The Ocean Business Community: Essential Partner in Ocean Sustainable Development
Tue 14 Feb 2017, 12.15 pm — Wed 03 Feb 2021, 1.30 pm
Background
World Ocean Council (WOC), International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), UN Global Compact (UN GC)
The global Ocean is the location of a wide range of existing and potential commercial activities, including shipping, fisheries, aquaculture, offshore oil and gas, offshore renewable energy, tourism, submarine cable, seabed mining, and many other uses. Ocean sustainable development and achieving the SDGs requires active engagement of the companies using ocean space and resources now and in the future.
It is thus essential that efforts to implement SDG 14 work with those who are actually undertaking the economic activities in the ocean. Many companies are making significant efforts to understand and address sustainable development. Cross-sectoral leadership and collaboration are needed to ensure that efforts by individual companies and sectors achieve the synergies and scale necessary to address these challenges for the ocean overall.
This side event will bring together the following panel:
- World Ocean Council - Paul Holthus, Founding President and CEO
- International Chamber of Commerce - Louise Kantrow, Permanent Representative to the UN
- Global Compact - Lise Kingo, Executive Director (or designated representative)
These industry organization representatives will:
- Outline the critical role of private sector leadership and collaboration re SDG 14.
- Provide examples of industry efforts to address SDG 14.
- Offer industry perspectives on the road ahead for successful SDG 14 implementation.
- Respond to questions from the side event participants.
The side event will:
- Discuss the role of WOC, ICC, UNGC and the ocean business community in the 15-16 February preparatory meeting for the June Ocean Conference.
- Develop the plans for business community input to the June Ocean Conference program preparation, e.g. identifying topics, speakers, etc.
- Begin to develop the business community objectives and outputs from the June Ocean Conference.
- Contribute to the long term engagement of the ocean business community in implementing SDG 14 up through 2030 (and beyond).
- Outline the review and analysis of the SDGs in relation to ocean industries undertaken by WOC.
- Describe the ongoing WOC process to develop SDG targets and indicators with and for the ocean business community.
- Introduce the WOC-led process for developing an Ocean SDG Commitment as a pledge for companies to sign on to in 2017.