A historic UN Ocean Treaty has finally been agreed by United Nations upon after almost two decades of negotiations. This Treaty is a monumental win for ocean protection and shows that cooperation advances despite the increased complexity and fragmentation of our world.
The new treaty will allow the establishment of large-scale marine protected areas on the high seas. It reinforces the 30×30 target, the objective of protecting 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030 established by the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Agreement last December 2022.
There are still flaws in the text, and governments must ensure that the Treaty is put into practice in an effective and equitable way. The High Ambition Coalition, which includes the EU, US, UK and China, were key players in brokering the deal, building coalitions instead of sowing division and showing willingness to compromise in the final days of talks.
For the first time, the treaty will require assessing the impact of economic activities on high-seas biodiversity and giving support to developing countries to participate in the implementation of the new treaty. It is expected that the agreement considers the specific capacity-building and marine technology transfer mechanisms as well as funding from a variety of public and private sources.
It is hoped this treaty will provide a new roadmap for countries to work together to ensure the long-term sustainability of the oceans. It is crucial to increase cooperation and commitment between countries to tackle issues such as illegal fishing and plastic pollution.
The proposed treaty is seen as a decisive step towards reversing the damage caused to the oceans and protecting the millions of species that depend on them.
Más de 5,5 millones de personas firmaron una petición de Greenpeace pidiendo un tratado ambicioso. Ésta es una victoria para todos ellos y ellas.
Here the link with the good news!!
https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/03/1134157
Other references
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_23_1290
https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2023/03/05/un-ocean-treaty-high-seas/
This is indeed very encouraging (after 20 years of international negociation). It now has to be ratified. A good occasion also to remind the key importance of ocean learning. Evy COPEJANS
It's important to use resources to help our students learn about ocean life, human interactions with the ocean, and the ocean’s physical geography, and to gain the information necessary to formulate their own opinions on ocean-related environmental issues.
But we must be careful!!! While educating students on ocean ecology and conservation is necessary for the ocean’s future, doing it right is not as easy as it sounds. Too often, environmental education becomes heavy-handed and falls into the “homework” trap
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