Paris, 29 January – UNESCO will celebrate the start of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (“Ocean Decade”) on 3 February (4.15 to 5.45pm, Central European Time), with the broadcast ‘A Brave New Ocean’, a global online event to raise awareness of the immense challenges and opportunities the ocean provides to achieve the global sustainable development goals.
At the 75th session of the UN General Assembly, via the adoption of the Omnibus Resolution on the Oceans and the Law of the Sea, the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) was given a green light to commence on the 1st January 2021. The IOC will play a critical role in consulting with, and reporting to Member States, as well as ensuring that the Secretary-General is informed of its implementation. More information will follow shortly.
14 December 2020
14:00 - 16:00 - Paris Time
In 2020 the IOC is celebrating its 60th anniversary, which will be an opportunity to take stock of what has been achieved and look forward to a UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) filled with challenges and opportunities.
To mark this special event, the IOC is pleased to announce the launch of the Global Ocean Science Report 2020 (GOSR2020), IOC-UNESCO’s flagship report, which assesses the status and trends in ocean science capacity around the world and charts the possible pathways for the international community to deliver on the sustainable development goals.
23 November 2020
Outcome of the Second Session of the IOC Group of Experts on Capacity Development
The Second Session of the IOC Group of Experts on Capacity Development (GE-CD) was held online on 26 October 2020. The meeting discussed, among other things, the preliminary results of the Capacity Development Needs Assessment survey, the contribution of IOC to the Capacity Development chapter of the Ocean Decade, and agreed on extending the current CD strategy to 2023.
6 November 2020
Vendée Globe 2020: skippers and scientists work together to support ocean observations
From the start of the Vendée Globe race, 10 skippers will carry scientific instruments onboard to support the Global Ocean Observing System, within the framework of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).
The collaboration is developed under the coordination of the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), supported by UNESCO through its Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC).
November 5th 2020
Though they may be rare, tsunamis are among the most devastating natural disasters. They know no coastal borders. Coastal communities – often concentrated in low-lying and highly populated areas – are the most potentially vulnerable to coastal hazards including tsunamis, with heavy human and economic losses. International cooperation is key for deeper political and public understanding; as well as involvement in reducing our risks from these coastal natural hazards.
In December 2015, the United Nations General Assembly designated 5 November as World Tsunami Awareness Day to promote a global culture of tsunami awareness.
The vision of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development is ‘the science we need for the ocean we want’. To achieve the Ocean Decade vision, a wide range of partners will implement endorsed Decade Actions in the form of programmes, projects or activities over the next ten years.
Via this first ‘Call for Decade Actions’, partners are invited to request endorsement under the Ocean Decade for transformative Decade Actions that contribute to the Ocean Decade vision. This Call for Decade Actions is the first of series that will launched as part of the Ocean Decade and it focuses specifically on:
i. large-scale, multi-country, transformative Decade programmes; and
ii. large-scale contributions of in-kind or financial resources for Decade Actions or coordination costs.
Submit 'Request for Endorsement” before 15 January 2021
The newsletter, Harmful Algae News No 65 is now on-line and includes articles on genomic resources, cyanhobactial and micro-algal toxic HABs, Benthic HABs, Microalgal HABs, High Biomass and Fish Killer HABs, HAB projects and news about training, networking and more.
The Ocean Decade Virtual Series is a series of high-level and scientific interactive virtual dialogues aimed at mobilizing the global ocean community and fostering transformative partnerships and innovative solution-oriented actions to achieve the Decade Outcomes.
Report commissioned by 14 serving heads of state and government calls for strengthening the science-based integrated ocean management through the UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC).
On the occasion of World Hydrography Day, The Nippon Foundation-GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project, which aims to facilitate the complete mapping of the global ocean floor by 2030, has announced the inclusion of 14.5 million square kilometres of new bathymetric data in the latest GEBCO Grid. Nearly a fifth of the world’s entire ocean floor has now been mapped, with the new data equating to an area twice the size of Australia.
A Data Rescue Working Group will be established under the auspices of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission and its network Global Sea Level Observing System (GLOSS) to strengthen international cooperation in rescue of historical sea level data.
Peter Thomson, the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Ocean, talks about the upcoming Ocean Decade and the importance of solid science and political will to make sound decisions for the future health of the ocean and thereby our own.
The competition was an output of a project aimed at strengthening tsunami early warning and response capacities in Caribbean countries, sponsored by the European Commission DIPECHO and coordinated by UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission.
When we think of public health risks, we may not think of the ocean as a factor. Increasingly, however, the health of the ocean is intimately tied to our health. Some may be surprised to read that organisms discovered at extreme depths are used to speed up the detection of COVID-19, and probably, even more to learn that, it is the environment to could give a solution to humankind.
The IOC organized a virtual meeting to inform Permanent Delegations to UNESCO of the responses provided by the Commission to identify impacts from the Covid-19 crisis and ensure the continuity of its programmes and services.
