The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research will launch the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) with an international Kick-Off Conference in Berlin from 31 May 2021 to 2 June 2021.
Please save the date. Further information will be added here about this event in April 2020.
General information about the UN Decade of Ocean Science
The United Nations has proclaimed a Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) to support efforts to reverse the cycle of decline in ocean health and gather ocean stakeholders worldwide behind a common framework that will ensure ocean science can fully support countries in creating improved conditions for sustainable development of the Ocean.
The marine realm is the largest component of the Earth’s system that stabilizes climate and support life on Earth and human well-being. However, the First World Ocean Assessment released in 2016 found that much of the ocean is now seriously degraded, with changes and losses in the structure, function and benefits from marine systems.
In addition, the impact of multiple stressors on the ocean is projected to increase as the human population grows towards the expected 9 billion by 2050.
Adaptation strategies and science-informed policy responses to global change are urgently needed.
Scientific understanding of the ocean’s responses to pressures and management action is fundamental for sustainable development. Ocean observations and research are also essential to predict the consequences of change, design mitigation and guide adaptation.
As mandated by the UN General Assembly, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO will coordinate the Decade’s preparatory process, inviting the global ocean community to plan for the next ten years in ocean science and technology to deliver, together, the ocean we need for the future we want!
Links to further information
- Video message from IOC Executive Secretary Vladimir Ryabinin informing the EuroMarine General Assembly on the preparation of the Ocean Decade and inviting EuroMarine to contribute and join the Alliance for the Ocean Decade (16 Jan. 2020, Piran)
- The Science we need for the ocean we want: the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030)
- https://oceandecade.org/