Between August 27th 2021 and September 3rd 2021 I took part in the Climate Opportunity Leaders Retreat at European Forum Alpbach. As part of my participation, I moderated an important session on "Greening the Blue Economy – Linking Ocean Health and Wealth".

It's World Water Week this week, organised by SIWI - Stockholm International Water Institute. The Economist Group's World Ocean Initiative is an official outreach partner of the week. I am participating in today's Accelerator on Communication and Behaviour Change, aimed at highlighting levers that can speed up and intensify our impact.

I moderated this World Ocean Summit Insight Hour, which examined how to increase sustainability in aquaculture supply chains. It will highlight the role of retailers in influencing best-practice operations throughout the value chain. Speakers will identify key steps for seafood processors, fish farmers, feed suppliers and technology developers as they scale production.

Aquaculture is the fastest-growing food-production sector globally and is vital for feeding our growing population. But there are challenges facing the industry. More than half of consumers do not trust seafood, with one in five of all fish sold mislabelled. Read an overview of recent coverage on sustainable aquaculture from the World Ocean Initiative.

Plastic Free July is a global movement that helps millions of people be part of the solution to plastic pollution. The World Ocean Initiative's coverage includes research on the value that can be extracted from plastic waste, an article exploring what’s in our plastic waste, and summary articles of recent webinars and events.

The article I co-wrote with Karin Kemper, global director for Environment, Natural Resources and Blue Economy at the World Bank, and Ambassador Peter Thomson, the UN's special envoy for the ocean, has been published in the Ocean Yearbook. It is entitled "The Post-COVID-19 Ocean Economy: Building Back Bluer".

The first phase of a new research project that I am directing, on "Rethinking plastics in a circular economy", sponsored by Dow, has just been released. There is significant value to extract from plastic waste. Scaling up advanced chemical recycling technologies could help close the loop and create a circular system for plastic waste.

On July 7th I moderated a World Ocean Summit Insight Hour on how business can be a key driver behind restoring the regenerative capacity of critical ecosystems. I was joined by leading scientists, conservationists and executives to discuss key solutions to restore ocean health and create both socio-economic and ecological value.

On June 8th I gave an inspirational talk to journalists and communicators as part of the World Water Week Communications Initiative. The aim was to share my experiences as head of the World Ocean Initiative on how to communicate science and complex issues.

Happy World Ocean Day! The health of the ocean continues to deteriorate, but exciting ideas and solutions highlighted at the 8th annual World Ocean Summit Virtual Week could accelerate the shift towards a sustainable ocean economy. We have produced a summary report with outlook for the ocean economy.

June 8th marks World Ocean Day! The UN launched its second-ever fully digital edition of its event celebrating the 2021 theme, The Ocean: Life and Livelihoods. I moderated a panel on “Blue Economy and Private-Sector Impact”.

A new book for which I wrote the foreword, Preparing a Workforce for the New Blue Economy: People, Products and Policies, has been published by Elsevier. The book was edited by Rick Spinrad, the new Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under President Biden, and Liesl Hotaling, president of Eidos Education.

World Biodiversity Day is celebrated every year in late May to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues. To honour this occasion the World Ocean Initiative shines a light on one of the planet’s greatest survivors: the horseshoe crab.

Earth Day, celebrated every year on April 22nd, is dedicated to highlighting the importance of action to protect and restore ecosystems around the world. Ocean ecosystems are vital for a thriving planet. Governments and private-sector investors are increasingly keen to invest in seagrass, mangroves and other important ocean ecosystems that reduce and store CO2 emissions.

Our World Ocean Summit Virtual Week concluded successfully last week. We welcomed more than 8,500 registered participants and more than 6,000 active users on our virtual platform during the week. Here I summarise some key conclusions and observations, from the importance of ocean literacy and nature-based solutions to the need for collaboration and investable innovations.

October 22nd marked World Energy Day. The quest for energy has always been a balancing act between the benefits and costs of creation or extraction, storage, transportation and waste disposal. As populations have grown, humans have searched for new energy sources. Wave, tidal and wind energy are now part of the green energy mix.

In a conversation for Therma's Point 01 podcast I spoke with co-founder Aaron Cohen about how reinvigorating the ocean economy will lead to sustained and equitable economic growth. 

On September 8th I will be moderating a session on “A Sustainable Ocean Economy” at the Founders Forum Climate Summit during London Tech Week. I will be joined by a great panel of ocean investment experts.

As part of the Blue Recovery Series, the World Ocean Initiative hosted a webinar on the roles of science, innovation and investment in establishing a sustainable ocean economy in the post-coronavirus period.

On 20 August I was interviewed on The Peggy Smedley Show, a leading podcast on digital transformation that averages 115,000 listeners. The discussion revolved around sustainability in the seas, why we need to stop thinking of the economy as linear and why sustainability is a business issue, amongst other items.