, J.
01/10/2022 → 30/09/2025
Project: Research
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OBAMA-NEXT: OBSERVING AND MAPPING MARINE ECOSYSTEMS – NEXT GENERATION TOOLS
Teli, M., Ounanian, K., Børsen, T., Cenci, A., Ekstedt, J. & van Noort, C.
01/12/2022 → 30/11/2026
Project: Research
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Preserving and sustainably governing cultural heritage and landscapes in european coastal and maritime regions
Delaney, A. E., Ounanian, K., Hansen, C. J., Jensen, C., Toonen, H. M., A.J. Lamers, M., Kraan, M., Witteveen, L., Taylor, S., Bellshaw, S., Flannery, W., Murtagh, B., Ellis, G., Ferguson, L., Pita, C., Alves, F., Martins, F., Lillebo, A., Costa, C., Albuquerque, H., da Silva, M. F., Fox, C., Martino, S., Koutrakis, M., Mylona, D., Sapounidis, A., Kenter, J., Azzopardi, E., Anderson-Morrison, I., Cambridge, H. & Bodum, L.
01/05/2018 → 01/05/2021
Project: Research
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RethinkBlue: EU CostAction: Rethinking the Blue Economy: Socio-ecological impacts and opportunities
Hegland, T. J., Ounanian, K., Coelho, N. F., Asif, F. & van Noort, C.
30/10/2023 → 29/10/2027
Project: Research
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MERCES: Marine Ecosystem Restoration in Changing European Seas
van Tatenhove, J., Ounanian, K., Ramirez-Monsalve, P., Coelho, N. F., Delaney, A. E. & Hegland, T. J.
01/06/2016 → 30/11/2020
Project: Research
Research output
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Naked Methodology: Baring It All for a Realistic Account of Marine Social Science
Ounanian, K., 2021, Researching People and the Sea: Methodologies and Traditions. Gustavsson, M., White, C. S., Phillipson, J. & Ounanian, K. (eds.). Palgrave Macmillan, p. 23-45 13 p.Research output: Contribution to book/anthology/report/conference proceeding › Book chapter › Research › peer-review
Open Access -
Existential fisheries dependence: Remaining on the map through fishing
Ounanian, K., Oct 2019, In: Sociologia Ruralis. 59, 4, p. 810-830 21 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
9 Citations (Scopus) -
Ten years of climate change adaptation in Greenlandic fisheries: key observations from local ecological knowledge
Jacobsen, R. B., Dyremose, S. C. S., Ounanian, K. & Raakjær, J., 30 Nov 2023, In: Climate Research. 91, p. 175-189 15 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
Open AccessFile7 Downloads (Pure) -
Clinker, sailor, fisher, why? The necessity of sustained demand for safeguarding clinker craft intangible cultural heritage
Ounanian, K. & Howells, M., Dec 2022, In: Maritime Studies. 21, 4, p. 411-423 13 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
Open AccessFile2 Citations (Scopus)68 Downloads (Pure) -
Offshore decommissioning horizon scan: Research priorities to support decision-making activities for oil and gas infrastructure
Watson, S. M., McLean, D. L., Balcom, B. J., Birchenough, S. N. R., Brand, A. M., Camprasse, E. C. M., Claisse, J. T., Coolen, J. W. P., Cresswell, T., Fokkema, B., Gourvenec, S., Henry, L-A., Hewitt, C. L., Love, M. S., MacIntosh, A. E., Marnane, M., McKinley, E., Micallef, S., Morgan, D., Nicolette, J., & 8 others , 20 Jun 2023, In: Science of the Total Environment. 878, 15 p., 163015.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
Open AccessFile8 Citations (Scopus)108 Downloads (Pure)
Activities
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MARE Policy Day 2021
Kristen Ounanian (Organizer)
28 Jun 2021Activity: Attending an event › Conference organisation or participation
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Gentrification and Displacement, what can we do about it? An international dialogue
Kristen Ounanian (Participant)
26 Oct 2023 → 28 Oct 2023Activity: Attending an event › Conference organisation or participation
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Exploring opportunities and limitations of Blue Transitions in six European coastal communities
Kristen Ounanian (Lecturer)
27 Jun 2023Activity: Talks and presentations › Conference presentations
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M A S T. Maritime Studies (Journal)
Kristen Ounanian (Peer reviewer)
Nov 2023 → …Activity: Editorial work and peer review › Journal editor › Research
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MARE People & the Sea XII Conference
Kristen Ounanian (Participant)
Nov 2022 → Jun 2023Activity: Attending an event › Conference organisation or participation
Press/Media
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Debat: Fiskekvoter handler ikke kun om økonomi
30/10/2017
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Press / Media
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"Hvor skal vi hen du?"
Kristen Ounanian & Jesper Raakjær
30/04/2014
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Press / Media
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Forsker søger folk med viden om fiskeriudvikling
02/04/2014
2 items of Media coverage
Press/Media: Press / Media