The ocean takes centre stage

Author: Jess Allen, Communications Officer

We’re at COP28 representing the ocean everyday but Saturday was extra special as it was the day it was recognised in the COP thematic programme with focus on Nature, Land Use and Ocean. 

Word had gotten round that the Ocean Pavilion was the place to be today, and the atmosphere on was on the next level. It was our turn to host the Ocean Pavilion reception desk and what was a two-hour long slot, felt like two minutes. Blue Zone delegates from around the world appeared at the desk, who either already understood the importance of the ocean in the climate discussion or were keen to find out.

We joined our partners in calling for ocean-focused solutions to be recognised as critical in the world’s response to the climate crisis: 

• The ocean is a critical part of Earth's climate and helps make the planet liveable. 

• The ocean is changing in ways that threaten its ability to sustain life and that threaten human lives and livelihoods. 

• To solve the climate crisis humanity must rapidly and drastically cut emissions and find ways to remove carbon from the atmosphere. 

• We need to rapidly advance and scale-up ocean observations and science to better understand and predict future ocean changes and their impacts. 

• Climate solutions must be safe, effective, and based in science. 

Ocean Day Celebration

No COP Ocean Day would be complete without music, and the evening brought the arts into the equation. The event featured an energetic performance from songwriter, singer and producer AY Young. If you haven’t come across AY Young yet, I can recommend checking out his work. He performed music from his set inspired by the Sustainable Development goals (he has written music about all 17 of them!).

Check out what’s happening in the Ocean Pavilion on the website, including live streams: Ocean Pavilion | 2023 UN CLIMATE CHANGE CONFERENCE (oceanpavilion-cop.org)