Human activities are placing the health of the ocean in peril. According to the World Meteorological Organization’s State of the Global Climate in 2021 report, sea level rise, ocean heat, ocean acidification and greenhouse gas concentrations set new records in 2021, which have posed severe challenges to human living environment, food security, economic growth, etc.  

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres told delegates at the opening of the Conference that today we face an “Ocean Emergency”. “We must turn the tide. A healthy and productive ocean is vital to our shared future.” 

The Secretary-General also stated that some progress has been made in marine conservation since the last UN Ocean Conference 5 years ago. “Much more needs to be done by all of us together”, Mr. Guterres noted and outlined several recommendations, including investing in sustainable ocean economies, scaling up marine conservation and coastal zone management, investing in climate-resilient coastal infrastructure, better leveraging science and innovation to advance the global ocean action and so on. 

The 2022 UN Ocean Conferences is co-hosted by the Governments of Kenya and Portugal. Heads of State and Government, world leaders, scientists, civil society representatives and thousands of young people will attend the 5-day conference, and jointly discuss the solutions to the challenges the ocean is facing. According to the organizer, it is expected that countries will agree on an action plan that calls for a collective global response to addressing the ocean’s degradation and adopt the Political Declaration before the conclusion of the conference. 

Source: XINHUA