Home to extraordinary biological diversity, the ocean is also the world’s largest active carbon sink. Blue carbon refers to carbon associated with the ocean. Blue carbon encompasses carbon capture by plankton, algae and bacteria; capture and long-term storage by complex plants and their ecosystems in coastal regions; and carbon pathways, pumps and trophic cascades associated with larger marine animals.
16 December, 2015
16 December, 2015
The Second Our Ocean Conference took place from 5-6 October 2015 in Valparaíso, Chile. The Conference was a follow up to the first Our Ocean conference initiated by the United State’s State Department in 2014. The conference covered several thematic areas including marine protected areas (MPAs), ocean acidification, marine pollution, and sustainable fisheries.
16 December, 2015
Illegal fishing is a major threat to the sustainability of the world’s fisheries. Estimates show that illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing account for up to $23.5 billion annually, and up to 20 percent of all of the wild-caught marine fish caught globally. Illegal fishing not only undermines the essence of global ocean governance and the work of honest fishers, but it threatens the sustainability of marine resources and, subsequently, the livelihoods of coastal communities and countries that depend on them.
Continue reading Overview on Illegal Fishing and the Port State Measures Agreement
12 December, 2015
Responding to the final Agreement text announced at COP21 today, ocean groups were positive about a growing recognition for the importance of the ocean in climate change but disappointed by the lack of overall ambition in terms of reducing levels of dangerous CO2 in the atmosphere.
Continue reading COP21 Paris Agreement: Gains For The Ocean But More Is Needed
2 December, 2015
All eyes are on Paris with the UNFCCC’s COP21 underway. World leaders, the private sector and civil society have gathered together to seek a new, binding treaty to address climate change and the world waits to see if they can achieve the ambition with the resolve required. After strong opening statements by the largest-ever gathering of world leaders in one place, on one day, to discuss one issue, there is real hope that substantial progress within the negotiations can be made. Finally there is a collective sense of urgency around addressing the single biggest threat facing humankind.
Continue reading Putting 2/3 of the Planet on the Climate Change Roadmap
26 June, 2015
The Economist World Ocean Summit 2015 was recently held in Cascais Portugal from June 3rd-5th. More than 350 government ministers, business leaders, environmentalists and representatives from multilateral organizations from across the globe convened to discuss how to make the transition from a conventional ocean economy to a new ‘blue’ economy. The links between sound ocean governance and management to a blue economy featured in many of the keynote talks as well as a Coastal Governance Index prepared by the Economist Intelligence Unit. All stressed the importance of good governance, including public participation, transparency and accountability, along with sound policies to protect the environment to creating conditions for a sustainable “blue economy”.[1]
Continue reading World Ocean Economist Summit: Blue economy, Blue Growth
26 June, 2015
The first Pacific Ocean Alliance meeting was held in Suva, Fiji from May 25-7, focused on marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ). The Pacific Ocean Alliance) was launched at the Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States in Samoa in September 2014, with its own charter, to bring about strengthened coordination and collaboration across and between stakeholders with an interest in how the Pacific ocean is conserved and managed. The Pacific Ocean Alliance is facilitated by the Pacific Ocean Commissioner, and was called for by Pacific Ocean Prime Ministers and Presidents under the Framework for a Pacific Oceanscape Following the a workshop of the a Pacific Ocean Alliance Technical Working Group on the 28th discussed options for policies on marine genetic resources, area based management, impact assessments, oceans governance, capacity building and technology transfer. Pacific Oceans Commissioner Dame Meg Ryan opened the meeting, and wrote an article entitled “High Hopes for the High Seas”, describing the aspirations for the Pacific.
26 June, 2015
The Costa Rica Thermal Dome (CRTD), in the Eastern Tropical Pacific, is a unique oceanographic feature formed by the interconnection of winds and currents; and as a result, the Dome is a geographically mobile area with ambulatory boundaries. Its size and position vary throughout the year, yet approximately 70% of the CRTD occurs on areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ), including its core, which is situated circa 9º N y 90º W. The remaining extension straddles the jurisdictional waters of the Central American countries.
Continue reading The Costa Rica Dome, an Oceanic Oasis in the Eastern Tropical Pacific
19 June, 2015
A landmark resolution was adopted earlier today by a consensus of UN member states, to develop a legally-binding treaty for the conservation of marine life beyond national territorial waters – that area of the ocean shared by all. Resolution UNGA 99/292 formalizes the recommendations made last January by the UN Ad Hoc Open-ended Informal Working Group (“UN Working Group”) which was tasked with assessing the feasibility of a new treaty, and signals a major step forward toward convening an intergovernmental negotiating conference that would finalize the terms of the new treaty, possibly in 2018.
18 June, 2015
Earlier today, His Holiness Pope Francis delivered the much-anticipated Encyclical Letter, “On Care for Our Common Home” addressing the need for collective action in the fight against climate change and biodiversity loss. Within this prophetic appeal, he addresses many issues contributing to the global environmental crisis and specifically highlights the current exploitation of ocean and marine ecosystems. This includes the impact of ocean acidification, made-made pollution, vanishing marine biodiversity and uncontrolled fisheries. The Encyclical also lauds the importance of environmental impact assessments as “part of the process from the beginning”, transparency in decision-making, intra-generational equity, and the precautionary principle.
Continue reading Pope Francis’ Encyclical Letter: Strengthen Governance for the Global Commons