Enhancing coastal ecosystem resilience amid transboundary marine pollution through collaborative governance: an evolutionary game analysis

The prolonged degradation of coastal ecosystem resilience due to persistent marine pollution has compelled local governments (LGs) to take action. However, the transboundary nature of marine pollution presents challenges for collaborative governance among LGs. This study applies evolutionary game theory to analyze the stable governance strategies of LGs, both with and without central government (CG) supervision. Findings indicate that LGs adopting collaborative governance and CG choosing passive supervision are the optimal evolutionary stability strategies. Sensitivity analysis reveals that governance costs are the most influential factor in LGs' governance decision-making. While LGs respond more strongly to punitive measures, CG is more influenced by incentives. This study provides targeted pathways to strengthen collaborative marine pollution governance and offers insights for marine governance policies to foster multi-stakeholder cooperation, ultimately enhancing coastal ecosystem resilience.