Part five outlines the consensus of experts from throughout the Caribbean region and beyond regarding a shared vision for ecosystem-based management (EBM) and provides guidance for the strategic directions and activities to be implemented in order to achieve the vision. The first four chapters reflect the shared thinking on a vision for EBM for specific reef, pelagic and continental shelf ecosystems, as well as the governance regime needed to move towards the vision. To achieve this consensus, symposium participants were placed into each of the four working groups and were asked to reflect on the question “What do you see in place in 10 years’ time when EBM/EAF has become a reality in the Caribbean?”. The diversity among the participants in each group provided for a fruitful and comprehensive visioning process that generated the key vision elements and their subcomponents for each of the fisheries ecosystems and governance themes as well as the level of priority assigned to each of the vision elements.

Working with the assistance of facilitators, each of the four working groups proceeded to evaluate current factors within the Caribbean that could facilitate the achievement of the vision elements and those that could serve to impede them. The group then categorised the assisting factors into current strengths within the region and potential opportunities to be seized. Similarly, resisting factors were collectively categorised into those relating to existing weaknesses and potential threats. Following this exercise, groups used the World Café process to explore the strategic directions needed to implement the vision by identifying specific actions to be undertaken for each of the vision elements. The findings from this process for each of the four working groups are provided in Chapters 22 (reef fisheries ecosystem), Chapter 23 (pelagic fisheries ecosystem), Chapter 24 (Continental Shelf fisheries ecosystem) and Chapter 25 (governance).

The fifth chapter (26) synthesises the findings from the previous four chapters into an overarching vision for marine EBM within the Caribbean Region and serves as the concluding chapter for the book. The combined vision was identified as: “Healthy marine systems that are fully valued and protected through strong institutions at local national and regional levels providing effective governance that involves everyone, is fully understood and supported by the public and enhances livelihoods and human wellbeing”.