UK National Decade Committee Workshop: “The next five years: UK science-policy dialogue for the UN Ocean Decade”

Monday 10 March 2025

Location: London

Monday 10 March 2025, London

The UK National Decade Committee are holding the workshop: “The next five years: UK science-policy dialogue for the UN Ocean Decade”, with several PML representatives taking part.

PML’s Head of the International Office Professor Matt Frost is Chair of the UK National Decade Committee, and in this role will play a key role in the agenda of the day.  PML’s Professor Helen Findlay will be presenting on the UN Ocean Decade-endorsed Ocean Acidification Research for Sustainability Programme, with PML’s Professor of Deep Sea Ecology Kerry Howell and new PML Visiting Fellow Elvira Poloczanska also taking part.

PML is playing an active role in this global effort through co-chairing and participation in multiple Ocean Decade endorsed Programmes, Projects, Activities and related Committees and contributed to the development of the UN Ocean Decade in the early days.

Workshop description:

The UK’s vision is for an ocean that is effectively governed, clean, healthy, safe, productive and biologically diverse, supporting resilient coastal communities and sustainable economic growth. The UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) is a unique opportunity to achieve this through its vision of delivering “the science we need for the ocean we want” and the UK ocean science community has actively engaged and supported it.

We are now at the midpoint of the UN Ocean Decade, and significant work remains to be done to meet the UK and UN Ocean Decade’s 2030 vision for the ocean. This juncture provides an opportunity to take stock of UK engagement with the Decade and explore the UK’s ocean science and policy priorities for the next five years.

Event Aims

• Showcase examples of UK projects and initiatives related to the Ocean Decade
• Highlight where UK engagement in the Decade supports and informs domestic and international policy
• Connect and discuss new policy directions and science priorities to seek broad agreement on the UK focus for the rest of the Decade
• Promote collaboration, networking and opportunities for co-design of future initiatives and development of the Ocean Decade’s legacy for the UK