The Second World Ocean Assessment

Abstract

The past year has presented unprecedented challenges. The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has disrupted lives and livelihoods and exposed our societies' fragility. Sadly, the pandemic is not the only crisis that humanity faces. Climate change and biodiversity loss continue unabated, threatening sustainable development and our viability as a species. These challenges are particularly evident when we look at the state of our planet's life support system, the ocean.In 2015, the first World Ocean Assessment warned that many areas of the ocean had been seriously degraded, the greatest threat to the ocean being the failure to deal with the many pressures caused by human activities. The message in the second World Ocean Assessment is that the situation has not improved, with the many benefits that the ocean provides at risk. The Assessment advises that, to ensure sustainability, we must work together to improve integrated ocean management, including through joint research, capacity development and the sharing of data, information and technology.The ocean plays a crucial role in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and the livelihoods of billions of people. We urgently need to change how we interact with it. The forthcoming United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development and the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration provide opportunities for us to understand more and to reverse the damage that has already been done. The information in the second Assessment can assist in this process, as well as inform relevant intergovernmental conferences scheduled for 2021.I urge leaders and all stakeholders to heed the warnings in the Assessment as we work to conserve and sustainably manage our planet's marine environment. Let us foster not only a green but also a blue recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.