5-6 October 2017

Malta

The 2017 Our Ocean conference will be hosted by the European Union in Malta.

The conference will be held on October 5 and 6, the European Commission has confirmed. The annual conferences focus key ocean issues such as: marine protected areas, sustainable fisheries, marine pollution, and climate-related impacts on the ocean.

EU Commissioner for Maritime Affairs Karmenu Vella told the 2016 Our Ocean conference “If we want to ensure a more sustainable use of the oceans and their resources, we need to close legal gaps, cooperate more effectively and strengthen enforcement – in short, we need better ocean governance. “I therefore intend to launch a major initiative on international ocean governance before the end of the year. We need to keep the momentum for change.”

The 2017 conference will build on the issues of the ocean and climate change, marine pollution and sustainable fishing. It will further develop how the Ocean can contribute to sustainable blue growth, including through new energy sources such as tidal and wave technology.