UNESCO calls on the international community to invest in scientific research to defend oceans that are increasingly threatened by pollution and warming, among other factors of degradation. At the opening of the Ocean Decade Conference in Barcelona, the Director General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, called for greater international investment in ocean research to improve knowledge and facilitate their protection.
"We have fundamental objectives to achieve. Much has been done for the oceans but there is still much to do and it can be done. And to do this, we must continue investing in science" despite the context of "crises, wars and fragmentation of the oceans" , declared the Director General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay.
Until Friday, Barcelona hosts the Ocean Decade conference, a United Nations initiative supported by UNESCO, in which some 1,500 scientists, representatives of States and organizations participate.
This initiative seeks to boost scientific research to address threats to the oceans, from warming to plastic pollution.
The European Copernicus Observatory announced on Tuesday that the temperature of the oceans, the main regulators of the climate and which cover 70% of the Earth, reached a new absolute record in March with an average of 21.07°C measured on its surface (excluding the areas near the poles). .
According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), a UN agency, by the end of 2023, more than 90% of the planet's oceans will have experienced heat waves at some point during the year.
This increase in the frequency and intensity of marine heat waves has profound negative impacts on marine ecosystems and coral reefs.
“Much still needs to be done because we have crucial objectives on the horizon. Our seas are drowning in heat. Every year we reach negative temperature records,” lamented Azoulay.
The director general of UNESCO recalled that only 15% of the ocean floor has been mapped in depth and that missions to track them are much fewer in number compared to missions to space.
Azoulay argued that there is still much to do in this field and that to do so “we must invest in science. “We must continue this international cooperation. We know that it is a difficult time of crisis, with wars and fragmentation of the international community, but if there is one thing that can unite us, and should unite us, it is the ocean,” Azoulay defended.
However, he recalled that since 2021, when the UN launched the Decade of Ocean Science, an important mobilization has been achieved: “More than 500 initiatives have been launched in around 60 countries by our partners, hundreds of scientists and citizens, because this decade is a movement,” he added.
Azoulay committed to ensuring that “scientists' recommendations” are translated into public policies, with the aim of helping States improve the protection of marine areas and their biodiversity. We must continue to advance in the knowledge and care of the ocean, its beauty and its fragility,” stated the director general of UNESCO.
The sovereign prince of Monaco, Albert II, expressed himself along similar lines: "Some may think that our century is experiencing more serious, more urgent and deeper crises than those affecting the ocean ecosystem, but what brings us together here today is crucial. for our future," added Albert II of Monaco, who called on the international community to protect the oceans, whose warming causes catastrophes and the extinction of species, effects that require "global responses."
“The oceans are facing a critical moment, they face a multitude of threats mainly due to the development model of human beings and the decisions that we all make,” said the Monegasque at the opening of the Ocean Decade Conference in Barcelona.
Albert II has called for "international commitment" to oceanographic research, a field of study about which Monaco is "proud" for its contribution in this field.
The president of Cape Verde, Jose Maria Neves, referred to the numerous adversities and threats that loom over the oceans, such as illegal fishing, migration or human trafficking, and highlighted the importance of this meeting as “a catalyst for commitments” to safeguard the safety of the oceans.
“The challenge we have to respond to is knowing whether or not we are equipped with the appropriate responses,” he noted.
“We must understand how our ocean works in order to save it. Unlocking the mysteries of the marine kingdom is the key,” said Wavel Ramkalawan, president of the Seychelles.
In line with what was expressed by the director of UNESCO, the president of the Cook Islands indicated that the challenges faced are “a shared responsibility that must be faced collectively.” He lamented that the oceans are one of the areas in which the least is invested in research. And for this reason, he has asked to increase investments globally so that leaders can make “well-informed decisions based on scientific evidence.”
“We must be guided by science and knowledge, not by fear,” he emphasized.
