Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides a general overview of the status of marine and coastal areas and existing policy and institutional structures in Chile, Mexico and Peru. It describes some advances that have taken place in the field of marine bioprospecting as a promising activity in the area of technological development and research on marine biodiversity with potential in the “life sciences”. The book focuses on the characteristics of illegal fishing in Chile, Mexico and Peru and the reasons for often limited institutional and legal responses. It also describes different tools from protected areas theory which could be applied to protect coastal and marine spaces, underscoring the process followed to create the National Reserve of the Tropical Sea of Grau in northern Peru, as an example of integration and collaborative efforts by the public sector and civil society.