The UN Ocean Conference is happening this week in Lisbon. The overarching theme of the conference is the intensification of ocean action based on science and innovation to implement Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG14): to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development. The conference is shaped around eight interactive dialogues that span the challenges of marine sustainability, from ocean warming to the promotion of sustainable ocean-based economies of least developed and developing states.
Between June 27th and July 1st 2022, stakeholders from around the globe such as heads of government and state, private sector leaders, the scientific community, and others will come together to discuss these dialogues. Attendees will take on some of the most important challenges that the ocean is facing: acidification and deoxygenation, pollution, overfishing, and biodiversity loss. Many of these are societal problems laid bare by the COVID-19 pandemic which, along with climate change, disproportionately affects developing nations. The conference organizers expect to reach a “robust” final Declaration to defend marine life.
The final Declaration of the conference should highlight how vital the fulfilment of SDG14 is for the oceans’ future and develop several targets within SDG14. These targets may include, the creation of marine protected areas covering 30% of the ocean by 2030 should be accelerated; a new legal instrument to fight marine plastic pollution should be negotiated; agreements to prevent illegal fishing should be sped up.
The UN Ocean Conference strongly focuses on increasing scientific knowledge; developing research methodologies and technology transfer to protect the oceans. The University of Bergen (UiB), where The SEAS programme is based, shares this commitment between science and marine sustainability. UiB’s rector Margareth Hagen and Amund Måge, the SEAS programme director will be participating in a side panel this Monday, June 27th directly addressing how academia and business have key roles in actualizing SDG14. The panel will discuss how to better create partnerships to reach shared goals. Read more about it here.
Furthermore, the SEAS fellows are working in various multidisciplinary research projects, and each individual research proposal has a focus on marine sustainability. The outcomes of the conference will shape how we, as postdocs, approach the practical applications of our research.
Because the challenges facing the marine environment seem insurmountable, it can be easy to feel despondent and that nothing we can do can change our future. Conferences like the one in Lisbon can then seem to be akin to rearranging deck chairs on the sinking Titanic. The IPCC have predicted the agreed upon limit of 1.5°C warming will likely be exceeded within a decade. However, the risk of global temperature increase can be reduced with stringent cuts to fossil fuel emissions, and other progressive decisions. We still have time if changes are made now! Due to the relevance of this conference to our own research as well as the international implications, we will post on the outcome of the SDG14 side panel as well as the conference as a whole. Return to read more!
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