From Blue to Orange. What is the Answer?

1. The Blue Economy

The blue economy has become a hot topic. However, only recently did it come to the public discussion, even though reference had been made to the potential of the ocean. The report “The Ocean: Our Future” by the Independent World Commission on the Oceans and edited by the late President of the Portuguese Republic, Mario Soares, in 1998, can be seen as the starting point of this movement. Seen from today, the potential of the ocean is enormous. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) claims that the ocean is the next great economic frontier, given its wealth, economic growth, employment, and innovation potential. Its contribution of about $2.5 trillion (about 5%) to the global gross domestic product makes it the seventh-largest economy if it were a country. Besides, the ocean can generate greater economic returns if sustainably managed, producing six times more food and creating twelve million more jobs.

In its initial stages, the blue economy revolved around the maritime cluster concept; however, the numerous reports and studies addressing this issue were somehow misleading. They not only presented different definitions but also the activities pertaining to it varied, thus resulting in an unstructured approach. Comparing the added value that the different maritime clusters brought to their countries was a daunting task that resulted in a biased outcome. The different countries had different policy interests, reflected in the different activities each country’s maritime cluster embraced. Moreover, terms such as ‘maritime’ and ‘marine’ were often used interchangeably when they mean different things; their descriptions were ambiguous, providing an unclear boundary between them.

In 2011, Maria Damanaki, the European Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, in her speech about ‘The Future Economics of the Sea’ clarified the misuse of these concepts and provided a new understanding when stating that the seas i) allowed maritime transport, ii) are a source of raw material, energy, and food, water reservoirs and the climate engine of the world, and iii) are a place for leisure activities. From her speech, it could be understood that the so-called maritime cluster concept embraced three essential areas of economics (and consequently three sub-clusters), namely maritime economics because the ocean is a way of transport, marine resource economics because the ocean is a source of raw material, energy and food, and nautical tourism economics because the ocean is a place for leisure. The added value was that it could now be possible to identify each of the activities belonging to each sub-cluster, being aware that some are cross-cutting economic activities such as ship design, shipbuilding, ship management, and ship dismantling/recycling.

The blue economy concept, also known as the sustainable ocean-based economy, was introduced in 2012 by the United Nations because healthy marine ecosystems are more productive. However, the blue economy goes beyond the definition provided above. First, it builds on the principles of environmental stewardship and the creation of synergies between economies and sustainability. Second, it is a source of green energy helping to fight climate change. Third, as it is known today, the blue economy has a broader geographic coverage and embraces everything blue, i.e., that involves water, and for this reason, includes activities conducted by the world population in the ocean, seas, rivers, lakes, lagoons, and waterways.

Still, ocean activities outweigh those performed in a freshwater environment. While most scientists estimate that the planet’s water percentage is about 71%, there is an uneven distribution between salt and fresh water; clearly stated, saltwater represents about 97% of all the water available, and 3% of the remaining water is fresh. This difference may explain why, for instance, the OECD, the World Bank and The Commonwealth present blue economy definitions related to the ocean. Conversely, the aim is now to present broader blue economy definitions when considering the coasts besides the ocean and seas, as presented by the United Nations and the European Commission.

Moreover, the European Commission moved forward and identified thirteen economic sectors, classified as established and emerging, which allow a non-biased comparison of the different activities among the different Member-States. These are blue biotechnology, coastal tourism, desalination, infrastructure and robotics, marine living resources, marine non-living resources, marine renewable energy, maritime defence, maritime transport, ocean energy, port activities, research and innovation, and shipbuilding and repair. In 2018, the European Union Blue Economy established sectors accounted for a turnover of €650 billion, a gross value added of €176 billion, and 4.5 million jobs. Two years later, in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the European Union Blue Economy established sectors still accounted for a turnover of €523 billion, a gross value added of €129.1 billion, and directly employed almost 3.34 million people.

2. The Green Economy

Unlike the blue economy, much has been said and written about the green economy. The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) defines the green economy as “low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive”. It aims to minimise environmental risks and ecological scarcities, support sustainable development without impacting the environment, and promote fair trade. The UNEP also claims that a green economy does not replace sustainable development. Instead, it has a new focus on the economy, investment, capital and infrastructure, employment, and skills, resulting in positive social and environmental impacts. Employment and income growth is driven by public and private investments into economic activities, infrastructure and assets that reduce the overall pollution levels, including carbon emissions, thus maintaining existing biodiversity and ecosystems. For these reasons, the green economy focuses on the land’s natural resources to ensure enough quantities to meet the current and future needs of the world population. Continue reading here.

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