{"title":"What can sea-related associations reveal about a coastal region’s maritimity? A case study in southern France","authors":"Samuel Robert","doi":"10.1007/s40152-023-00346-w","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>A key component of the environment in coastal territories, the sea also creates special geographical features and grounds social and cultural identities. At a time of rising concern and multiple projects for its exploitation as well as its protection, public policies need to consider the social representation of the marine environment and people’s visions of its future. Relying on the concept of maritimity, defined as all the relationships binding human societies to the sea and the resulting landscape, economy and culture, we assess the maritime character of a coastal region in southern France by analysing the local sea–related associations its population are engaged in. This is made possible through the supervised extraction of the relevant data from the national directory of associations, the official database of non-profit associations in France, which are then given appropriate statistical and cartographic treatments. Results provide an indication of the depth of the region’s maritime character, as well as the areas of activity and places in which maritimity is the most developed. These are consistent with the social and economic profile of the region, highly engaged in tourism and a residential economy. Further work is recommended, with a view to exploring the region’s maritimity more closely by comparing it with other regions and applying finer analysis to the stated objectives of the sea-related associations.</p>","PeriodicalId":45628,"journal":{"name":"Maritime Studies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.2000,"publicationDate":"2024-01-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Maritime Studies","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s40152-023-00346-w","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
A key component of the environment in coastal territories, the sea also creates special geographical features and grounds social and cultural identities. At a time of rising concern and multiple projects for its exploitation as well as its protection, public policies need to consider the social representation of the marine environment and people’s visions of its future. Relying on the concept of maritimity, defined as all the relationships binding human societies to the sea and the resulting landscape, economy and culture, we assess the maritime character of a coastal region in southern France by analysing the local sea–related associations its population are engaged in. This is made possible through the supervised extraction of the relevant data from the national directory of associations, the official database of non-profit associations in France, which are then given appropriate statistical and cartographic treatments. Results provide an indication of the depth of the region’s maritime character, as well as the areas of activity and places in which maritimity is the most developed. These are consistent with the social and economic profile of the region, highly engaged in tourism and a residential economy. Further work is recommended, with a view to exploring the region’s maritimity more closely by comparing it with other regions and applying finer analysis to the stated objectives of the sea-related associations.
期刊介绍:
Maritime Studies is an international peer-reviewed journal on the social dimensions of coastal and marine issues throughout the world. The journal is a venue for theoretical and empirical research relevant to a wide range of academic social science disciplines, including anthropology, sociology, geography, history and political science. Space is especially given to develop academic concepts and debate. We invite original research papers, reviews and viewpoints and welcome proposals for special issues that make a distinctive contribution to contemporary discussion around maritime and coastal use, development and governance. The journal provides a rigorous but constructive review process and rapid publication, and is accessible to new researchers, including postgraduate students and early career academics.