Highlights and images for 5 June 2017

Summary

The Ocean Conference opened on Monday, 5 June 2017. Plenary addressed organizational matters and heard statements from high-level Member State representatives and UN officials. In the afternoon, a partnership dialogue focused on addressing marine pollution.

Plenary elected Josaia Voreqe (Frank) Bainimarama, Prime Minister of Fiji, and Isabella Lövin, Minister for International Development Cooperation and Climate and Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden, as Conference Co-Presidents.

Recalling the borderless nature of the ocean, Co-President Isabella Lövin expressed hope for the conference to be the “game changer” the ocean needs. Co-President Frank Bainimarama highlighted the threats of climate change and ocean litter, noting that greedy nations and commercial interests threaten livelihoods in small island developing states.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres pointed towards ways SDG 14 (Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development) serves as a roadmap towards a clean ocean, including: ending the dichotomy between economic activities and ocean health; building strong partnerships and political leadership based on the existing legal framework, such as on MPAs and fisheries management; making new funding commitments; deepening our knowledge base; and sharing best practices. General Assembly President Peter Thomson (Fiji) considered the UN Ocean Conference the “best opportunity we will ever have to reverse the cycle of decline in which human activities have put the ocean.”

In the afternoon, a partnership dialogue on addressing marine pollution shared perspectives on challenges and solutions on marine litter, including addressing land-based pollution and reducing plastics and microplastics production and consumption.

IISD Reporting Services, through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) Meeting Coverage, has provided daily reports and daily web coverage, and has provided a summary and analysis report in HTML and PDF.

Photos by IISD/ENB | Mike Muzurakis
For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page

Plenary Session

Peter Thomson, President of the General Assembly of the United Nations, Fiji

Frederick Makamure Shava, President of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Zimbabwe

From L-R: António Guterres, UN Secretary-General; Prime Minister Josaia Voreqe (Frank) Bainimarama, Fiji; and Isabella Lövin, Minister for International Development Cooperation and Climate and Deputy Prime Minister, Sweden

President Evo Morales, Bolivia

President Ali Bongo Ondimba, Gabon

President Peter Christian, Federated States of Micronesia

President Baron Divavesi Waqa, Nauru

President Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe

Prime Minister Enele Sosene Sopoaga, Tuvalu

Prime Minister Henry Puna, Cook Islands

Mohamed Shainee, Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture, Maldives

President Tommy Esang Remengesau, Palau

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sri Lanka

Partnership Dialogue 1: Addressing Marine Pollution

Co-Chair Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs, Indonesia

Didier Reynders, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Belgium

Grete Faremo, United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS)

Nancy Wallace, US Department of Commerce

Adrian Grenier, newly appointed UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador

View of the dais during the Partnership Dialogue

Elliott Harris, UN Environment

Co-Chair Vidar Helgesen, Minister of Climate and Environment, Norway

Kosi Latu, Director-General, Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP)

Kamina Johnson-Smith, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Jamaica

Habib N. El-Habr, UN Environment (UNEP)

Sybil Seitzinger, University of Victoria, Canada

Peter Kershaw, Chair, Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environment (GESAMP)

Mohamed Shainee, Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture, Maldives

Marko Pomerants, Minister of Environment, Estonia

Isabel Cecilia de Saint Malo García de Alvarado, Vice President and Foreign Minister, Panama

Cultural Opening