Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Marine Policy journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/marpol Regional ocean governance: Integrating and coordinating mechanisms for polycentric systems Robin Mahon a,* , Lucia Fanning b a Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES), University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, St. Michael, Barbados b Marine Affairs Program, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada ARTICLE INFO Keywords: Polycentricity Governance Ocean Multilateral agreement Large Marine Ecosystems EBM ABSTRACT Regional ocean governance has been flagged as critical for successful achievement on SDG14 and other ocean related SDGs. The 20 ocean regions of the world are characterized by clusters of multilevel intergovernmental arrangements relating to EBM. Among the many needs for strengthening ocean governance in these regions is the development of effective regional integrating and coordinating mechanisms. These have been emerging some- what organically. This study explores the clusters of regional agreements in the 20 regions to determine the extent to which integration mechanisms are in place or planned. It also looks at the extent to which the concept of governance polycentricity can be applied in these regions. Only four regions have established regional in- tegration mechanisms thought to be needed for ecosystem-based management; while such mechanisms are planned in five others. Seven regions do have some level of intersectoral coordination such as within fisheries or environment or at a subregional level in a Large Marine Ecosystem (LME). Four regions show no sign of regional coordination. The study also the extent to which regional clusters of arrangements actually meet criteria for polycentricity based on governance theory. Regions have taken different approaches to regional integration mechanisms, but mostly based on working with a polycentric multilevel system of governance, rather than trying to tame it. There is both the need, and an untapped potential, for increased learning among regions regarding integration mechanisms and the polycentric structure and function of the regional clusters that they are seeking to integrate. 1. Introduction Attention to regional and subregional levels for ocean governance has recently intensified [1–4]. There is also growing recognition that to be effective, governance must be multilevel - local, national, sub- regional, regional and global - with bidirectional linkages between the levels as well as lateral linkages within them [5–10]. This thinking is especially important for coastal and marine ecosystems where most issues are transboundary [11,12]. The importance of the regional level has been reinforced in the 2030 Agenda [13], which focuses attention on the need to build regional institutional capacity for ocean govern- ance. Many consider integration and coordination across countries and sectors to be an essential aspect of regional ocean governance for the ecosystem-based management (EBM) and human well-being [14–18]. This paper looks at ocean regions globally and evaluates the extent to which mechanisms for integration and coordination (hereafter referred to as regional integration mechanisms) are either in place, planned, or even considered to be necessary. Mahon and Fanning [19] (2019) identified 20 ocean regions and analysed the clusters of regional transboundary intergovernmental ar- rangements in place for ocean governance in each of them (Fig. 1). They explored the numbers of arrangements in each region and their characteristics such as issues addressed, origin, strength and extent of country engagement. They found that most regions had 10 or more arrangements at regional and subregional levels, reflecting what ap- pears to be a high degree of multilevel polycentricity. They noted a high proportion of ‘indigenous’ arrangements, developed specifically by the countries of the regions rather than promoted by external/global agencies, indicating that there is potentially much more to regional ocean governance than FAO Regional Fisheries Bodies and the UN Environment Regional Seas bodies which have been the primary focus for decades. They also noted that many of the indigenous arrangements were regional multipurpose organisations and associated sectoral agencies that have the potential to mainstream ocean sustainability into national economic development and ocean governance [20]. The literature on ocean governance suggests that mechanisms and https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2019.103589 Received 10 April 2019; Received in revised form 23 May 2019; Accepted 13 June 2019 * Corresponding author. E-mail address: prof.mahon@gmail.com (R. Mahon). Marine Policy 107 (2019) 103589 0308-597X/ © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. T