CONFERENCE BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The Third Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts, and Islands mobilized high-level policy attention, topical working groups, analytical papers, and other contributions to provide a review of progress achieved and obstacles faced in the implementation of international targets on oceans, coasts, and small island developing States (SIDS), especially those related to the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and other related agreements such as the Convention on Biological Diversity and Agenda 21 (please see Table 1 for a summary of major international ocean commitments).

Table 1. Major oceans, coasts, and SIDS targets from the World Summit on Sustainable Development and the Millennium Development Goals World Summit on Sustainable Development1 Integrated ocean and coastal management Encourage the application of the ecosystem approach by 2010 for the sustainable development of the oceans, particularly in the management of fisheries and the conservation of biodiversity Establish an effective, transparent and regular inter-agency coordination mechanism on ocean and coastal issues within the United Nations system Promote integrated coastal and ocean management at the national level and encourage and assist countries in developing ocean policies and mechanisms on integrated coastal management Assist developing countries in coordinating policies and programs at the regional and sub-regional levels aimed at conservation and sustainable management of fishery resources and implement integrated coastal area management plans, including through the development of infrastructure Fisheries Implement the FAO International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing by 2004 Implement the FAO International Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity by 2005 Maintain or restore depleted fish stocks to levels that can produce their maximum sustainable yield on an urgent basis and where possible no later than 2015 Eliminate subsidies that contribute to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and to overcapacity Conservation of biodiversity Develop and facilitate the use of diverse approaches and tools, including the ecosystem approach, the elimination of destructive fishing practices, the establishment of marine protected areas consistent with international law and based on scientific information, including representative networks by 2012 Protection from marine pollution Advance implementation of the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities in the period 2002-2006 with a view to achieve substantial progress by 2006 Science and observation Establish a regular process under the United Nations for global reporting and assessment of the state of the marine environment, including socioeconomic aspects, by 2004 Small island developing States Follow-up on the implementation of the results of the Mauritius 2005 review of the Barbados Programme of Action Water Resources Management Development of integrated water resources management (IWRM) plans by 2005 1United Nations. 2002. Johannesburg Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on sustainable Development Millennium Development Goals2 Reduce by half the proportion of people living on less than a dollar a day by 2015 Reduce by half the proportion of people who suffer from hunger by 2015 Improve cooperation and coordination at all levels in order to address oceans and seas issues in an integrated manner and promote integrated management and sustainable development of the oceans and seas. 22005 World Summit Outcome as adopted by the High-level Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session. A/60/L.1

General Conference Purposes
The Global Conference sought to:

-Help accelerate progress in the attainment of international ocean targets;

-Achieve synergy among efforts by governments, international agencies, national and regional authorities, nongovernmental organizations, natural and social scientists, and the private sector to attain the international oceans targets, mobilizing coalitions for effective implementation;

-Develop recommendations for tangible next steps and progress markers to track progress in the attainment of the international ocean targets;

-Provide a multi-stakeholder forum for cross-sectoral South-North dialogue among developed countries, developing countries, small island developing States, and countries with economies in transition in advancing the global oceans agenda;

-Advance the development of capacity for integrated oceans governance in developing countries, small island developing States, and countries with economies in transition, especially in relation to the implementation of the Mauritius Strategy in SIDS nations;

-Examine selected emerging and unresolved issues related to oceans, coasts, and SIDS focusing especially on issues which can be advanced through cross-sectoral and cross-group analyses and dialogue; and

-Develop specific recommend-ations for engaging decisionmakers and the public in support of the global oceans agenda.

Special Emphases
The Global Conference focused special attention on:

• Two major goals of the World Summit on Sustainable Development:

Implementation of the results of the Mauritius Strategy (January 2005) guiding the sustainable development of small island developing States, with emphasis on specific actions to advance ocean and coastal management which can be taken in the near-term, including building on the SIDS consortium of universities created at the Mauritius International Meeting

Progress in the implementation of the UNEP Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-Based Activities (GPA) and preparations for the GPA Intergovernmental Review (IGR-2), to be held in Beijing, China, in October 2006. This includes development of specific recommendations on enhanced means for linking freshwater to coasts to oceans for presentation at the World Water Forum in Mexico City, Mexico, March 2006, and at the GPA IGR-2.


• Lessons Learned From Tsunami Disaster of December 2004


• Two emerging/unresolved ocean issues:

 - High seas governance, particularly regarding development of a regime for exploitation of biotech resources and for the protection of sensitive resources and biodiversity

 - Oceans and climate, particularly issues related to ocean acidification, carbon dioxide sequestration, and Arctic change

Conference Organizers and Sponsors
The Third Global Conference was organized by the Global Forum on Oceans, Coasts, and Islands, organized informally in 2001 and formalized at the WSSD in Johannesburg in September 2002. The Global Forum aims to advance the interests of oceans-incorporating 72% of the Earth; coasts-the home of 50% of the world's population; and islands-43 of the world's nations are small island developing States, which are especially dependent on the oceans. The Forum is composed of experts from governments, intergovernmental and international organizations, and non-governmental organizations (environmental, scientific/technical, industry, and foundations) with the common goal of achieving the sustainable development of oceans, coasts, and small island developing States. The Global Forum Steering Committee, responsible for organizing the conference, may be found on p. 6. Global Forum goals are noted in Box 1.

Box. 1. Global Forum on Oceans, Coasts, and Islands - Goals The Global Forum responds to major needs at the international scale: Promotion of cross-sectoral dialogue on ocean, coastal and SIDS issues among governments, nongovernmental organizations, intergovernmental organizations, the private sector, and the scientific community; A mechanism for oceans advocacy at the highest political levels; and A venue for linking oceans and freshwater concerns. The major goals of the Global Forum are to: Work together with governments, international and intergovernmental organizations, nongovernmental organizations (environmental, scientific/technical, industry, foundations), and others to effectively implement, at national and regional levels, major international agreements on oceans; Work as a catalyst to mobilize knowledge, resources, and organizational action to advance the global oceans agenda; Raise the international profile of oceans, coasts, and SIDS in all relevant global, regional, and sub-regional fora and mobilize resources to address these issues; and Mobilize public awareness on oceans, coasts, and SIDS, and promote information sharing and dissemination.

The conference was part of the activities of the GEF project on Fostering a Global Dialogue on Oceans, Coasts, and SIDS, and on Freshwater-Coastal-Marine Interlinkages.

Initial Sponsors
Global Environment Facility
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, UNESCO
UNEP Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities
Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans
U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Gerard J. Mangone Center for Marine Policy, University of Delaware
World Ocean Network
Portuguese Committee for Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
International Coastal and Ocean Organization

Key Conference Features
The Global Conference featured:

• High-level presentations on selected topics by high-level ocean officials from around the world;
• Topical panels bringing together experts from governments, international agencies, nongovernmental organizations, scientists, and the private sector, and featuring stage-setting analytical papers;
• Structured Concurrent Dialogue Sessions on specific topics on which the Conference is expected to achieve progress; and
• Opportunities for special groups and communities of interest to advance particular aspects of the global oceans agenda.

The intent was to bring carefully crafted analyses, high-level perspectives, and perspectives from all ocean sectors and areas of the world to focus on tangible next steps in the implementation of the global oceans agenda. The conference maximized opportunities for meaningful dialogue among the expert participants through the facilitation of the Concurrent Dialogue Sessions and discussions in special workshops and side events.


Background
The 2006 Global Conference was the third in a series begun in 2001. The first conference, Oceans and Coasts at Rio+10: Toward the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), Johannesburg (December 2001), was useful in placing ocean, coastal, and SIDS issues on the WSSD agenda. As noted in the UN Secretary General's report on Oceans and the Law of the Sea (March 3, 2003), A/58/65): 7.

The persistent efforts of all interested groups, beginning with the Global Conference on Oceans and Coasts at Rio+10, persuaded the preparatory meetings for the Johannesburg Conference that not only was UNCLOS not the end of the road, but also that many of the commitments of the UNCED at Rio remained unfulfilled.

Following the WSSD, the Global Forum's second major international conference, the Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts, and Islands: Mobilizing for Implementation of the Commitments Made at the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development on Oceans, Coasts, and Small Island Developing States, was useful in spurring the process of initial implementation of the WSSD commitments. This meeting proved especially important because the Commission on Sustainable Development is not scheduled to examine ocean issues until 2014.

Relationship to Other Global Efforts
The Third Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts, and Islands built on the two previous global conferences, and was directly related to a number of other international efforts and global conferences.

The Ocean Policy Summit International Conference on Integrated Ocean Policy: National and Regional Experiences, Prospects, and Emerging Practices (held in Lisbon, Portugal, on October 10-14, 2005). This conference explicitly considered advances in the WSSD and MDG goals of achieving integrated oceans governance at national and regional levels, and made considerable progress in the collective understanding of how national and regional ocean policies may be enhanced and further expanded. Results from The Ocean Policy Summit were featured at the Paris Global Conference.

The 4th World Water Forum (held in Mexico City, Mexico, on March 16-22, 2006). Results of the Paris global conference provided input to the 4th World Water Forum particularly regarding specific recommendations for better linking freshwater to coasts to oceans and development of a joint program of work involving freshwater and ocean institutions.

The Second Intergovernmental Review (IGR-2) of the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-Based Activities (GPA), to be held in Beijing, China, on October 16-20, 2006. The Paris global conference developed specific recommendations for further advancement of the GPA for input into the intergovernmental process of the IGR-2.

Preparatory Work for and Expected Outputs from the Third Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts, and Islands

Various working groups, task forces, and organizations prepared background papers, reports and recommendations for discussion at the Global Conference. Some of these are highlighted below.

Other groups and organizations were kindly invited to let the Conference Secretariat know of other preparatory efforts that should be included in the materials that were distributed and discussed at the conference. In particular, groups, organizations, national, and international entities that have prepared assessments of implement-ation of WSSD and MDG goals were kindly invited to send these materials to the Conference Secretariat.

• Strategy for rapid implementation of the outcomes of the Mauritius International Meeting, with a special emphasis on oceans and coasts, including capacity building, in three SIDS regions: Caribbean, Pacific, and AIMS (Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean, and the South China Sea).
• Recommendations on linking freshwater to coasts to oceans and for the next phase of the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-Based Activities, developed through a Task Force and workshop to be held in Mexico City, January 10-11, 2006.
• Assessment of advancement in integrated ocean policies at national and regional levels, including results and recommendations from The Ocean Policy Summit in Lisbon (October 10-14, 2005), and materials on lessons learned from the experiences of 22 countries and 3 regions.
• Assessment of ocean policy priorities and capacity building needs of 8 nations part of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Nations.
• Discussion materials prepared by Global Conference Working Groups on Major Themes, such as high seas governance, and climate and oceans.
• Draft materials on progress achieved (or lack thereof) on WSSD and MDG implementation for discussion at Concurrent Discussion Sessions during global conference.
• Assessment of capacity building needs in ocean and coastal management at national levels in three regions: Africa, East Asia, and Latin America,with a special emphasis on the raising of ocean awareness for high-level decision makers, the enhancement of integrated oceans management university education, and of local problem-solving capacity on marine issues.
• Lessons learned, especially regarding economic valuation and public participation from the Global Environment Facility's Large Marine Ecosystem Programs, by IW: LEARN.
• Reports from Business and Industry Leaders Roundtable and Ocean Donors Roundtable.
• Development of a long-term strategy for engaging the public on oceans (2 billion people by 2015) and ongoing outreach campaigns by world's association of museums and aquaria, The World Ocean Network.

Major expected outputs from the Global Conference include:

• Co-Chairs' Report, incorporating:

-progress report on WSSD and MDG goals related to oceans, coasts, and SIDS
-conference summary and recommendations


• Summary of presentations and reports of dialogues were provided by the Earth Negotiations Bulletin. 

DETAILED PROGRAM 

WORLD OCEAN NETWORK 3rd INTERNATIONAL MEETING

The World Ocean Network (www.worldoceannetwork.org) and its partners invited Global Conference participants to participate in the 3rd International Meeting "Acting Together for the Future of the Blue Planet" which was held at NAUSICAA, Centre National de la Mer, in Boulogne/Mer in France, January 29 - February 2, 2006. All organizations reaching out to the general public were encouraged to participate in the meeting to help further develop a global campaign to raise public awareness and an action plan for the sustainable use of the ocean.

The event, organized under the aegis of the IOC/UNESCO and with the participation of Jean-Michel Cousteau, chair of the World Ocean Network committee of honour, immediately followed the Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts, and Islands.

Participants of the meeting and experts from the Global Forum on Oceans, Coasts and Islands had the opportunity to state their priorities regarding sustainable use of the ocean. The participants also shared results of the joint activities conducted since the 2nd International Meeting in 2002, and planned further cooperation for the next three years.

For more information about the International Meeting, please contact:

World Ocean Network
E-mail: meeting@nausicaa.fr
Tel: 33 (0) 3 21 30 99 93;
Fax : 33 (0) 3 21 30 93 94).