Free Ocean Literacy Training Courses, hosted by UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, with the contribution of the Government of Sweden and the Government of Flanders, empowered relevant stakeholders to understand and promote the objectives of the Ocean Decade.
As recognizing the role that education plays in increasing awareness about the state of the ocean is a priority, these trainings generated a broad dialogue to better identify how to transform ocean knowledge into actions. A total of 56 speakers from 29 countries participated in these trainings which gathered 87 participants (government officials, educators, the media, and the public) from 35 countries.
All courses provided an overview of the seven Ocean Literacy principles and highlighted the challenges the ocean is facing. Sustainable solutions were presented through successful case-studies such as the Ocean Rescue campaign of Sky News, a programme launched in 2017 to make people aware of plastic pollution; or the Educational Passages, a worldwide project where students are given the opportunity to deploy and track their very own mini boats.