CONFERENCE OUTCOMES

The Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts and Islands: Mobilizing for Implementation of the Commitments Made at the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development convened from December 10-14, 2003 at UNESCO, Paris. The Conference involved 223 participants from 48 countries, representing intergovernmental organizations (33%), government organizations (20%), academic and research institutions (22%), non-government organizations (16%), and private sector organizations and individuals (9%). The Conference convened a year after the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) at Johannesburg, with the major purposes of reviewing what has been done to date in implementing the WSSD commitments, and to catalyze action on WSSD implementation through collaboration among governments, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector. The conference focused, as well, on approaches to mobilizing public and private sector support for the global oceans agenda, and on the identification of emerging ocean issues.

Conference Report

The Co-Chairs' Report of the Global Conference has been produced. It also reports on major developments in WSSD implementation related to oceans, coasts, and small island developing States, which have taken place following the Global Conference, from November 2003 to May 2004, the publication date for this report. The reader should note that given limited information, only major new developments are covered. We kindly ask you to let us know of any factual errors or major omissions in the report through Miriam Balgos, Gerard J. Mangone Center for Marine Policy, University of Delaware, via fax at 1-302-831-3668, or via email at mbalgos@udel.edu.

2003 Global Conference Report (2004 WSSD Implementation Report) 

Conference coverage was provided by the Earth Negotiations Bulletin for the International Institute for Sustainable Development. The IISD summary report is available at http://www.iisd.ca/sd/sdune/12november.htm.

List of Participants 

Pre-Conference Proceedings Volume 

Presentations

Session 1: PROBLEMS AND OPPORTUNITIES IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF WSSD COMMITMENTS: MINISTERIAL PERSPECTIVES

Mr. Sun Zhihui, Deputy Administrator, State Oceanic Administration, China, China's Action for Marine Sustainable Development

H.E. Harsh K. Gupta, Secretary, Department of Ocean Development, India, Problems and Opportunities in the Implementation of WSSD Commitments

Session 2: IMPLEMENTATION OF WSSD COMMITMENTS AT THE REGIONAL LEVEL

David Osborn, Programme Officer, UNEP-GPA, UNEP Regional Seas Programme and Meeting WSSD Objectives

Kenneth Sherman, Supervisory Research Oceanographer, U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service, The Large Marine Ecosystem Network Approach to WSSD Targets

Olle Hagstrom, Directorate General, environment, European Commission, Implementation of WSSD and European Marine Strategy

Cristelle Pratt, Manager, Oceans and Islands Programme, SOPAC, Toward a Regional Ocean Policy for the Pacific

Chua Thia-Eng, Director, Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA), WSSD Implementation in East Asia

Margaret Hayes, Director of Oceans Affairs, U.S. Department of State, WSSD Implementation in the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Basin

Margarita Astralaga, Americas Regional Coordinator, Ramsar Convention Bureau, Implementation of WSSD Targets through the Ramsar Convention

Session 3: SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES: THE ISSUES IN MAURITIUS 2004

Nirmal Jivan Shah, Chief Executive, Nature Seychelles, WSSD Target: "Develop Community-based Initiatives on Sustainable Tourism in SIDS by 2004"

Robin Mahon, Senior Lecturer, University of the West Indies, Barbados, Managing the Managers: Improving the Structure and Operation of Fisheries Departments in SIDS

Herman Belmar, Teacher, Bequia Community High School, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Small Islands Voice Coordinator, Youth's Concerns and Inputs to Mauritius 2004

Tiare Holm, Assistant Director, Palau Conservation Society, Palau, and Small Islands Voice Coordinator, The General Public's Perspective on Issues and Inputs to Mauritius 2004

Session 4: NGO AND FOUNDATION PERSPECTIVES ON WSSD IMPLEMENTATION

Peter Bryant, Communications Manager, Endangered Seas Programme, World Wildlife Fund International, Implementing the Marine Outcomes of WSSD

Matthew Hatchwell, European Coordinator, The Wildlife Conservation Society, Wildlife Conservation Society Marine Program

Carl Lundin, Head, Marine Program, IUCN, The World Conservation Union - IUCN's Approach to the WSSD Marine Targets

Hiroshi Terashima, Executive Director, Institute for Ocean Policy, Ship & Ocean Foundation, Japan, Ship & Ocean Foundation's Perspectives on WSSD Implementation

Francois Bailet, Deputy Executive Director, International Ocean Institute, Capacity Building in Support of WSSD Implementation

Session 5: ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION ON CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN MEETING THE WSSD SUBSTANTIVE OBJECTIVES ON OCEANS, COASTS, AND SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES

Biliana Cicin-Sain, Director, CMP, University of Delaware, USA, The Way Forward for Coastal and Ocean Governance

Magnus Ngoile, Director General, National Environment Management Council, Tanzania, Linking Ocean and Coastal Governance to Poverty Alleviation and to Public Health Improvements

Eduardo Marone, Executive Director, International Ocean Institute, Brazil, and CEM/UFPR, Sustainability and Viability: Reinforcing the Concepts of the Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development

Louise Heaps, Head, WWF-UK Marine Prorgramme, Implementing the WSSD Targets in Ecosystem Management

Michael O'Toole, Chief Technical Advisor, Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem Program, UNDP, Implementing the WSSD Targets through Ecosystem Management: Example from the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem

Serge Garcia, Director, Fishery Resources Division, FAO, The Way Forward in Fisheries

Alastair MacFarlane, General Manager, Trade and Information, New Zealand Seafood Industry Council Ltd. (SEAFIC), WSSD Challenges to Fisheries

Clive Wilkinson, International Ocean Agreements and SIDS, Multilateral Environmental Agreements for Pacific Island Countries

Bud Ehler, Vice-Chair, IUCN-World Commission on Protected Areas (Marine), and Director, International Programs Office, NOAA, Toward Representative Networks of Marine Protected Areas by 2012

Camille Mageau, Director, Marine Ecosystems Conservation Branch, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Canada, National Networks of Marine Protected Areas and Their Role in Protecting Global Biodiversity

Daniel Laffoley, Head, Marine Conservation, English Nature, The Perspective of the Ad Hoc Technical Group (AHTEG) on Marine and Coastal Protected Areas (MCPAs) of the Convention on Biological Diversity

Serge Garcia, Director, Fishery Resources Division, FAO, Marine reserves in fisheries management: Potential and Issues

Magnus Johannesson, Secretary-General, Ministry for the Environment, Iceland, Protection from Marine Pollution: Challenges and Opportunities

David Osborn, Programme Coordinator, UNEP/GPA, Achieving Substantial Progress in GPA by 2006

Dandu Pughiuc, Chief Technical Adviser, GloBallast, International Maritime Organization

Peter Burbridge, Land-Ocean Interactions in the Coastal Zone, The "New" LOICZ: Land-Ocean Interactions across the Many Interfaces of Global Coastal Zones

Tony Knap, Global Ocean Observing System, Integrated, Strategic Design Plan for the Coastal Ocean Observations Module of the Global Ocean Observing System

Johannes Guddal, Joint Commission on Oceanography and Marine Meteorology, Marine Impacts on Lowland Agriculture and Coastal Resources

Session 6: TARGETING DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE TO MEET WSSD GOALS

Alfred Duda, Global Environment Facility, Targeting Development Assistance to Meet WSSD Goals Related to Marine Ecosystems

Julia Benn, OECD Development Cooperation Directorate, France, Monitoring Aid Flows with the Help of DAC statistics - CRS Aid Activity Database

Francois le Gall, Livestock Specialist, World Bank, The World Bank's On-going and Proposed Fisheries Program

Session 7: PRIVATE SECTOR PERSPECTIVES ON WSSD IMPLEMENTATION AND ON THE GLOBAL OCEANS AGENDA

Paul Holthus, Marine Aquarium Council, Private Sector Perspectives on WSSD Implementation and on the Global Oceans Agenda

Eugenio Yunis, World Tourism Organization, The Role of the Tourism private Sector in Implementing WSSD Coastal Initiatives

Suzanne Pleydell, Professional Association of Dive Instructors/Project Aware, Recreational Diver Growth - Threat or Opportunity? A Private Sector Perspective

Session 8: OPTIONS FOR A GLOBAL OCEANS FUND

Scott Smith, ICRAN and The Nature Conservancy, Financing the WSSD Oceans, Coasts, and Islands Commitments

Indumathie Hewawasam, World Bank Africa Region, and Steering Committee, Global Forum on Oceans Coasts and Islands, A Global Fund for Oceans, Coasts, and Islands?

Session 9: GENERATING AND MAINTAINING PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR OCEANS, COASTS, AND ISLANDS

Leonard Sonnenschein, World Ocean Network, World Ocean Network: Acting Together for the Future of the Blue Planet

Cecile Gaspar, Director, Dolphin Quest, Polynesia, World Ocean Network

Ram Boojh, Centre for Environment Education, India, Environmental Education to Support Conservation of Oceans: Looking Forward to the Decade for Education for Sustainable Development

Phillippe Vallette, NAUSICAA (French National Sealife Center), and co-founder of the World Ocean Network, Closing Remarks

Session 10: EVOLVING ISSUES

Donna Petrachenko, Regional Director General, Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Canada, Outcomes of the Australian High Seas Biodiversity Workshop

Kristina Gjerde, High Seas Marine Protected Areas Project Coordinator, IUCN, Poland, Draft 10-Year HSMPA Strategy

Charlotte Breide, Senior Legal Advisor - High Seas, WWF International, Bringing Large Scale Zoning, Management and Conservation Planning to the High Seas: the Grand Banks Pilot Project

Lee Kimball, Independent Consultant, Challenges and Opportunities for High Seas Governance

SPECIAL ADDRESSES

Jon Van Dyke, Professor, University of Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law, Challenges to the International Ocean Regime

Emilio Gabbrielli, Executive Secretary, Global Water Partnership, Organizing for the Global Water Agenda: Lessons Learned and Links to Oceans

Alan Simcock, Executive Secretary, OSPAR Commission, Toward Achieving WSSD Objectives at the Regional Level