Ocean sustainability requires an Action Plan in response to ocean change

IMBeR Action Plan for the Ocean Team
September 2022

The oceans are changing, affecting human communities across the world. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions to limit future warming is an immediate priority but we also know that decarbonisation will not be sufficiently rapid to limit warming to less than 1.5C. No matter what we do now, further major and potentially rapid changes to ocean ecosystems are inevitable over the coming decades. Planning and preparing now for those changes is a priority.
The United Nations Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Portugal in June 2002 demonstrated a high-level of international political and public recognition of the threats to the ocean. The need for action to address these threats has also been emphasized, as has the crucial importance of improving understanding of the ocean.
An extensive range of important international activities studying the ocean have been initiated under the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. There are several excellent science projects analysing the impacts of change and programs developing potential policy responses. A systematic approach is also required to develop and coordinate activity from local to global scales.

Developing an Action Plan for the Ocean

Recent years have seen the generation of extensive international assessments of ocean change and future risks. IMBeR Scientists have proposed the development of an Action Plan for the Ocean to respond to these changes and risks.

This will involve a risk-based approach with three major components:

(1) assess and rank risks,
(2) identify options for action, and
(3) develop action plans for adaptation at local, regional and global scales to respond to future change.