Progress report for
Measure and Report Ocean Acidification - Sustainable Development Goal 14.3.1 Indicator Methodology
Achievement at a glance
In July 2018, the IOC Executive Council at its 51st session endorsed the SDG 14.3.1 Indicator methodology. The IOC Secretariat applied to the IAEG-SDG for an upgrade to Tier II, which was granted in November 2018.Following the upgrade to Tier II, the IOC Secretariat established an online data portal for the submission, collection, validation, storage and sharing of ocean acidification data and metadata submitted towards the SDG 14.3.1 Indicator. This portal, developed together with the International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange Programme (IODE) of IOC-UNESCO, is based on the SDG 14.3.1 Indicator Methodology and facilitates the data submission towards the Indicator. The SDG 14.3.1 Data Portal provides links to download the full text of the SDG 14.3.1 Indicator Methodology, as well as the associated data and metadata templates and the metadata instructions file. The files can be downloaded, completed offline and uploaded to the portal throughout the year. The portal allows users to select how their data can be shared and encourages the submission of open access data which can be accessed by all. Datasets can be searched and downloaded.
As the custodian agency for the SDG 14.3.1 Indicator, IOC-UNESCO is tasked with reporting annually on the Indicator to the United Nations for the UN Secretary General Secretary Progress Report and the Sustainable Development Goals Report. The IOC reports towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals Reports for 2020 and 2021 are based on the datasets received towards the SDG 14.3.1 Indicator through the SDG 14.3.1 Data Portal.
In the last year the number of datasets received has tripled, as a result of sustained outreach, training and an improvement of the communication between national governmental representatives and scientists conducted by the IOC and GOA-ON. It is expected that the numbers of countries contributing will continue to increase.
Challenges faced in implementation
The call for data has also shown that there are many more countries in which relevant data is being collected, but not shared with the global community. Furthermore, in several countries the researchers collecting the data are unaware of the relevant national agencies tasked with submitting this data to the IOC. However, data submitted towards the SDG 14.3.1 Indicator must be validated as national data submission from the Member States of IOC. Therefore, the data should be submitted through a relevant national agency such as a national Oceanographic Data Centre (NODC) or a similar agency officially designated by the country. The submission process requires the data originator to submit their data to the relevant agency, which will then submit the data to the IOC as an official national data submission. Due to the novelty of collecting ocean acidification data on a global scale, the pathways and infrastructure required for this data collection may not always be in place. IOC is working on facilitating the communication between researchers and their national data agencies and will host webinars to inform the NODCs on the data submission process.Together with its partners and representatives from other relevant databases hosting ocean acidification data, IOC is developing a federated system for its SDG 14.3.1 Data Portal to regularly and automatically harvest SDG 14.3.1 relevant data from other databases. This system will facilitate the data collection towards SDG 14.3.1 Indicator and increase the number of Member States reporting towards the Indicator.
Beneficiaries
The scientific community is one of the main beneficiaries of the SDG 14.3.1 Indicator Methodology. The Methodology and its associated data and metadata files provide guidance on how to conduct ocean acidification observation, what to measure and how, providing best practice and methods approved by the scientific ocean acidification community. It further offers support on how to and what kind of data sets to submit to IOC, to ensure the production of quality controlled global and possibly regional products. These observations and data products, in turn, benefit local and regional ocean stakeholders and policy makers by providing detailed information on the rates of change of carbonate chemistry, permitting the development of appropriate mitigation and adaptation strategies.
Actions
IOC-UNESCO and the wider ocean acidification community have taken important steps to strengthen capacities for ocean acidification observations, especially in Africa and in Small Island Developing States. Together with GOA-ON and its partners including The Ocean Foundation, IOC has organised capacity training workshops based around the SDG 14.3.1 Indicator methodology, highlighting sample collection, analysis and data management. Part of this effort includes training with the GOA-ON in a Box kit, a low-cost array of instruments for collection and analysis of seawater samples for ocean acidification. Several of these kits have been distributed in the last years, following hands-on training courses, enabling local communities to measure ocean acidification.IOC continues to support training and capacity building efforts for ocean acidification research in currently under-sampled regions. Together with its partners and wider ocean acidification networks, including GOA-ON, NOAA OAP, IAEA OA-ICC and IOCCP, IOC will disseminate the new OTGA ocean acidification course and, travel permitting, organise and host training exercises for ocean acidification observations and data management in Member States.