UNITED NATIONS, The world must harness \u201cclear, transformative and actionable solutions\u201d to address the ocean crisis, the President of the UN General Assembly said Tuesday, opening a meeting to generate momentum towards the 2022 UN Ocean Conference, when public health safety measures allow.<\/p>\n
\u201cSimply speaking, our relationship with our planet\u2019s ocean must change\u201d, the 193-member Assembly President, Volkan Bozkir, told a high-level thematic debate on the ocean and Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG14): Life Below Water.<\/p>\n
Against the backdrop that human activities have threatened to undo the delicate balance of this ecosystem, that supports nutritional, economic and social value to billions the world over, he upheld that there is \u201csimply no scenario\u201d wherein we live on a planet without an ocean.<\/p>\n
People do not want to live in \u201ca world of one crisis after the next\u201d, Mr. Bozkir said, preferring instead the \u201csecurity, sustainability and the peace of mind\u201d that comes with a healthy planet.<\/p>\n
Policy makers too are increasingly aware of how a healthy ocean is integral to a strong economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have seen this in countries and cities that have prioritized coastal and marine areas over tourism\u2026 in protected wetlands\u2026 in efforts to address illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, and regulate shipping and resource extraction\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n
New governance, policy and market approaches that incentivize both profit ability and sustainability \u2013 for people and planet \u2013 provide an opportunity for a \u201cblue recovery\u201d to build resilience, particularly in small island developing States, upheld the Assembly President.<\/p>\n
\u201cBuilding a sustainable ocean economy is one of the most important tasks and greatest opportunities of our time\u201d, he spelled out, urging governments, industries, civil society and others to \u201cjoin forces to develop and implement ocean solutions\u201d.<\/p>\n
As the SDG14 targets will be among the first to mature, Mr. Bozkir encouraged everyone to \u201cthink ahead\u201d and arrive at the second Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Portugal, with \u201cdemonstrable evidence of progress\u201d.<\/p>\n
Rather than wait until the Conference opens to re-discuss these issues, he reminded that the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development has already begun.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet us choose to arrive in Portugal with accomplishments and progress that inspire hope and optimism for a better tomorrow\u201d, he concluded.<\/p>\n
Peter Thomson, Special Envoy on Oceans, emphasized the need to improve our relationship with the sea to one of respect and balance.<\/p>\n
He underscored the importance of delivering on SDG14, saying that \u201cocean acidification cannot continue unabated\u201d while pointing out that greenhouse gas emission reductions are \u201crequired to meet 2030 goals\u201d.<\/p>\n
And while spotlighting progress that is being made on ocean awareness, marine protected area coverage and ocean science, Mr. Thomson highlighted the urgent need to scale up.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the heart of SDG14 is the sustainable blue economy\u201d, Mr. Thomson said, \u201cfrom nutrition to medicine, from energy to carbon sequestration and pollution-free transportation, the sustainable blue economy is the bedrock of upon which a secure future for humanity can be build.<\/p>\n
In a world dependent on plastic, the UN official said that there was \u201cno silver bullet for the plague of marine plastic pollution\u201d.<\/p>\n
However, he advocated measures to battle the scourge, including by \u201cexponentially\u201d increasing funding for developing countries to invest in waste collection and disposal infrastructure as well as widely implementing systems of reduction, recycling and plastic substitution.<\/p>\n
He concluded by highlighting the interconnectivity of the world, calling it \u201cthe fundamental lesson of the COVID-19 pandemic\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are connected within nature\u2019s nurturing embrace\u201d, he said, upholding that if we poison nature, we are in effect \u201cpoisoning ourselves\u201d.<\/p>\n
From Portugal, Ricardo Serr\u00e3o Santos, Minister of the Sea, also spoke about the importance of ocean health for human and planetary well-being, pointing to the 2022 goal of \u201ca more inclusive and more connected\u201d engagement with the ocean.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are gathered here today to rekindle the tone of the Conference\u201d next year, he said, elaborating on the need to \u201cscale up ocean action\u2026 increasing and improving coordination at all levels\u2026financing and continued monitoring\u201d.<\/p>\n
Serr\u00e3o Santos underlined Portugal\u2019s support for science, as being \u201ccritical to cross-cutting in every ocean action\u201d.<\/p>\n
Kenya\u2019s Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Raychelle Omamo, drew attention to the impact of COVID-19, not only in delaying the Conference but also the havoc it has wreaked on jobs in coastal economies an on vulnerable coastal communities.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe seek a recovery that will promote sustainable development and harmony between people and the natural resources that sustain us\u201d, she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
UNITED NATIONS, The world must harness \u201cclear, transformative and actionable solutions\u201d to address the ocean crisis, the President of the UN General Assembly said Tuesday, opening a meeting to generate momentum towards the 2022 UN Ocean Conference, when public health safety measures allow. \u201cSimply speaking, […]<\/p>\n
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