Join us for Source-to-Sea synergies at the Ocean Decade Conference
Leading up to the UN Ocean Conference in 2025, our interdisciplinary event “Catalyzing Source-to-Sea Synergies towards Healthy Rivers and a Healthy Ocean” at the Ocean Decade Conference links science and source-to-sea action across freshwater and ocean communities.
The ocean faces significant risks from upstream and land-based actions; addressing the interlinked impacts is hindered by fragmented governance and isolated actions. Source-to-sea management bridges gaps in governance of various environments by fostering collaboration among stakeholders from land to the ocean. By working together, we can effectively manage ecosystems’ health and enhance societal resilience.
SIWI is excited to join the Ocean Decade Conference, where our team will work closely with both ocean and freshwater communities to close the gap, cultivate knowledge, and move from science to action for a healthy ocean. By focusing on our scientific understanding of source-to-sea linkages, we put the spotlight on barriers hindering knowledge development, cross-sectoral policymaking, and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“A healthy ocean depends on healthy rivers – the ocean is suffering from the impact of land-based activities,” says Gustav Thungren, Programme Manager, Water Cooperation & Diplomacy, SIWI. “Nutrients, plastic, and chemical pollution from terrestrial areas lead to degraded ecosystems, affecting the blue economy. Greenhouse gases lead to acidification and undermine the ability for the ocean to mitigate climate change through carbon sequestration. To receive all the benefits of a healthy ocean we need to generate interlinked knowledge and build bridges across scientific and practitioner communities to tackle the challenges holistically.”
“To receive all the benefits of a healthy ocean we need to generate interlinked knowledge and build bridges across scientific and practitioner communities to tackle the challenges holistically.”
The session, Catalyzing Source-to-Sea Synergies towards Healthy Rivers and a Healthy Ocean, will host a variety of scientists and practitioners from different contexts who will share their lessons learned from working with a range of stakeholders, across the silos that separate terrestrial, freshwater, coastal and ocean actors, and hone in on coordinated actions that benefit the entire source-to-sea system.
The session draws from two endorsed programmes of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. These programmes focus on the interdependencies between the freshwater and ocean systems, through the Healthy Rivers Healthy Ocean Programme, and on advancing the science of ocean acidification, through the Ocean Acidification Research for Sustainability Programme. Additionally, the findings and outcomes from the session will be effectively disseminated through the Action Platform for Source-to-Sea Management (S2S Platform), a network of over 45 organizations dedicated to promoting, implementing, and building expertise on source-to-sea management. Through this collaborative network, the valuable insights gained from the session will reach a broader audience, fostering greater awareness and collective action toward holistic approaches for managing the entire source-to-sea system.
Join the session
As part of the Ocean Decade Conference, this satellite event aims to bring together freshwater and ocean communities to develop knowledge, build expertise and promote implementation of source-to-sea action.
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