A CONFERENCE being held in New York in June may seem to be of little interest to those in canoes or on beaches in the Pacific. “What’s this to do with me?” government officials, community leaders and fishers may well ask?
Well, within the package of actions being discussed at this event, called the Oceans Conference, is a series of globally agreed actions against some of the biggest problems facing island States. Problems of environmental degradation, illegal fishing and overfishing, access to markets, climate change, all issues affecting our oceans.
These issues are targeted within one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are part of the global 2030 Agenda, notably the specific goal for the oceans; SDG 14 “Life Below Water”. SDG 14 looks to “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development”.
It’s a ‘development’ initiative, that offers timely momentum in strengthening global governance of activity that impacts ‘life below water’, and an opportunity to spur consensus building to reach agreements on what actions are needed for the oceans, with a special emphasis on supporting Small Island Developing States (SIDS).
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