Using local perspectives to inform the evaluation of data representation tools for place-based knowledge in coastal spatial planning in Nova Scotia, Canada

Spatial planning is a process that is essential for the transdisciplinary management of changing coastal environments. The process aims to influence the spatial distribution of activities in a way that balances environmental, economic and social needs. As community input becomes increasingly recognized for its role in decision-making, there is a growing need to explore how conventional and innovative decision support tools, specifically data representation tools (DRTs), account for and communicate place-based knowledge (e.g., Indigenous and Local Knowledge systems). Place-based knowledge systems enhance the contextual applicability of decisions that better reflect past, present and future uses of a place. This study explores the suitability of six DRTs for collecting and communicating place-based perspectives in coastal spatial planning contexts: the Canada Marine Planning Atlas, participatory mapping, ArcGIS StoryMap, Marxan, the Marine Spatial Planning Board Game, and virtual reality. Through a scoping review and semi-structured interviews with spatial planners, marine and coastal researchers, and users who reside and/or work in coastal areas in what is now Nova Scotia, and who self-identified as both Indigenous and non-Indigenous community members, this research identified key characteristics that make DRTs suitable for supporting rights-holder and stakeholder engagement and communicating place-based knowledge, as well as tool design limitations. The results are intended to inform the design and use of DRTs in ways that better account for and serve local coastal users across the stages of the spatial planning process, thereby supporting informed and sustainable decision-making in the province's coastal planning.