Advancing Multi-stakeholder and Intergenerational Initiatives for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of the Ocean
The International Coastal and Ocean Organization, doing business as the Global Ocean Forum, launched a Voluntary Ocean Commitment in March 2025 to accelerate and contribute to the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG14) in collaboration with the Interamerican Association for Environmental Defense, Monmouth University-Urban Coast Institute, Nausicaá National Sea Centre, Instytut Oceanologii Polskiej Akademii Nauk, Today We Have, EurOcean, EMBRC-BE Marine Training Unit of the Universiteit Gent, and the World Ocean Network. The Ocean Commitment, Advancing Multi-stakeholder and Intergenerational Initiatives for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of the Ocean, was developed in response to a call for action to mobilize stakeholders in support of the overarching theme of the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3): Accelerating action and mobilizing all actors to conserve and sustainably use the ocean.
Joining over 2000 Ocean Commitments developed for UNOC3, this collaborative effort aims to advance the conservation and sustainable use of the ocean in line with SDG 14 and emphasizes that implementation of the BBNJ Agreement is a necessity. Critically, implementation of the BBNJ Agreement will foster cross-sectoral initiatives among a diverse and intergenerational range of stakeholders that underscore the ocean’s crucial role in addressing the climate, biodiversity and pollution crises, leaving no community behind.
Collaborating partners will leverage their respective comparative advantages to carry out the following actions by the end of 2027:
- Promote ocean-climate-biodiversity action through public outreach, multi-stakeholder dialogues, capacity building, and monitoring and assessment of progress;
- Contribute to the entry into force of the BBNJ Agreement and its effective and equitable implementation, by raising awareness of its benefits on a regional and global scale, and strengthening capacities and coordination in developing countries, specifically in Latin America;
- Develop leadership and advocacy skills of youth aged 18-30 to address ocean-related challenges, such as climate change, pollution, biodiversity loss, and ABNJ governance, and become informed, proactive and solution-oriented leaders; and
- Conduct various research and community engagement initiatives in the US Mid-Atlantic region with a focus on sustainable ocean planning and urban seas, including planning for sustainable ocean economies, supporting adaptation and resilient coastal communities, and stewardship of coastal and ocean ecosystems.
For more information on the progress of this initiative, visit the Partnerships for SDGs online platform maintained by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Sustainable Development.