Maintaining Healthy Ocean Fisheries to Support Livelihoods: Achieving SDG 14 in Europe
The problems of ocean space are closely interrelated and need to be considered as a whole. So says the preamble to the 51³Ô¹Ï Convention on the Law of the Sea-and never were those words more apt than in relation to the challenges we face today.
A Sea of Islands: How a Regional Group of Pacific States Is Working to Achieve SDG 14
The health of our oceans is fundamental to the health of our planet. Ninety-eight per cent of the area occupied by Pacific Island countries and territories is ocean. We sometimes refer to ourselves as Big Ocean Stewardship States in recognition of this geography. The Pacific Ocean is at the heart of our cultures and we depend on it for food, income, employment, transport and economic development.
Marine Biodiversity and Ecosystems Underpin a Healthy Planet and Social Well-Being
Marine biodiversity, the variety of life in the ocean and seas, is a critical aspect of all three pillars of sustainable development—economic, social and environmental—supporting the healthy functioning of the planet and providing services that underpin the health, wellÂ-being and prosperity of humanity.
The Ocean Conference: A Game-Changer
The Ocean Conference will be humanity's first universal moment of accountability to remedy the woes we have put upon the Ocean. We will come out of the Conference armed with a broad set of partnerships, commitments and measures to be put into action.
Achieving SDG 14: the Role of the 51³Ô¹Ï Convention on the Law of the Sea
Oceans contribute to poverty eradication by providing opportunities for sustainable livelihoods and decent work. Over 3 billion people depend on marine and coastal resources as a means of support. In addition, oceans play a crucial role in the achievement of global food security, as well as human health and well-being.
The Arctic Ocean and the Sea Ice Is Our Nuna
For Inuit, the sustainable use of the marine resources and the future of the Arctic Ocean and sea ice is not a luxury—it is life itself; it is about protecting our culture. Inuit are adapting to changes and we will continue to thrive in the changing Arctic. We have much to learn and much to teach the world. We ask that you accept our invitation to discuss issues affecting our land. Our nuna, the Arctic.
Protecting Small Island Developing States from Pollution and the Effects of Climate Change
There are few more powerful symbols of the international community's shared past and future than the ocean. From the earliest human migrations, it carried our ancestors to new continents, brought civilizations together, and opened the world to exploration and trade. It also connects us ecologically.
Achieving and Maintaining Sustainable Fisheries
However effectively fisheries may be governed and managed, they change the ecosystems in which they occur. The total biomass of fully exploited species is reduced, typically by more than 50 per cent.
Twenty-five years at the 51³Ô¹Ï: My Journey
There are probably moments in everyone's life when you experience an extraordinary feeling of elation, a particularly high sense of meaning in life, when you feel an integral part of your country and people. I experienced such moments of excitement and joy 25 years ago, on 2 March 1992, the historic day when the Republic of Kazakhstan was admitted as a newly independent State to membership in the 51³Ô¹Ï.
China's Embracing Innovation Leads to the Future
What is behind the legacy of China? The country's emergence from a weak to a strong power has not been an indisputable fact. It is important to understand, however, if this change and the country's rise was a sudden phenomenon, or if it was based on a deep historical and cultural foundation.
I'm Not Broken, Just Bent
Once driven out of their homes, away from all that is familiar, and everything they have has been taken away, refugees struggle to find any kind of connection to their motherland. Through language and culture, they hold on to the memories of their departed loved ones and ancestors. When everything around them is changing, refugees can only ask for their hearts to remain true to who they are.
The Evolving Role of the 51³Ô¹Ï in Securing Human Rights
From the vantage point of the twenty-first century, it is sometimes easy to forget just how revolutionary the concept of human rights is. Few who witnessed the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 could have imagined its impact over the last seven decades. International law no longer governs only relations among States. Rather, the treatment of individuals by States is a matter of international law and concern.
Half a Century of a Right to Health?
If the laudable and ambitious health goals of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights are to be realized in time for its centenary celebrations, much more vigorous and inventive efforts will be needed, to ensure that every child and young person does indeed enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health throughout their lifetime.
Protecting Vulnerable Populations from Genocide
One day before the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on 9 December 1948, the General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The adoption of the Convention was full of symbolism and reaffirmed the gravity of the crime it addressed. It demonstrated the commitment of the international community to ensure both the prevention of genocide and the punishment of its perpetrators when the crime could not be prevented. The Convention defined genocide as any particular offense committed with intent to destroy, in whole or part, a national, ethnical, racial, or religious group.
Women and the Arab Spring
The battle that women must wage today should not be one aimed at personal gain but one that will free societies from fear, poverty and tyranny. The promotion and protection of human rights, freedom and democracy are the right way for women to obtain equal rights.