UNESCO - 1, rue Miollis - 75732 Paris cedex 15, France http://ioc-unesco.org - fax: +33 (0)1 45 68 58 12 - contact phone: +33 (0)1 45 68 39 83/84 E-mail: w.watson-wright@unesco.org
June 2, 2014 Viktor Sebek President and CEO/Presidente y Director Ejecutivo Ocean Security International Suite 2001 Edificio Cartagena de Indias Calle 13 No.1-25 Subject: Congratulations to OSI on its inaugural conference: Protecting the Oceans: A South - South Dialogue on Innovative Strategies and Good Practices to Address the Impacts of Climate Change The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO welcomes the objective of this Ocean Security International conference focusing on ocean and coastal sustainability in a changing climate. Climate change and variability and their impacts on sea level rise, ocean warming and stratification, coupled with increased vulnerability to natural hazards, expose coastal areas to increased risk, and increasingly threaten biodiversity and ocean ecosystem services. Sea-level rise from climate change is projected not only to expose coastal areas to increased risks, including coastal erosion and flooding, but also to cause loss of habitat and livelihoods for people. While today climate change adaptation has become a global priority, impacts and responses will occur at the local level. A focus on communities is therefore imperative so as to ensure that adaptation aligns with local priorities, is based on community-based observations, and uses synergies between science and traditional knowledge as a springboard for addressing emerging challenges. The exposure of more people to the risks of natural hazards continues to increase as a result of population growth, unplanned or poorly planned urbanization, alteration of the natural environment, substandard dwellings and public buildings, and inadequate infrastructure maintenance. Knowledge concerning global climate change and natural hazards must be enhanced, particularly to fill gaps in the knowledge required by policy-makers to protect people, livelihoods and ecosystems. Chairperson
Vice-Chairpersons
Dr Sang-Kyung BYUN Principal Research Scientist Climate Change & Coastal Disaster Research Dept. Korea Ocean Research & Development Institute Ansan, P.O. Box 29, 425-600 Seoul REPUBLIC OF KOREA
Prof. Peter M. HAUGAN Director, Geophysical Institute University of Bergen Allegaten 70 5007 Bergen NORWAY
Executive Secretary Dr Wendy WATSON-WRIGHT Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission — UNESCO 7, Place de Fontenoy 75oo7 Paris FRANCE
Dr Atanas PALAZOV Director, Institute of Oceanology – Varna Bulgarian Academy of Sciences P.O. Box 152 Varna 9000 BULGARIA
Capt. Frederico Antonio SARAIVA NOGUEIRA Directorate of Hydrography and Navigation Rue Barão de Jaceguai, s/n° Ponta da Armação Niterói, Rio de Janeiro CEP 24.048.900 BRAZIL Prof. Yutaka MICHIDA University of Tokyo Member of National Committee for IOC Kashinoha 5-1-5 Kashiwa 277-8564 Chiba JAPAN
Prof. Adoté Blim BLIVI Chef de Recherche Head of CGILE Ministère de l’Enseignement Supérieur et de la Recherche University of Lomé, B.P. 1515 Lomé 228 TOGO
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This should include enhancement of local capacity for risk assessment; education; public awareness; and communication for disaster preparedness and climate change adaptation and mitigation. This is an area where the objectives of both OSI and IOC/UNESCO converge. Actions should stimulate and expand interdisciplinary and intersectoral partnerships, including networks on risk reduction and adaptation at the local, regional and international level. Building the resilience of vulnerable communities, while reinforcing local response strategies rooted in traditional knowledge, is essential for climate change adaptation and will also serve for disaster preparedness. The OSI initiative is to be applauded, since it includes those elements and is based on public, private and civil society sectors’ strong south-south cooperation. At the international level, the IOC has since 1960 been promoting international cooperation and coordinating programmes to improve sustainable management, protect the marine environment, and enhance the knowledge base on climate change, as well as to ensure solid science-policy-society interfaces for informed policy-making. In addition to pursuing its mandate, IOC will work to ensure that the ocean is included in the forthcoming climate negotiations, in particular COP-20 in Lima and COP-21 in Paris next year, in full cooperation with its UN and non-UN partners. Sincerely,
Wendy Watson-Wright Executive Secretary