One Ocean Week in Bergen is now one of the activities around the world that will help to improve the situation in the ocean by 2030.
In 2021, the UN and UNESCO launched the Decade of Ocean Science 2021-2030 - a ten-year plan to strengthen international collaboration on research and innovation to improve the state of the ocean. One Ocean Week in Bergen has now been recognized as part of the UN Ocean Decade.
Global visibility
The Year of the Ocean brings together actors around the world who have documented that they are working for a more sustainable ocean. The status means, among other things, that information about One Ocean Week will be available on UNESCO's official pages for the Year of the Ocean www.oceandecade.org and promoted in their channels.
This will thus be a step in the right direction towards achieving One Ocean's ambition of becoming an annual international meeting point for the ocean.
"A clean and fresh ocean is one of the most important prerequisites for achieving the climate goals. Bergen is a world leader in ocean industries and ocean research. This is the best possible starting point for working on the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. One Ocean Week is set to become the meeting place we need for the ocean we want. Collaboration to achieve the goals is crucial. Bergen is where it happens," says the governing mayor Christine Meyer.
All the prerequisites for success
Jon Askeland, county mayor and chair of the One Ocean, Bergen, Norway steering group, is also clear that Western Norway has a crucial role to play in sustainable ocean management.
"Western Norway has everything it takes to succeed. A sustainable coastal community can continue to create the jobs of the future in the green shift. All 43 municipalities in our region are connected to the coast, fjords, sea and water. The ocean will play a crucial role globally, nationally and regionally. The ocean needs knowledge-based management. It's about creating solutions for the future's main source of everything from food to energy. If we don't do it, who will? If Vestland succeeds, Norway succeeds," says county mayor Jon Askeland.
You can read more about United Nations Ocean Decade on the Institute of Marine Research's website.
