oceans

Peter Thomson.
UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

Ocean Conference to see action on sea pollution, fish stock depletion

2 June 2017
General News

Tackling challenges such as marine pollution and dwindling fish stocks will top the global agenda next week when Heads of State, civil society representatives and the private sector convene at UN Headquarters to spur action to improve the state of the world’s oceans.

Audio -
Ms. Lakhan Baptiste (right), with the organization Nature Seekers, gets help measuring a leatherback turtle that has just laid her eggs on Matura Beach. The group has become a model for conservation efforts in the Caribbean region.
UN News/Lulu Gao

FEATURE: UN-backed projects in the Caribbean highlight connection between life on land and life below water

26 May 2017
SDGs

The vital role of the world's oceans in human well-being and development is being highlighted next month as the United Nations hosts a global conference aimed at protecting these resources.

Bleached coral reefs in Zanzibar, Tanzania.
Florencia Soto

Saving the "blue heart" of the planet: the Ocean podcast

8 May 2017
The Lid is On

Sylvia Earle, perhaps the world’s best known woman marine scientist, literally fell head over heels in love with the ocean as a little girl.

Audio -
25'28"
Plastic bottles and garbage waste from a nearby village wash on the shores of a river and then spill into the sea.
UN Photo/Martine Perret

FEATURE: UN’s mission to keep plastics out of oceans and marine life

27 April 2017
SDGs

There will be more plastic than fish in the world’s oceans by 2050 unless people stop using single-use plastic items such as plastic bags and plastic bottles, according to figures cited by the United Nations.

Dr Howard Rosenbaum.
Lucy Dean

Cargo ships hit “hundreds” of whales every year: conservationist

17 February 2017
General News

The number of whales hit by cargo ships annually is “in the hundreds”, according to one expert in the field, taking part in a panel discussion at UN Headquarters on Thursday.

Dr Howard Rosenbaum is the director of the Ocean Giants Program at the Wildlife Conservation Society.

Audio -
Kim Friedman, Senior Fisheries Resources Officer with the Food and Agriculture Organization.
UN News/Matthew Wells

Future food “more likely to be found in oceans than on land”

16 February 2017
General News

If the international community can manage fishing more sustainably, then future food is “more likely to be found in oceans than on land."

Audio -
The future of global food security hinges on the better management and sustainable development of the planet’s oceans and fisheries.
World Bank/Curt Carnemark

Small-scale fisheries are key to “blue growth” of seas and oceans

15 February 2017
General News

Small-scale fisheries account for 90 per cent of all jobs in the industry worldwide and their so-called “blue growth” is essential to make fishing more sustainable.

Audio -
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon speaks at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea's 20th Commemorative ceremony which took place in the Great Banquet Hall in Hamburg's City Hall.
UN Photo/Rick Bajornas

Ban highlights importance of sea tribunal as legal body commemorates its 20th anniversary

7 October 2016
Recalling the renewed focus on seas and oceans, including as illustrated in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today that as the global law of the sea continues to grow in relevance, so does its international tribunal.
Plastic bottles and garbage waste from a village in Timor-Leste wash on the shores of a river and then spill into the sea.
UN Photo/Martine Perret

“Biodegradable” plastics: more harm than help, says new report

18 November 2015
General News

Biodegradable plastics are thought by most to be good for the environment, but the opposite may be true.

Audio -
Andy Winbow, Assistant Secretary-General and Director, Maritime Safety Division, International Maritime Organization (IMO) – on mission in Baha Blanca, Argentina, 2013.
IMO

Celebrating vital role of seafarers, UN officials encourage young people to consider life of 'real adventure'

25 June 2015
On the Day of the Seafarer, the United Nations is issuing a strong call to young people to consider seafaring as a career, including with the UN maritime agency, which could offer them a chance to experience “real adventure” in a workplace that might be a hundred thousand-ton oil tanker or a cargo ship navigating the world's oceans with beautiful landscapes and also a stimulating job in a truly hi-tech environment.