Barcelona will host this year the UN Ocean Decade Conference, an event that will bring together the Decade community and partners to celebrate achievements and set joint priorities for the future. The Conference will take place from 10 to 12 April 2024 and is organised by UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, the Government of Catalonia and Barcelona City Council, through the Barcelona Nautical Capital Foundation, and the Spanish National Committee for the Decade of the Ocean, led by the Ministry of Science and Innovation through the CSIC. A few days ago, the website of the international meeting made the programme available to everyone. In addition, as part of the event, there will be dozens of cultural activities open to the public all over Barcelona.

The conference programme features plenary sessions, networking spaces and four sessions with the collaboration of all kinds of personalities from the scientific and institutional world, among others. The first session will be Science and Solutions for a Clean, Healthy and Resilient Ocean, a space where solutions and actions for the health of the oceans will be presented.

The second day will feature Science and Solutions for a Sustainable and Resilient Ocean Economy, a session on the economics of achieving ocean sustainability. This will be followed by Science and Solutions for a Safe and Predicted Ocean, an event on ocean safety.

Finally, the last day will conclude with the plenary An Inspiring and Engaging Ocean for All. Before and after the main conference, a series of related high-level national and international events, as well as side events, exhibitions and networking events relevant to the conference themes will take place.

Vladimir Ryabinin, Executive Secretary of UNESCO-IOC, has stressed the importance of the Conference as an opportunity for actors from around the world to collectively reflect on the use of science and knowledge for sustainable ocean management and pave the way for the future of the Decade.

The event will provide a unique opportunity for governments, leaders, maritime sectors, philanthropists, universities, the private sector, NGOs and other stakeholders to reflect on the achievements of the first three years of the Ocean Decade and define a vision for the future, with the aim of generating the knowledge needed to find science-based solutions to global challenges such as climate change, food security, biodiversity conservation, sustainable ocean economy, pollution and natural hazards.

On the other hand, during the same days, the city will host several cultural activities open to the public. A rich range of exhibitions, film screenings and immersive experiences spread across the spaces of the CCIB and associated sites throughout Barcelona.

About the Ocean Decade

In 2017, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the United Nations Decade of Ocean Sciences for Sustainable Development (2021-2030), also known as the Ocean Decade. This initiative aims to advance ocean science and knowledge generation to reverse the deterioration of the ocean system and promote opportunities for sustainable development in this vast marine ecosystem. The vision of the Ocean Decade is “the science we need for the ocean we want”. Through a convening framework, scientists and stakeholders from diverse sectors can develop the scientific knowledge and partnerships needed to accelerate and leverage advances in ocean science to better understand the ocean system and deliver science-based solutions to achieve the goals of the 2030 Agenda.