UN Ocean conference 2022

What's at stake at the UN Ocean Conference?

Fish is one of many resources mankind derives from oceans. But many marine environments suffer heavily from overfishing. Photo: Paul Einerhand via Unsplash

We asked some of our experts why all eyes are turned to the UN Ocean Conference in Lisbon

Story highlights

  • Stockholm Resilience Centre is engaged in several events during the UN Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Portugal
  • Our portfolio of activities includes official side events, a report launch and a youth forum
  • The official venue for the conference is Altice Arena, but many events are taking place throughout the city

The ocean event of the year is taking place in Lisbon 27 June - 1 July. But why is this event so important? And what role do oceans play for the transition to a sustainable future ?

We checked in with our experts to ask what's at stake at the UN Oceans conference:

"There have been many ocean promises. Now, we all need to be inspired by real action, tangible results, and honest conversations about the hard challenges", says professor Henrik Österblom.

Full quote:

"There have been many ocean promises. Now, we all need to be inspired by real action, tangible results, and honest conversations about the hard challenges."

Profile Henrik Österblom

"Saying that we care about the ocean's future is another way of saying that we care about our future and the future of our children", says centre researcher Robert Blasiak.

Full quote:

"Saying that we care about the ocean's future is another way of saying that we care about our future and the future of our children."

Profile Robert Blasiak

"Going forward into a future with climate change and increasing human activity, we need to make sure ocean resources are not only sustainably managed, but also fairly distributed", says researcher Susa Niiranen.

Full quote:

"Going forward into a future with climate change and increasing human activity, we need to make sure ocean resources are not only sustainably managed, but also fairly distributed."

Profile Susa Niiranen

"We need to recognize sand as a strategic resource. It's used all over the world, but we have very limited transparency on where it's coming from", says researcher Jean-Baptiste Jouffray

Full quote:

"We need to recognize sand as a strategic resource. It's used all over the world, but we have very limited transparency on where it's coming from."

Profile Jean-Baptiste Jouffray

"We urge leaders in the UN Ocean conference to recognize small-scale fishers as stewards of ocean biodiversity, and respect and promote their rights", says SwedBio's Hanna Wetterstrand.

Full quote:

"We urge leaders in the UN Ocean conference to recognize small-scale fishers as stewards of ocean biodiversity, and respect and promote their rights."

Profile Hanna Wetterstrand

Find an overview of all our activities during the UN Ocean Conference here

Published: 2022-06-23

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