Awareness raising and behavior change are essential to reducing nutrient pollution and preventing marine hypoxia. While policies, investments and monitoring systems create the enabling conditions for action, lasting change also depends on the decisions made every day by farmers, businesses, consumers, municipalities, coastal communities and public institutions. The Clean and Healthy Ocean Integrated Program (CHO-IP) supports communication and outreach activities that help different audiences understand the causes and consequences of marine hypoxia, recognize their role in reducing nutrient pollution, and support them adopt practices that contribute to cleaner waterways and healthier coastal and marine ecosystems.
CHO-IP promotes targeted awareness raising that translates complex scientific and technical information into accessible messages for policy makers, practitioners, private sector actors and the wider public. This includes communication materials, knowledge products, campaigns, webinars, stories, videos, events and digital content that explain how excess nitrogen and phosphorus move from land-based activities into rivers, coastal waters and the ocean. By making the issue visible and relatable, the program helps build shared understanding of marine hypoxia as both an environmental challenge and a development issue linked to food systems, wastewater, industry, health, livelihoods and sustainable blue economies.
Communicating the Science of Marine Hypoxia
The program supports science communication that explains what marine hypoxia is, why it occurs, where it is most severe and how it can be prevented or reduced. Data from monitoring systems, assessments and scientific partners are transformed into practical communication products, including maps, briefs, infographics, learning materials and digital resources. These products help decision-makers and stakeholders connect scientific evidence with concrete actions, such as improving nutrient management, reducing fertilizer losses, upgrading wastewater systems, restoring wetlands and applying nature-based solutions.
Supporting Behavior Change Across Sectors
CHO-IP supports behavior change by connecting awareness raising with practical guidance, peer learning and sector-specific best management practices. In agriculture, this includes promoting more efficient nutrient use, improved fertilizer management and practices that reduce runoff. In municipalities and urban areas, it includes encouraging wastewater treatment, stormwater management, green infrastructure and the safe reuse of treated wastewater. In industry and the private sector, it includes raising awareness of nutrient-related risks in supply chains and supporting the adoption of practices that reduce pollution. In coastal communities, it includes strengthening understanding of how land-based activities affect fisheries, tourism, ecosystems and livelihoods.
Inclusive and Gender-Responsive Communication
CHO-IP promotes communication and behavior change approaches that are inclusive, gender-responsive and adapted to local contexts. This includes recognizing that women, men, youth, Indigenous Peoples, local communities and different livelihood groups may have different levels of access to information, decision-making spaces, technologies and resources. By tailoring messages and engagement approaches to diverse audiences, the program helps ensure that awareness raising leads to more equitable participation and more practical uptake of solutions.