Ocean Pavilion Schedule

This side event will showcase the research and practices that OPRI and its national and international partner institutions are conducting concerning ocean-based climate change mitigation and adaptation actions. Based on this, we will discuss areas for collaboration with other ocean research institutions in the valuable platform of the Ocean Pavilion and identify priority research and actions.

This talk will daylight US and global energy use, oil and gas consumption, and how much of that energy comes from the ocean. We will explore how we govern this use in the US, the consequences of offshore oil and gas production, and what happens when things go wrong. We’ll look at how oil companies continue to win leases offshore and be profitable, even under progressive administrations. Attendees will gain an understanding of what the future holds for offshore energy production in the US.

This event will showcase who citizen science is assisting in the ground truthing of data in platforms such as the Allen Coral Atlas, assist governments develop robust management and restoration systems and the innovative solutions communities have implemented to assist in the sharing of knowledge and restoration of their coral reefs. This event will demonstrate impacts of citizen science through a range of speakers from government, Allen Coral Atlas, Indigenous science programs and communities

The shift in energy sources and transition to zero-emission targets has led to increasing demand for the metals needed to build batteries and increasing interest by investors, mining companies and some coastal states in seabed mining. The imminent commencement of seabed mining raises important questions about how we can accelerate a paradigm shift to low-carbon infrastructure to avert the worst impacts of climate change – while minimizing environmental harm along the way.

In response to the 2nd United Nations Ocean Conference’s many calls for greater financial support for SDG14’s implementation, this High-Level Side-Event will bring together governments, financial institutions, regional development banks, private sector entities, philanthropy, and science experts to discuss how to increase investment flows in support of the Sustainable Blue Economy to achieve SDG14.

Blue Carbon has been rising as an option for the private sector and government alike to meet their climate goals. However, several roadblocks have appeared that have generated uncertainty in some realms and that may jeopardize the rapid growth and delivery of this nature-based solution. In this one-hour side event we will address those uncertainties and discuss what actions are required to expedite progress and deliver equitable blue carbon climate action.

Climate risks affect the social, economic, and environmental lifelines of coastal communities. The Stimson Center and the Commonwealth Secretariat recently completed three CORVI Rapid Risk Assessments in Barbados, Sri Lanka, and Kiribati, analyzing the chief climate risks in coastal areas using cross cutting localized data. Learn how governments are using this information to act, foster all-of-government efforts, attract international financing and fill the adaptation gap before it is too late.

Climate change is having an increasing negative impact on natural capital, leading to a decline in ecosystem services and in economies.This event will bring together biologists, economists, and IPCC authors and will show to decision-makers, stakeholders and climate change negotiators how nature-based solutions could help reconcile saving the Ocean, fighting climate change, and improve the well-being of people.This event will include presentations, a panel discussion and questions from the floor.

Digital twins allow us to track how and why the things we care about are changing and simulate what their futures could be, including by exploring ‘what if?’ scenarios. In May 2022 the UK hosted the International Digital Twins of the Ocean Summit, building on the outcomes of the UK G7 Presidency 2021. This event allows an opportunity to further develop a unified vision on digital twins of the ocean, contribute to their development, and explore their utility – a key aim set out in the summit.

This event aims at (1) presenting the concept and importance of an international panel for ocean sustainability (IPOS), (2) opening discussions to consolidate the main goals of the IPOS coalition. Speakers will highlight the timeliness of IPOS, the current state of progress of the coalition, and the different fields in which IPOS could intervene.

This event brings together a diverse set of recognized SIDS youth leaders and ocean scientists to propose and discuss adaptable policy and science frameworks for global implementation. Drawing on their experiences in indigenous policy and resource management, marine science, emergent technology, sustainable energy, and carbon markets, the panelists will also discuss island innovation ecosystems and transformative community impact in the ocean space.

Investing in actions to sustainably manage, conserve & restore biodiversity & ecosystems is essential for maintaining the ecosystem services critical for climate change adaptation & disaster risk reduction, reducing vulnerabilities, & increasing resilience. Effective EbA could provide local adaptation & mitigation options but with rapidly advancing climate change is there a still a window of opportunity for such investment & action? Is there a global warming limit when this window will close?

Seven years after the adoption of the Paris Agreement, climate commitments are not on track to keep the 1.5°C target within reach. At the heart of the climate system, the ocean is a powerful source of untapped solutions. In the preparation of the global stocktake ahead of COP28, it is time to identify a “blue ambition loop” from governments and non-state actors to accelerate the implementation of ocean-based solutions to deliver on the goals of the Paris Agreement.

There is no climate solution without the ocean, and research will help us to continue to understand and harness the ocean’s unique contribution. The term “blue carbon” may be used holistically to refer to the uptake and storage of carbon dioxide in marine systems by physical, chemical and biolological ocean processes - from the coast to the deep ocean. Blue carbon approaches to climate change mitigation and adaptation are being discussed more and more by policy-makers and this event aims to ensure that policy is driven by the science, delivering the climate change impacts we all need.

This event will launch the Maritime Resilience Breakthroughs, a set of milestones aimed at galvanizing action and radical collaboration toward a more resilient maritime sector. This event will offer attendees a chance for a first look at the breakthroughs, to hear about how ports are building resilience toward climate impacts, and to join in the mobilization toward a more resilient global supply chain.

This side event will provide a platform to explore the opportunities & challenges for nations and stakeholders related to observing and understanding ocean change; local & regional adaptation mechanisms to a rapidly changing ocean; including the conservation and restoration of carbon rich ecosystems, the safe implementation of ocean carbon dioxide removal technologies; and climate smart ocean management for supporting sustainable development and protecting ocean life and those that depend on it.

Many companies have declared their intention to achieve net-zero emissions in the coming decades, but some are taking this commitment farther and are actively working to advance the science and technology innovation needed to achieve climate solutions at scale. Panelists will discuss how industry and academia can—and must—collaborate to create evidence-based solutions and drive progress in the fight against climate change.

Like CO2 emissions, the flow of plastic waste to the environment, especially the ocean, is an adverse side-effect of economic activity. Unlike CO2, the social cost of plastic pollution is not well understood and effective management require a better resolution of risks. This panel will focus on the current state of knowledge about plastic in the ocean, potential links to climate, and potential impacts on human and environmental health.

Women are always at the forefront of change and action. Ocean Sciences is no different. Women have been trailblazers in ocean research and scholarship. Hear from leaders in the field. What have the challenges been for advancement and who is currently leading the way to new discoveries and solutions?

The OA Alliance brings together governments and organizations from across the globe dedicated to taking urgent action to protect coastal communities and livelihoods from the threat of ocean acidification and other climate- ocean impacts. Hear from National and subnational government leaders who are committed to creating “OA Action Plans” that integrate ocean relevant science, mitigation and adaptation efforts across mainstream climate policies, and investments.

Marine habitats play important roles as natural climate solutions for mitigation and adaptation. Some projects could even pay for their own conservation. Researchers from NUS have mapped out where profitable blue carbon projects can be located. But the management of marine habitats as carbon projects can be trickier than terrestrial projects due to their transboundary nature. This panel will discuss if carbon prospecting in the marine environment could aid in the conservation of these habitats.

As debate deepens on the economic impact of climate change on particularly vulnerable island nations, so too does the need to widen our discussion of environmental justice and ocean science grows. What are the new pathways being created to foster greater understanding and stronger action? How do we increase awareness and accelerate broader coalition building.

This event will assess the potential impact of climatic changes on the coastal and marine environment of Red Sea and Gulf of Aden as well as on the socioeconomic structures and activities. The natural resources of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden are diverse, comprising a wide range of tropical marine habitats, some of the considerable conservation, scientific, economic or recreational value. However, they are often impoverished, both in fauna and in the range of available microhabitats.

Sea level rise presents a fundamental challenge to society unlike any other. Almost every nation on Earth and countless communities, many of them poor or facing multiple risks simultaneously, will feel the effects for decades or centuries as sea level continues its upward climb. Planners, practitioners, and decision-makers have a growing toolkit to build resilience into all levels of society, but success requires good information, adequate funding, and political will—all topics of this panel.

Every path to a sustainable climate future must pass through the ocean. We will discuss the scientific basis for ocean-based carbon dioxide removal (CDR) approaches to complement deep emissions reductions, as well as the research agenda, governance structure, investment needs, and ethical framework necessary to ensure a sustainable climate future for all.

Having set the following objectives for each summer period

• 1 - 10 tones less plastic waste per beach ;
• 2 Recycle all collected plastic 2 Implement 40,000 environmental awareness actions;
• 3 mobilize 2 million young people

The operation (#SeaswithoutPlastic), initiated by the Foundation's Seas & Oceans Pole, including more than 106 member beaches, has been able to set up an operating mode rallying the private sector, civil society, academics and institutions around the same objective.

TSeabed maps provide the foundational knowledge we need to address many ocean, climate change, and biodiversity issues. Without them, we struggle to achieve joined-up policies, reducing our ability to effectively mitigate and adapt to climate change and realise a sustainable ocean that supports a growing global population. For this event, we bring together a diverse panel of experts to discuss how seabed mapping data is essential in addressing climate change and for safeguarding the future of the planet, and explore how we can work together to achieve this critical goal.

The deep sea (below 200 m) covers 40% of the planet and comprises over 95% of habitable volume. Most of the ocean is deep ocean, and it plays an outsized role in carbon and heat sequestration. In this session we highlight the Decade for Ocean Science contributions to understanding deep climate ocean mitigation, ecosystem impacts adaptation potential, climate solutions, ocean-based climate intervention consequences and opportunities for finance.

The ocean is our planet’s life support system, makes existence as we know it possible, and may hold solutions to some of our most pressing environmental issues. Yet, research shows the public's understanding of the ocean remains low. Hear from top ocean science and exploration organizations on what they're doing to raise awareness, inform, and engage the public about our ocean and its connection to climate, why it is critical to do so, and what we can do to turn awareness into action.

We will focus on the crucial elements that are capacity development and ocean literacy, key to implementing a truly global ocean observing system. We will provide examples of successful initiatives and showcase efforts to increase societal awareness of climate change and its intrinsic link to the ocean. Panellists will discuss the challenges of training the next generation of ocean observers, of bringing ocean observations to the classroom and of highlighting their importance to policy makers.

Young ocean leaders were born into a world where the impacts of climate change are intensifying, as if handed a time-bomb with only seconds left to defuse. This has motivated young researchers to envision their careers very differently from their predecessors. This session will feature early-career scientists who are navigating climate activism, how to use their research to inform climate policy, and how to bring diverse voices into science and solutions.