Oceans Day at Durban Discusses Blue Carbon
3 December 2011/ by iisd
3 December 2011/ by iisd
Oceans Day 2011, part of the Durban Climate Change Conference, addressed various issues related to the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD, or Rio+20), including the concept of blue carbon and the green economy.
Oceans Day took place on 3 December 2011, on the sidelines of the 17th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 17) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Durban, South Africa.
Participants engaged in a session on "Oceans and coasts at the UNFCCC and at Rio+20: The need for concerted action," with a number of speakers underlining the need for strengthened blue carbon policy capacity, and for accelerating the uptake of ocean and coastal-based carbon mitigation approaches. Biliana Cicin-Sain, President, Global Ocean Forum, underscored the importance of achieving greater equity in management of fisheries with greater benefits for coastal communities, noting the relevance of this issue in the Rio+20 process.
The meeting forwarded a Chair's statement to COP 17, in which the global oceans community calls attention to the need to develop an integrated programme for oceans and coasts within and beyond the UNFCCC. It recommends various actions, including deepening understanding and policy approaches to support blue carbon.
Oceans Day was co-organized by the Global Ocean Forum, in association with a number of partners, including the Government of South Africa, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (IOC-UNESCO), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), and the GEF/UNDP/UN Environment Programme (UNEP) African LME projects. [IISD RS Coverage] [Oceans Day at Durban Co-Chairs’ Statement]
