Out of the Blue: The Value of Seagrasses to the Environment and to People - Summary for Policymakers

Seagrasses are an often overlooked but vital part of the seascape. While they have been described as the ‘lungs’ and ‘ecosystem engineers’ of the sea, their contributions to planetary health and human well-being are not as well-known as those of other marine ecosystems, such as coral reefs and mangroves. To overcome this ‘charisma gap’ (Unsworth et al. 2019), this report synthesizes current knowledge of seagrass ecosystems, highlights the many values they provide to people and provides policy recommendations that fully recognize these values.