An event co-organised with IASS Postdam and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
The Marine Regions Forum is a unique dialogue platform that:
- engages a broad range of stakeholders groups from non-governmental organisations and industry (such as fisheries, environment, tourism, shipping, energy and oil), to scientists and decision-makers;
- focuses explicitly at the regional level and aims to strengthen regional ocean governance;
- facilitates the joint development of new scalable solutions to current ocean sustainability challenges;
- is a knowledge-driven conference developed by independent research institutes and think-tanks together with a broad network of experts and in dialogue with decision-makers and civil society; and provides a space outside of formal governance arrangements where stakeholders engage in discussion as individual experts and where different types of knowledge can be brought together on an equal footing.
The Marine Regions Forum will take place for the first time from September, 30 – October, 02 2019 in Berlin, Germany. The overarching theme of the conference is “Achieving a healthy ocean – Regional ocean governance beyond 2020”.
The conference provides a unique space for decision-makers, scientists and civil-society actors from the world’s different marine regions to discuss and showcase impactful collaborative solutions for ocean health.
The purpose is to develop clear recommendations, catalyse actionable outputs, and build partnerships for stronger regional ocean governance in support of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, especially Sustainable Development Goal 14 “Life Below Water”.
The initiative goes back to commitments by Germany and the European Union made 2017 at the UN Ocean Conference in New York and the Our Ocean Conference in Malta respectively, announcing their support in establishing a multi-stakeholder platform for regional ocean governance. The Marine Regions Forum is a contribution to the Partnership for Regional Ocean Governance (PROG), a collaborative initiative between scientific institutions and UN Environment.
