2020 Minato UNESCO Association Symposium

Passing Attractive Oceans to The Next Generation
-The Start of UN Decade of Ocean Science–

Date: December 11, 2020
Venue: International House of Japan

Keynote Speaker:
Dr. MICHIDA Yutaka, Professor, Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, the University of Tokyo;

Subcommittee head of Intergovernmental Oceanography Commission (IOC) of Japanese National Commission for UNESCO; and President of Japan Society of Marine Survey and Technology.

Panelists:
Dr. Manuela Hartwig, Researcher, Center for Global Environmental Research, National Institute for Environmental Studies
Dr. SASAKI Tsuyoshi, Professor, Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology

Moderator:
Mr. NAGANO Hiroshi, President, Minato UNESCO Association

At the beginning of the symposium, Mr. TAGUCHI Yasushi, Director-General of International Affairs, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, gave an opening remark summarized below:

UNESCO is headquartered in Paris.  Japan will celebrate its 70th anniversary of membership in UNESCO in 2021.  Resolution on the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development was unanimously adopted and announced at the General Assembly held in 2017.  Ten UN organizations currently work on it.  The UN decade of ocean science is promoted by IOC subcommittee of Japanese National Commission for UNESCO.  IOC here stands for Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, not International Olympic Committee.

Keynote Speech by Dr. MICHIDA Yutaka:

I listened to weather forecast on a radio every night in my boyhood.  I participated in the Antarctic Research Expedition as a researcher in the physical oceanography.  Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission where I assumed the responsibility as vice-chairman was established back in 1960.  IOC took a leadership in the development and construction of Tsunami warning system right after the Indian Ocean Tsunami triggered by Sumatra-Andaman Earthquake which caused big damages in the nearby  countries and areas.

Functions expected out of ocean are ease of weather, maintenance of ecosystem and provision of food, shipping, mariner energy, marine tourism, etc.  Difficulties facing the ocean, on the other hand, inclide sea level rise caused by global warning, acidification, decline of ecosystems functions as well as impaired biodiversity, marine pollution, decrease of fisheries resources, marine disaster, etc.  Crisis awareness caused the United Nations to adopt the resolution for Sustainable Development Goals in 2015.  The fourteenth goal, among the 17, is to conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.  The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea was adopted in 2017.  It declares that the decade between 2021 and 2030 is designated as the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.  The following seven social goals were defined; a clean ocean, a healthy and resilient ocean, a predicted ocean, a safe ocean, a sustainably harvested and productive ocean, a transparent ocean and an inspiring and engaging ocean.

In association with marine plastic problem, how much is the total amount of plastic produced from 1950 to 2015?  The answer is the amount equivalent to 1.4 billion elephants which weigh about 8.4

billion tons.  About 8% to 10% of total petroleum produced is processed into plastic products

(Geyer et al., 2017).  79% of plastic products produced is either buried under the ground or abandoned in the environment (Carpenter and Smith, 1972).  A warning on the marine plastic problem was issued in as early as 1972 to 1973.

What are typical issues with respect to marine plastic problem?  Marine plastic keeps increasing.  Plastic garbage, once discarded in the ocean, keep micronized and cannot be retrieved thereafter.  The density of micronized plastic garbage, their movements in the long run, their impact on the ecology, etc. are still unknown.  A committee of experts was organized toward the UN Decade of Ocean Science which begins in 2021.  A kick-off meeting is scheduled to be held in Berlin. At last but not least, I would like to keep promoting a future image of ocean full of dream and charm.  In order to realize it, not only experts but all the people should be actively involved in the movement.  I am a member of Japan Driftological Society which is supported by ordinary citizens as a half of its membership.  Let’s join together to tackle marine problems.

Reference:

Geyer, R., J.R. Jambeck and K.L. Law, Science Advances, Vol.3 No.7, e1700782, 2017. (doi 10. 1126/scidv. 1700782) Carpenter E. J. and K.L. Smith Jr., Science, 175 1240 – 1241, 1972.

Presentation by Dr. Manuela HARTWIG (joined via ZOOM from Tsukuba):

I would like to talk about the ocean policy of Germany.  Impact of climate change on the ocean has often been overlooked in the past.  International society has now decided to start the UN Decade of Ocean Science to cope with this problem.  Ocean is the major food resource for human being.  Production and supply of fishery resources is an important issue among EU countries.  Statistics of FAO (The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nation) show that almost 56.9 million households are engaged in the fishery industry in 2016.  80 percent of world fishery is undertaken by 20 countries including EU(1).  According to the consumers research on fishery and aquaculture products, carried out in 2017 by European Commission, the top five consumer countries among the EU members are Spain, Sweden, Estonia, Denmark and Finland(2). 

It is quite important to deepen the understanding of consumers on how serious the negative impacts of their consumption behavior could give on weather and environment.  However, most consumers do not have enough awareness over such issues in their daily lives.  The most serious issues among many are excessive fisheries, overnutrition and garbage.  German Ministry of the Environment makes it clear that eating contaminated fishes would have harmful effects on human body.  43 percent of dolphins, 36 percent of birds and many fishes swallow garbage(3).  Beach Clean Up Action is carried out once or twice a year, utilizing popular characters.  I believe that this type of activity, in which either individuals or groups could sign up, is very important.

Sea temperature has been changing since the seventies.  Abnormal sea temperature could result in the increased migration of fishes.  Energy conversion has been implemented worldwide as the countermeasures against climate change.  Climate change would raise new problems in the environment.  Thus, we need to take immediate actions to clear those problems.  Wind-power generation, for example, is one of the important power sources for Germany.  Nevertheless, we need to be quite sensitive to the impact it could have on sea creatures and birds.  German civil society raises a strong voice to take whatever possible actions to protect them. 

The next decade should be quite important for the marine policies and SDGs of Germany.  One of the reasons for this is that Germany could not attain Good Environmental State of the Oceans in 2020.  International coordination, linkage among stakeholders and dialog among them are quite important.  Science and society as well as science and politics are now entering into the age of crisis.  The distance between science and society and science and politics seems to be quite considerable not only in Germany but in Japan as well.  How and to what extent we can alter this?  Each and every citizen need to raise voice so that such voice could reach those who are in authority.
(1)http://www.fao.org/state-of-fisheries-aquaculture/2018/en
(2)https://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/sites/fisheries/files/docs/publications/2017-fishery-and-aquaculture-products-overview-consumer- habits_en.pdf
(3)https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/themen/wasser/gewaesser/meere/nutzung-belastungen/muell-im-meer

Presentation by Dr. SASAKI Takeshi

We are currently working on the revitalization of Edo, Tokyo. There used to be a vast tidal flat in Edomae. Therefore, we are working on environmental education in Edomae by reviving tidal flats on the canal in Minato Ward. Our lives are closely related to the sea. Most of the daily necessities are imported to Japan by ship. 80% of the world’s population is near the sea and rivers. However, one of the reasons why I don’t feel the connection with the sea is that there are few opportunities to experience it in a familiar environment.

When I asked the students in the coastal area of Iwate and M Ward of Tokyo to write freely, Iwate came up with specific words such as octopus and squid. This difference depends on whether you are experiencing it or not. Increasing marine literacy is important for the “Decade of Marine Science”. Ocean literacy is to understand the impact of the ocean on humans and the impact of humans on the ocean. Specifically, it is important to provide a place for experience. There is a place where children in Tokyo can also experience it. It has also been found to be effective in practice.

   Dr. MICHIDA was a meteorological boy, but I was a fishing boy. I will never forget the excitement when I caught rainbow trout for the first time. It is connected to my current job. The experience of childhood may be helpful in some way when you grow up.

   After the Great East Japan Earthquake, he has been practicing “Sakuramasu MANABI Project” in Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture. The purpose is to build and acquire aquatic environmental literacy that combines scientific knowledge (basic principles of marine literacy) and conventional knowledge. Conventional knowledge is the knowledge and skills that people have inherited from generation to generation in each region. (Introducing the activities of children with photos) The result is the promotion of regional attachment by promoting international exchange between cities and the promotion of understanding of the connection between the Forest, River and Sea.

   Marine literacy education campaigns are spread all over the world. At its root is the multi stakeholder, in other words, various people work together. As an initiative in Tokyo, Minato Ward Children’s Middle School and High school student plaza (purariba) “Let’s learn the science of the sea” has been underway since 2009, and Konan Junior High School “Canal study” has been underway since 2010. These effects include local attachment, increased interest in the ocean, and spread to other schools such as Shiba Commercial High School.

   A water purification project using iron ions has also started, and I hope that local junior and senior high school students will play an active role in the future to see if the old Shibaeva in Shibaura can be revived.

   After a five-minute break, I announced the questions I received using Zoom’s chat function and asked the panelists to answer them:

Q: Is microplastic submerged in the deep sea?
Dr. MICHIDA: It’s sinking, but how it’s sinking is a research topic.

Q: Can you see the flow of garbage when you study ocean currents?
Dr. MICHIDA: By studying physical rays, we can almost understand where the garbage came from. Even if the location is known, it is difficult to actually collect it.

Q: How about citizen participation in Germany’s environmental policy-making process? In Japan, it seems that there are not many.
Dr. Hartwig: Germany’s policy-making process is more transparent and citizen groups strongly convey local voices and dissenting opinions. Participation in the policy-making process is difficult in Japan. There is a cultural difference that meetings tend to be formal and it is difficult to give opinions, but I think we can do more at the local level. Who, when, and where should I speak to reflect my opinion? The two countries differ in this respect.

Q: Is the trench research that became a hot topic in the Great East Japan Earthquake progressing?
Dr. MICHIDA: Research on fault structures in the epicenter area is progressing considerably.

Q: What is the construction of a business model?
Dr. SASAKI: I have listed three points as future issues.〇Educator training 〇Blue economy business model 〇 An organization that supports multi-stakeholders. Educators need to have expertise in the ocean, as well as knowledge of safety management and educational theory. The blue economy is an activity to conserve the ocean and maintain and develop the economy and society. I think it would be good if there was an organization that supports multi-stakeholders working on environmental education by building a business model based on the blue economy that educators can play an active role.

NAGANO: Lastly, what do you expect from the private movement?
Dr. Hartwig: If you have a problem, don’t be afraid to give your opinion. Use conversation to solve problems.

Dr. SASAKI: I would like to promote multi-stakeholder environmental education activities in Edomae, such as the canal cruise that we are conducting with the Minato UNESCO Association.

Dr. MICHIDA: In order to use the sea properly, it is necessary to reach consensus among various people. There is certainly a part that has been discussed by a limited number of parties so far. The point of the recently issued guideline is “Everyone who thinks that they are involved is a stakeholder.” Everyone’s sea, let’s think together.

   It was the first time for us to hold an event using Zoom, which was difficult to do at the same time as the venue, but we managed to do it. I was impressed by the many people who participated, from Hokkaido in the north to Kyushu in the south. We are also looking forward to your application for the Canal Cruise (January 31, 2021) led by Dr. SASAKI.

(Written by Vice President MIYASHITA Y. and translated 1st half by SUDA Y. and 2nd half by MAEDA M, the PR & Internet Committee)

https://minato-unesco.jp/en/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2021/06/魅力ある海_修正10.26版.pdf