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Our oceans, our future

FAO Headquarters turns blue on World Oceans Day – a worldwide campaign to raise awareness of the crucial importance of preserving oceans


08/06/2017

On 8 June World Oceans Day will be celebrated worldwide to emphasize the importance of oceans in our everyday lives. Headquarters will symbolically illuminate in blue throughout the evening.

First proposed in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, World Oceans Day was officially introduced in 2008 with the UNGA resolution 63/111. The reasoning is to remind everyone about the relevance of oceans, inform the public of the impact of human actions, develop a worldwide movement, mobilize and unite the world’s population to achieve the sustainable management of the ocean, while celebrating its beauty, wealth and promise.

Healthy oceans are more important than ever. Oceans host 80 percent of all biodiversity, provide food, nutrients, and as fish are among the most widely traded food commodities, provides important sources of income. Despite the common need for healthy oceans, they are under great pressure, not least with overexploitation, illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, marine pollution and ocean acidification.

World Oceans Day provides a unique opportunity to honour, help protect and conserve the world’s oceans. This year’s theme, “Our oceans, our future”, highlights the main conservation focus of plastic pollution prevention and cleaning the ocean of marine litter.

Along with FAO headquarters, buildings around the world including, the UN headquarters in New York (where the Ocean Conference will be held from 5 to 9 June) and the Empire State building, will illuminate in blue in observance of World Oceans Day. The theme of the Oceans Conference is partnering for the implementation of SDG 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.

FAO is working with countries and partners across the world to ensure oceans, seas and marine resources are used sustainably for the benefit of present and future generations, and is responsible for binding and non-binding instruments negotiated with member countries that can help achieve SDG 14.

As the custodian agency for four SDG 14 indicators, FAO provides countries with information on optimum levels of fishing, aquaculture and expansion, and fair and secure access to living aquatic resources and markets. Many of the key instruments and measures to achieve SDG 14 were negotiated and adopted at headquarters.

FAO has a key role to play considering the Organization’s work on the sustainable use of marine resources and that FAO is also supporting countries in developing and implementing the Blue Growth Initiative. The goal of this initiative is to eliminate harmful fishing practices and overfishing, and instead incentivize approaches which promote growth, improve conservation, build sustainable fisheries and end IUU fishing, while fostering international cooperation and promoting sustainable policy development.

Share your actions to save the ocean on social media with the hashtags #WorldOceansDay and #SaveOurOcean.

 

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