The EU Ocean Pact is here! Why should the Atlantic community be ready for the future steps?

The European Commission adopted the European Ocean Pact, a bold initiative to secure the health, resilience, and productivity of the ocean and seas while advancing a sustainable blue economy and fostering marine research and innovation across Europe and beyond. The AIR Centre welcomes and fully supports this landmark effort, highlighting its pivotal role in advancing the Pact’s ambitions through international research, cross-sectoral collaboration, and science diplomacy. The Ocean Pact comes at a critical time as our oceans face mounting threats from overfishing, intensive fishing practices, pollution, and the impacts of climate change. Recent consultations, including a call for evidence that gathered input from stakeholders, experts, and citizens across the EU, have highlighted the need for decisive action and binding commitments. The European Ocean Pact aims to establish the EU as a global leader in ocean governance by promoting an integrated and holistic approach to marine policy. The Pact sets out a comprehensive agenda to:

Maintain healthy, resilient, and productive oceans by strengthening marine protection efforts.
Promote a sustainable and competitive blue economy, supporting innovation in fisheries, aquaculture, and coastal industries.
Advance marine knowledge, research, and innovation to inform policy and investment decisions.

What can the Atlantic community expect from the EU Ocean Pact? Integrated Ocean Governance: The Pact seeks to harmonise ocean-related policies across sectors, ensuring coherence in marine conservation efforts and sustainable economic activities, including a review of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive. The Pact also promotes the establishment of an International Platform for Ocean Sustainability. This integrated approach is expected to benefit Atlantic countries by providing an integrated framework for ocean management. The Commission will continue to support initiatives that foster greater scientific cooperation, such as the All-Atlantic Ocean Research and Innovation Alliance (AAORIA). Competitive and Sustainable Blue Economy: By promoting a competitive and sustainable blue economy, the Pact supports sectors such as fisheries, aquaculture, and maritime transport, expecting to benefit Atlantic bordering countries. This includes fostering innovation and investment in sustainable practices (e.g. supporting a tailor-made regional strategy on fisheries). Enhanced Marine Knowledge and Innovation: In this topic, the European Ocean R&I Strategy will be a flagship action for global leadership. The Ocean Pact emphasises the development of comprehensive marine knowledge systems, research, and innovation. The Atlantic community can expect increased support for scientific research and data sharing, facilitating informed decision-making and effective ocean management. Climate Resilience and Biodiversity Conservation: The Pact aims to maintain healthy, resilient, and productive oceans. For Atlantic countries, this translates to strengthened efforts in preserving marine biodiversity and enhancing the resilience of coastal communities against climate change impacts. An updated strategy for EU outermost regions will be developed, with a focus on blue economy and small-scale fisheries, which are key blue growth topics for the Atlantic outermost regions of Madeira, the Azores, the Canary Islands and French Guiana, as well as for Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Saint-Martin in the Caribbean. Alignment with Global Commitments: The European Ocean Pact is designed to complement international efforts, such as the UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 and many other interlinked ones, by fostering global collaboration in ocean conservation. This alignment ensures that Atlantic countries are part of a broader, coordinated response to ocean-related challenges. What makes the Ocean Pact important for the AIR Centre Network? AIR Centre Executive Director, Miguel Miranda, stated: “The EU Ocean Pact is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to unite countries, scientists, and communities behind the common goal of healthy and productive oceans. The AIR Centre is proud to contribute to this vision by fostering international collaboration, advancing marine knowledge, and supporting the just transition to a sustainable blue economy.” As a leading organisation for transatlantic marine research cooperation, the Atlantic International Research Centre (AIR Centre) has been instrumental in supporting the EU’s and the international vision for integrated ocean observing, governance and sustainable management. Through the coordination of EU Mission Ocean Atlantic & Arctic Lighthouse (BlueMissionAA), the support to the All-Atlantic Ocean Research and Innovation Alliance (AAORIA), the support to the GEO BON MBON (Marine Biodiversity Observation Network) Executive Secretariat, the Atlantic Cloud as a transatlantic computation network, the efforts towards an Atlantic Aquaculture community, the capacity building in Earth Observation for ocean monitoring and governance, and its extensive network of partners in Europe, Africa, and the Americas, the AIR Centre:

Facilitates joint research and innovation projects that address climate change, earth observation, marine biodiversity, coastal protection, marine ecosystems restoration, and ocean health.
Enhances ocean observation capabilities, the sharing of marine data, and forecasting capacities vital to informed policy and sustainable development.
Promotes science diplomacy and stakeholder engagement, ensuring that research outcomes translate into actionable policy and concrete actions for resilient coastal communities and ecosystems.

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