Towards a Blue Society,
Oceans of opportunity
Oceans Day, 3 December 2011
Session 4: Progress on Major Oceans and Climate Issues
Philippe VALLETTE
Co-President, World Ocean Network
General Manager, Nausicaa
OUR OCEAN PLANET : Current Situation
FINITE RESOURCES
OVER EXPLOITATION OF MARINE RESSOURCES
80 % of fish stock over exploited or fully exploited
Some stocks – like the North Atlantic Cod – will not recover
FINITE SPACE
POLLUTION WITHOUT BORDERS
Everything winds up in the sea
80 % of marine pollution comes from the land
Dead zones can drift away far from the coasts
UPSETTING THE OVERALL BALANCE
OCEAN AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Global ocean has warmed up to a depth of 3 000 m
Sea level is rising 1,8 mm/year threatening coasts and islands
Absorbing more CO2, ocean is becoming more acid
OUR SYSTEMS OF SOCIETY DEVELOPMENT
Current Situation
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Humankind consumes many resources and produces much waste - some
economists estimate that we could produce the same quantity by using 80%
less energy
Resource access and consumption modes - 20% population use 80%
ressources. Our ecological footprint is extremely different according to the
country we live in. Effects of environmental disturbance and loss of natural
ressources are stronger on the population in poor countries.
Inadequate governance and management modes
Population explosion of our species leading to growing needs to ensure our
survival
OCEANS OF OPPORTUNITY …
A life-support system on Earth
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80% of Earth’s mineral resources are estimated to be in the sea
50% of pharmaceutical anti-cancer arsenal is from marine organisms
97% of the Earth’s water is in the seas
• 98% of the living space on Earth is
in the sea
• 80% of Earth’s living organisms are
in the sea
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1-50 million undiscovered life forms are
thought to be in the sea
Ocean resources have been valued at $21
trillion (terrestrial $12 tr)
60% of the food of tropical
developing countries comes
from the sea
90 million metric tonnes of
protein from the sea is
consumed by humans every
year
Over 1 billion people rely on fish
and other seafood as their primary
energy source of animal protein
OCEANS OF OPPORTUNITY …
Every second breath we take comes from the ocean
• 50% of the oxygen we breath is produced by ocean plankton,
which is more than all the tropical forests in the world
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TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
200 years ago, at the beginning of the industrial
revolution, we could not imagine that we were able, by
our activities, to change the great balance of our
planet.
We can see today the difficulties in the negotiations
about climate change. This means that what we have to
do is to think out of the box.
We are in a very exciting moment of the story of
humankind: we need to reinvent a world, taking into
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account the fact that our planet is a limited world, with
limited resources.
And we, the ocean community, are pursued that an
important part of the solution will come from the sea.
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Developing a new ambitious vision in a spirit of wellbeing and equity for mankind in harmony with the
world's ocean, its fundamental element
The “Blue Society” concept is based on the premise that there are two
imperatives that society should integrate :
• Satisfying the growing needs of our planet’s inhabitants today
• Preserving the means of subsistence for the generations to come,
especially the resources and services provided by the ocean in
preserving the balance of marine ecosytems
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
The concept of “Blue Society”
• takes into account aspects of the “Green Economy” applied to the
sustainable exploitation of marine resources
• integrates social and cultural dimensions
• encourages political leaders, decision makers and citizens to take an
active role in stewardship
• includes all stakeholders in implementing solutions to critical issues
affecting the world’s oceans and coasts
• centrally incorporates the role of humankind into the fundamental
questions related to the ocean
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TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
The concept of Blue Society takes into account the entirety of
demands related to sustainability from:
• A social point of view:
equitable access to resources to ensure the adequate provisioning of
resources to the world’s populations and to encourage and promote
sustainable livelihoods
• An economic point of view:
the sustainable exploitation of marine resources, taking into account
the economic value of biodiversity and ecosystem services
• An ecological point of view:
ensuring that marine ecosystems are resilient to change and
capable of continuing to provide valuable resources and fulfill their
major biological, chemical, and physical functions (e.g. oxygen
production, climate regulation, nutrient cycling, etc.)
• A cultural point of view:
preservation and respect for traditional cultures and knowledge
linked to the sea
• A political point of view:
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effective governance of the ocean
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Components
Economy
Investing in new
opportunities,
innovation &
sustainable
activities
Society
Promoting well-being
& equal access to
services
& resources
Environment
Preserving
ecosystems
and their potential
Culture
Developing common
understanding & an
integrated vision
Space equity
Time equity
Developing
geographical balance
in access & use of
marine resources
Managing the means
of subsistence for
inhabitants of today &
generations to come
Policy making
Fostering good ocean governance
BLUE SOCIETY
Oceans of new opportunities for all
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Oceans of action
Shrimp farming and fishing in
Madagascar - source of food, income and
jobs
• Organized at a national level
• Commercial and traditional fishing
authorities work together
• Complies with strict ecological
conditions (preserving stocks,
appropriate fishing gear, biological
quality of farmed shrimp )
• Shrimp producers lead social initiatives
• Environmental preservation and
replanting of mangroves.
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Financing building schools, free clinics,
drinking water facilities, etc.
Alternative sources of income for
fishermen in the off-season
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Oceans of action
The Fiji Island Resort – an
environment friendly tourist
resort of JM Cousteau
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Partnership between a scientific
institute and a local community
First recycling programme on
Savusavu
Organic garden providing vegetables
and fruit for guests
New waste water system
Sustainable fishing
Protecting the Namena Marine
Reserve
Awareness raising activities for
tourists
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Oceans of action
Communities planting mangrove in
Samoa to help mitigate the impacts of
climate change
The benefits for the village:
• Protection of the coast from damage
caused by waves, big tides and
storms
• Breeding ground for fish and crabs,
source of food & income
• Extract from mangrove trees used as
medicine and sarong dye
• Handicrafts done with the shells
collected in the mangrove and sold to
the tourists
• Income provided by ecotourism on
the coast
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Oceans of action
Island stories, a multimedia project to
provide a voice to Small Island States
A co-production of Nausicaa, Mare Nostrum and
World Ocean Network in partnership with AOSIS
To raise awareness of :
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environmental, social and economic challenges that islands face, and which concern us all
the actions implemented by islanders to address their main challenges: climate change,
natural resources management, pollution, safety
solutions that will inspire mainland citizens who will be facing the same challenges tomorrow
Two temporary exhibits in two aquarium facilities
Books, 3D & TV films
Conferences, media events
Educative activities
Communication tools for AOSIS
Interactive activity platforms to allow the public to
exchange with islanders around the world
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Some conditions to succeed
Develop knowledge base:
• Foster pertinent research and innovation
e.g. research on CO2 capture
• Raise public awareness and build capacity
e.g. integration of ocean literacy in school curricula
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Some conditions to succeed
Implement good governance mechanisms:
• Mobilise all relevant stakeholders
e.g. Oceans Day event today,
Sea for Society, a European participatory process to decide which
Research for tomorrow
• Ensure public participation in
decision-making processes
e.g. Youth Parliaments for the
ocean by World Ocean Network,
Sea for Society European
Citizen and Youth mobilisation
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Mobilising Global Ocean Forum & partners
Advisory &
Research
work
Encouraging
individual
commitment
Political
Mobilisation
Standard
bearer
Informing, Educating
& Training
Using events and
experience to
communicate
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TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
A cooperation-based approach bringing together organisations in the Blue
Society Alliance
Advisory and research work
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Advising DG Research/ Sea for Society
Participation in applied research
projects: Nouvelle Vague, COPEFish,
Urban food
Participation in the Campus de la mer
Encouraging individual
commitment
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Political Mobilisation
Mr GoodFish / WON Europe
« Ms CleanWater » / regional
WON
Islands Programme
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Standard
bearer
SeaOrbiter
Global Ocean Forum
GOF – Channel and North Sea approach
Consulting citizens in the decison-making
process/ WON
Youth Parliament / WON
Informing, Educating & Training
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Nausicaa: Extension
Exchange platform for positive initiatives / WON
Training relays: Ocean Academy, Ocean Info Pack
Education programmes SeaOrbiter / WON
Using events & experience to
communicate
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Extension of Nausicaa : communication platform linking WON sites
The World Festival of Underwater Pictures
BS Awards
World Ocean Day / WON
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TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
The ocean is one of the main
solutions to get out of the
global crisis that we currently
live.
Let us not waste this chance,
leaving climate change
destroy it
TOWARDS A BLUE SOCIETY
Oceans
Oceans
Oceans
Oceans
of
of
of
of
opportunities…
new ideas…
partnerships…
actions…
Please join!
Thank you
World Ocean Network
c/o Nausicaá, Centre National de la Mer
Boulevard Sainte Beuve – BP 189 –
62203 Boulogne-sur-Mer Cedex France
Tel.: +33 (0) 3 21 30 99 93 – Fax: +33 (0) 3 21 30 93 94
www.worldoceannetwork.org
info@worldoceannetwork.org