Abstract

Since 2010, the blue economy has been growing globally, with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) suggesting aquaculture as a viable alternative to traditional coastal extractive activities. Recently, there has been a noticeable shift from traditional fishing to aquaculture. This transition has spurred the development of sustainable aquaculture practices and highlighted the need for region-specific indicators to assess the sustainability of these systems. In Costa Rica, there is a notable gap in systems for assessing the sustainability of aquaculture, making this task critical for informed decision-making. This article aims to preliminarily select indicators to evaluate the sustainability of aquaculture in the Gulf of Nicoya, Costa Rica. The study used a structured literature review to identify these indicators, which were evaluated based on criteria like availability of information and relevance. These were then validated by experts across various sectors. Twenty-five indicators were proposed that span environmental, economic, social, and administrative–legal dimensions. Methodologies are also suggested for validating these indicators in future studies. This research is important for shaping policies and making decisions in the field of aquaculture, as well as for developing indices related to good management practices in agro-productive systems.