Advancing inclusive, sustainable and equitable blue economies at the UN Ocean Conference

The side-event titled ‘The future and ocean WE (ALL) want: Inclusion and integration for strong, sustainable and equitable blue economies’ was organised on 28^th June 2022 at Trivoli Oriente Hotel, Lisbon, Portugal. It was co-organised by the One Ocean Hub (University of Strathclyde, UK), the Government of Solomon Islands, the Office of the Pacific Ocean Commissioner, WWF Accelerating Coastal Community Led Conservation Initiative, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Danish Institute for Human Rights, the Association of Commonwealth Universities, and the Nippon Foundation - University of Edinburgh “Ocean Voices” Programme and Ocean Nexus Center. The event was solution-focused, providing examples of innovative partnerships based on transdisciplinary research approaches to co-produce ocean knowledge among Indigenous Peoples, small-scale fishing communities, researchers, civil society, governments and international organizations and thereby co-develop solutions towards sustainable, and inclusive and human rights-based ocean-based economies.

 The event started with the projection of a short film produced by the One Ocean Hub titled Ocean and Women, which gives voice to Ghanaian women fishers on their challenges in engaging with the blue economy, the importance to improve the protection of the women’s human rights in small-scale fisheries to enhance the accountability of the government and businesses, for example mining and large-scale industrial fishing companies. Although blue economy initiatives are often well intended, the film shows that some initiatives can have negative consequences on coastal communities.

 The event continued with roundtable discussion on the human rights issues surfacing as blue economy developments expand at scale. The roundtable discussion was chaired by Dr Bernadette Snow, Deputy Director of One Ocean Hub, University of Strathclyde, and brought together seven distinguished speakers including Professor Elisa Morgera, Director of One Ocean Hub, University of Strathclyde; Ms Lysa Wini, Government of Solomon Islands and PhD researcher under the One Ocean Hub; Ms Maria Honig, WWF Accelerating Coastal Community Led Conservation Initiative; Ms Beth Button, Director of Strategic Communications at the Association of Commonwealth Universities; Ms Tulika Bansal, the Danish Institute for Human Rights;  Ms Nicole Franz, FAO; and Dr. Harriet Harden-Davies, Nippon Foundation - University of Edinburgh, “Ocean Voices” Programme and Ocean Nexus Center to address the following pressing questions surrounding the implementation of blue economies policies and legislative decisions: As national governments of Small-Island Developing States (SIDS) and Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC) and different international actors engage with the blue economy, what actions are being taken to support economic growth and respond to societal needs, whilst ensuring appropriate stewardship of the ocean for future generations? And, who stands to benefit or be disadvantaged from such initiatives?

The roundtable sought to contribute to the UN Ocean Conference thematic focus ‘Promoting and strengthening sustainable ocean-based economies, in particular for small island developing States and least developed countries’, highlighting approaches of different international and national actors, whilst sharing One Ocean Hub’s and partners’ research outputs demonstrating the trade-offs and inequities surfaced as blue economies develop rapidly and at scale.

This event presented a unique opportunity to explore the values, challenges and processes of adopting transdisciplinary ocean research to ensure respect and inclusivity for the needs, knowledge and human rights of indigenous peoples and local communities. Transdisciplinary research implies working with stakeholders and human rights-holders, ocean experts from varied disciplines, and different knowledge holders in the co-design and co-production of solution-oriented research. It requires an intricate process to develop trust and shared approaches that can stimulate and empower fair partnerships for scaling up ocean solutions. The roundtable focus on transdisciplinary research spoke directly to the UN Decade of Ocean Science’s aim to stimulate and empower interdisciplinary ocean research (notably across law, policy, economics, social and marine sciences, and arts) and co-develop solutions at the ocean science-policy interface.

Please see the full event report here.