Ocean Rights
Racing towards a Universal Declaration of Ocean Rights.
UPCOMING PAST EVENTS OCEAN RIGHTS GENOVA PROCESS ONE BLUE VOICE
We believe a healthy ocean starts with recognising ocean rights - valuing our marine world not just for the services that it provides us, but because the ocean has a right to thrive.
Below is a catalogue of upcoming and past events in our race towards recognising ocean rights.
| UPCOMING EVENTS |
Genova Process workshops are upcoming. Read more about the Genova Process.
| PAST EVENTS |
June 30, UN Ocean Lisbon Side Event:
‘Towards a Universal Declaration of Ocean Rights’
How can action to recognise and protect the intrinsic value of the ocean in law be accelerated?
Prime Minister of Cape Verde Ulisses Correia de Silva, former President of the Republic of Seychelles Danny Faure, Race Chairman of The Ocean Race Richard Brisius, Head of IUCN’s Marine and Polar team Minna Epps and Callie Veelenturf from the Earth Law Centre will address this question. Read the article.
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26th June 2022: #2 Genova Process
Our second Genova Process workshop, convenes in Lisbon ahead of the UN Ocean Conference, with experts in ocean governance and nature's rights to further develop the principles of ocean rights.
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1st June 2022: The Ocean Race Summit Stockholm
Alongside the Stockholm +50 conference, we brought together leading voices to call for ocean rights to protect Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Watch the highlights.
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31st March 2022: Genova Process commences
The Ocean Race has kicked off a series of workshops to drive the ambitious goal of giving the ocean a voice. Ahead of the event in Italy, the Seychelles, Panama and city of Genova all committed to supporting ocean rights. Read the article.
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25th March 2022: Monaco Ocean Week
This workshop examined the merit of giving the ocean a voice and making it an international legal entity, addressing questions like: Could ocean rights help to shift perception of our one ocean from a resource to use and exploit to a vital, complex, system that fuels all life on Earth? And could a Universal Declaration of Ocean Rights, which sets out a comprehensive way of effectively governing the ocean, ensure it is properly protected? Read the article.
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21st March 2022: The Ocean Race Summits Seychelles
The Ocean Race Summit Seychelles called on world to unite to protect the ocean The event featured Wavel Ramkalawan, President of the Republic of the Seychelles; Patricia Scotland, Commonwealth Secretary General; and Mia Amor Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados. Read the article.
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19th June 2021: The Ocean Race Europe
Global voices call for urgent change to our relationship with our blue planet at The Ocean Race Summit Europe. Read the article.
| ABOUT OCEAN RIGHTS |
What are ocean rights and why are we campaigning for them?
From climate change and pollution to industrial overfishing, the crises affecting the ocean have no boundaries. Though the problems are universal, the planet's approach to tackling them is not, We are lacking an overarching approach to protecting the seas. Added to this, the vast amount of the marine environment is beyond national jurisdiction, leaving it, to a large extent, unregulated and vulnerable to exploitation, creating a recipe for disaster for the ocean.
Action is urgently needed to not just protect the seas, but to restore them. We believe it starts with the recognition of ocean rights. Valuing our marine world, not just for the services that it provides to us, but because the ocean has a right to thrive, is absolutely crucial. Just as we have one ocean, we need one overarching framework to protect it.
A global approach to protecting the marine environment would help to shift perception of how we treat it, from a resource to use and exploit, to a vital, complex, system that fuels all life on the planet.
| GENOVA PROCESS |
There are different ways that this could be achieved. One route is the creation of a Universal Declaration of Ocean Rights, which would set out a comprehensive way of effectively governing the ocean to ensure it is properly protected.
Our goal is to drive a Declaration that would be in place by 2030.
The Ocean Race is exploring ocean rights and gathering support with high-level audiences, including governments across the world. A core team of experts are creating draft principles for a potential Declaration, which will be shared with United Nations General Assembly in September 2023.
Read more about the Genova Process.
| ONE BLUE VOICE |
One Blue Voice is our campaign to drive public support of the ambitious goal for a Universal Declaration of Ocean Rights, by asking the public to sign an online petition that will be presented in collaboration with the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September 2023. See One Blue Voice.