On the shores of North Africa, ancient cities have stood for millennia. The columns of Carthage, in modern-day Tunisia, are a reminder of the once bustling Phoenician and Roman port, and along the coast in what's now Libya, lie the majestic ruins of Sabratha's Roman amphitheater close -- perhaps too close -- to the sea.

Africa's iconic natural sites date back even further, such as the ancient coral reef of the Seychelles' Aldabra Atoll in the Indian Ocean, thought to be around 125,000 years old.

But extreme weather events and rising sea levels mean that all three -- and around 190 other spectacular heritage sites that line Africa's coasts -- will be at risk of severe flooding and erosion in the next 30 years, according to a recent study published in the journal Nature Climate Change.

Sea levels have been rising at a faster rate over the past three decades compared to the 20th century, the research says, and climate change hazards such as floods, heatwaves and wildfires are becoming more common.

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Nansen’s first scientific survey in 2022 is taking the research vessel – Dr Fridtjof Nansen – to survey a number of selected seamounts of the Sierra Leone Rise, in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ), within the area of the Fishery Committee for the Eastern Central Atlantic (CECAF). During the month-long survey (postponed from 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic), the expedition team will investigate seabed habitats, and in particular document the presence and distribution of Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems  (VMEs), such as sponge aggregations, cold-water coral reefs and coral gardens, for which special protection is required from possible impacts that may occur during bottom fishing activities. The survey will also map pelagic and demersal fisheries resources as well as provide an opportunity to sample zooplankton in selected areas.

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MIAMI (AP) — A helicopter crashed Saturday into the ocean waters off Miami Beach, plummeting a few feet away from swimmers in a crowded stretch popular among tourists, officials said.

Two passengers were taken to a nearby hospital in stable condition, and no one else appeared to be injured.

The Miami Beach Police Department said on Twitter that it received a call Saturday afternoon about the crash in the area off South Beach.

A video shared by the police captures the helicopter descending over the ocean and crashing into the water as sunbathers crowd the beach and others swim.

Police closed off a two-block stretch of the beach, in the area where travelers frequent outdoor cafes, restaurants and shops. The police department said the Federal Aviation Administration is responding to the scene.

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On the One Ocean Summit taking place in Brest, France, UNESCO announced it has set itself the goal of including ocean education in the school curricula of its 193 Member States by 2025. To achieve this goal, the United Nations agency is making available to public decision-makers a toolkit with a shared reference framework of educational content on the ocean.

In the aftermath of the Second World War, some countries advocated the sharing of oceanographic knowledge on a global scale. However, it was not until December 1960 that the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO – the first body responsible for strengthening intergovernmental co-operation in the marine sciences – was created.

 UNESCO will monitor the implementation of this objective by its 193 Member States. A first progress report is planned for COP27, which will be held in November 2022 in Egypt.

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The First International Ocean Decade Conference was generously supported by Germany in virtual mode. The IOC Secretariat is now seeking written Expressions of Interest from Member States via their National Focal Points to host the Second International Ocean Decade Conference approximately in late 2023.

As envisaged in the Ocean Decade Implementation Plan, it is proposed to hold a multi-stakeholder International Ocean Decade Conference every three years as a means of: (i) carrying out a collective stocktaking of progress against the Ocean Decade vision and mission, (ii) reviewing the Ocean Decade Action Framework, including the Ocean Decade Challenges; and (iii) catalyzing new partnerships and commitments for the co-design and co-delivery of transformative Decade Actions.

It is expected that the Conference will be primarily an in-person event for 800 – 1000 persons, with facilities for hybrid participation / live streaming. The Conference will include a series of plenary and parallel sessions across all Ocean Decade Challenges, and should have scope for side events and cultural / networking events. The Conference can be held consecutively with another major ocean convening in this time period in order to minimize travel.

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The Prime Minister of Norway and the President of the Republic of Seychelles have accepted UNESCO’s invitation to become Patrons of the Ocean Decade Alliance to generate worldwide support of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development 2021-2030 (‘Ocean Decade’).

The announcements made during the One Ocean Summit (9-11 February 2022, Brest, France) add weight to the group of eminent individuals already engaged in the Ocean Decade Alliance. Through its members, the Alliance’s mandate is to catalyse support for the Ocean Decade through targeted resource mobilization, networking and influence, leveraging and multiplying financial and in-kind resource commitments.

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