The 2023 U.N. Ocean Gathering in Nice: A Push for Maritime Conservation
Countries urged to make the United Nations summit a pivotal moment in addressing oceanic challenges
The world can't afford platitudes at the impending 3rd U.N. Ocean Conference (UNOC) in Nice, France, next week, with leaders expected to bring more than just talk to safeguard the worldwide seas that are in a dire state.
Divisions and Unity
The event seeks to bring the globe together, rally support, and raise funds for marine conservation - even as nations remain divided over issues such as deep-sea mining, plastic waste, and overfishing.
On June 8, France has high expectations for around 70 heads of state and government to attend the pre-opening ceremony in Nice, including Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
The Ocean's State of Emergency
U.N. under-secretary-general Li Junhua described the state of the ocean as a critical emergency, declaring that the June 9-13 meet won't simply be another run-of-the-mill summit.
"If we collaborate collectively, there's still time to change our path," he remarked to reporters.
Most countries are set to dispatch ministers or lower-ranking delegates to the summit, which lacks the political clout of a climate COP or U.N. treaty negotiation and doesn't make binding decisions.
The U.S., under President Donald Trump, who's recently advocated for speeding up seabed mining in international waters and faced global backlash, is likely to snub the meeting altogether.
France's Ambitious Goals
France has vowed that the summit will serve the same purpose for ocean conservation as the Paris Agreement did for international climate action. Participating nations are anticipated to adopt a "Nice Declaration" – a commitment to ocean protection accompanied by voluntary pledges from individual governments.
Leaders from the Pacific region are expected to show up in droves, particularly calling for financial commitments from governments.
"Voluntary promises aren't enough," Ralph Regenvanu, Vanuatu’s environmental minister, told reporters.
The gathering will feature business leaders, philanthropists, and ocean activists, with a preceding science convention expected to attract over 2,000 marine specialists.
Key Issues and Expected Outcomes
- Marine Conservation: Focus on tackling climate change, overfishing, pollution, and biodiversity loss, while implementing Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG 14).
- Economic and Trade Challenges: Explore options to foster a regenerative blue economy and discuss the importance of sustainable trade in the ocean economy.
- Funding and Governance: Address issues of underinvestment and fragmented governance, and work towards mobilizing resources for SDG 14 and strengthening global ocean governance.
Expected Outcomes
- The Ocean Action Plan: Produce an ambitious plan to speed up ocean-saving actions and rally key players, focusing on completing multilateral ocean processes, mobilizing resources, and enhancing knowledge and science.
- Strengthening Marine Science and Policy: Integrate ocean science into global action, ensuring that policymakers make well-informed decisions.
- The Nice Declaration: Adopt a declaration that outlines commitments and actions agreed upon during the conference, emphasizing the urgency of ocean conservation efforts.
Overall, the conference aims to unite global actors to tackle the triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss and ensure long-term sustainability for ocean resources.
Science and environmental-science communities are expected to gather at the 2023 U.N. Ocean Gathering in Nice, providing crucial insights and recommendations on climate-change and marine conservation matters. Amidst political debates over issues like deep-sea mining and overfishing, general-news outlets will closely monitor the event's progress and the the adoption of the "Nice Declaration," an pledge to ocean protection from participating nations.
