On 18 November 2015, European leaders in marine and maritime research, governance and business have met in the European Parliament in Brussels, together with young citizens, to collaborate in building a Blue Society that prioritises a collective and sustainable management of the ocean. The Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences fully supports the Blue Society and participated in involving European youth for this event.
Sea For Society
With oceans covering 70 % of the Earth and playing a vital role in our lives and economies, the ocean is extremely fragile and experiencing increasing pressure on its resources and ecosystems through human activities. The project Sea for Society, funded under FP7, is a three-year mobilisation and mutual learning action plan with 28 partners from 12 countries, set out to address the challenge of taking advantage of the Ocean’s tremendous opportunities to meet society’s current and future needs whilst protecting it for future generations. Sea for Society has engaged over 500 stakeholders and citizens in a dialogue on the future of our Ocean. Together they have developed more than 700 ideas to improve human-Ocean dynamics and over 600 solutions to address barriers to sustainability. Ultimately, putting these solutions into action will help us build a Blue Society.
Blue Society
On the 18th of November, the Blue Society Launch event, hosted by MEP Ricardo Serrão Santos and organised in collaboration with the EP Intergroup on “Climate Change, Biodiversity and Sustainable Development” provided a platform to learn and exchange on how the concept of a Blue Society can become a reality through open discussion among invited participants representing science, industry, policy-makers and civil society.
On the 17th and 18th of November, European citizen representatives aged 18-25 have met as the Blue Society Youth Parliament to discuss how they can contribute to a Blue Society and demand a sustainable and productive future for themselves and generations to come. For the older researchers and policy makers, it was inspiring to see how keen these young people are and how they want to fight for a clean ocean and a blue society!
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