The COP29 Baku Ocean Declaration has been released by the Ocean Pavilion’s partners, which include the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego.
The declaration calls on world leaders and governments to take active steps to support and nurture investments in ocean mapping, research and conservation. Supporting these activities will help the planet reach its conservation and biodiversity goals.
Key actions called for in the declaration include:
- An expansion of international collaboration.
- Greater private and public funding.
- Improved awareness of the ocean’s role in the planet’s system.
- The creation of more capacity and access, especially on more remote locations and islands worldwide.
According to WHOI President Peter de Menocal:
“Our future relies on humanity making smart decisions on how to manage the ocean. And making smart decisions demands that we have the best scientific information possible about the ocean and the many ways it affects everyone on the planet. Long-term, multi-scale ocean observations provide the critical data necessary to ensure a sustainable future for all.”
While Scripps Director Margaret Leinen added:
“The ocean has an outsized impact on global climate even when it comes to desertification and is impacted itself by climate change. At least half of macro-organisms on the planet are marine. Most have not even been discovered, much less named, so ongoing discovery of the system supporting life on Earth is imperative to say the least.”
More information about the Ocean Pavilion and COP29 can be found on the pavilion website.
