UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

05/31/2023 | News release | Distributed by Public on 06/01/2023 00:18

Ocean, Science, and Preservation: dialogue between civil society and public power at UNESCO in Brasilia

The need to seek advances in research and in the protection of the ocean motivated a meeting on Tuesday between civil society and public authorities, at the UNESCO headquarters in Brasília, aiming to advance in encouraging science and ocean culture, in combating predatory practices, and in the country's legislation.

Only 5% of our ocean is adequately mapped, making it the most extensive ecosystem; 70% of our planet is ocean. It is a challenge for UNESCO to develop ocean sciences. Still, for that, we have a qualified forum inside the house, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, a collective of 140 countries, which helps in scientific cooperation in exchanging good practices between our countries -members of UNESCO. Another front that we have been exploring a lot here in Brazil is the issue of oceanic culture
Fabio EonCoordinator of Human and Natural Sciences at UNESCO in Brazil

According to the second World Report on Ocean Science (Global Ocean Science Report 2020), published by the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), Member States spend, on average, only 1.7% of their research budgets on ocean sciences.

The proximity of World Oceans Day - celebrated annually on 8 June - and the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) reinforced the relevance of the moment and the opportunity for the Working Group to remember the significant challenges to fight predatory actions and encourage oceanic science and culture.

All scenarios and contexts are very converging. This is the right time for us to make this happen. What we are doing here, this legacy, will be remembered for a long time. It is a legacy that will make us integrate traditional communities of indigenous peoples, quilombola communities, traditional and scientific knowledge, which is exactly what we are trying to build in the world. We have a tremendous opportunity to leave a legacy for the Ocean Decade and beyond
Alexander TurraProfessor at the Institute of Oceanography at the University of São Paulo (USP), and coordinator of the UNESCO Chair for Ocean Sustainability

The president of Ibama (the National Environmental Institute), Rodrigo Agostinho, pointed out that the country has 8,000 kilometres of coastline and this needs to be treated with due importance, but acknowledged that the issue of the ocean had been a significant challenge in the country. "One of the first actions I took was the resumption of inspection at sea. We are working hard with inspection actions to combat predatory fishing," he affirmed. Regarding environmental licensing, he said that the agency is very cautious concerning any licensing that has any influence or is linked to the ocean.

Notably, the consequences of threats to the ocean are not just environmental. About 3 billion people depend on marine and coastal biodiversity for survival. By 2050, coastal areas - home to 300 million people - could be threatened by rising sea levels due to climate change.

The ocean also plays a decisive role in regulating the climate by absorbing about a third of carbon dioxide emissions. The ocean is, therefore, essential to humanity's very destiny as a source of life. For this reason, it has played a central role in international cooperation for a long time.

The meeting was an initiative of the Working Group for Marine Use and Conservation (GT-Mar), a thematic action group of the Environmentalist Parliamentary Front of the National Congress, represented by Deputy Túlio Gadêlha. The parliamentarian spoke about the need to build more solid legislation on the sea, which dealt with the regulation of the marine biome, care, and preservation and pointed out that Brazil is still lagging on the world stage regarding legislation and care for the ocean.

Our mobilization campaign within Parliament, to raise awareness among fellow parliamentarians, goes hand in hand with a campaign to raise awareness in society so that there is pressure on the Brazilian Parliament, and we can manage to process it.
Túlio GadêlhaBrazilian parliamentarian