The 31st Assembly of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC-UNESCO) is ongoing. A week of meetings started on Monday, June 14 2021, involving 150 member States to promote interaction and coordination for the development of marine management programs.
The event is contextualized in the 60th Anniversary celebrations since the founding of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission and enhanced in the broader context of the Ocean Decade 2021-2030, the decade that the United Nations dedicate to ocean sciences for sustainable development against declining ocean health and in support of the exponential growth of the population living on the coasts around the world.
The ocean science communities will illustrate the significant contribution they provide to the IOC's Ocean Decade programs.
During the assembly, issues related to coastal management, marine spatial planning, national ocean policies, development of early warning systems, etc. will be discussed.
Warning systems and mitigation of marine hazards will be specifically addressed during Friday morning, June 18, when Professor Maria Ana Baptista, Chair of the Intergovernmental Coordination Group for North-Eastern Atlantic, the Mediterranean and connected seas Tsunami Warning and Mitigation Systems (ICG-NEAMTWS), will present the activities ongoing in the region where also the CAT-INGV operates.