Celebrating Human Rights Day: ‘Our Rights, Our Future, Right Now’
On 10 December 2024, the One Ocean Hub joins the global community in celebrating Human Rights Day — a significant occasion that marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). Proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, the UDHR establishes the need to protect inalienable rights of all individuals, regardless of race, gender, colour, language, or political views.
A reflection on a historic Biodiversity COP 16 in Cali, Colombia
This year’s UN Summit on Biodiversity (COP 16) adopted critical decisions on the need to respect the human rights of Indigenous peoples, local communities, Afro-descendant communities and ocean defenders. One Ocean Hub Deputy Director, Dr. Philile Mbatha, and Hub Director, Professor Elisa Morgera, in her capacity as the UN Special Rapporteur on Climate Change and Human Rights, contributed to several events on human rights and the ocean. They reflect in this blog post on progress made and the work that remains to be done.
The Baku Climate Change Conference (11-22 November 2024, Baku, Azerbaijan) has raised serious doubts about the viability of the UN Climate Summits to meaningfully advance climate mitigation to ensure a safe climate. It has also been unable to provide the finance that is needed, both in quantity and modalities, to ensure the protection of human rights from the negative impacts of climate change. Hub researchers Mitchell Lennan (Aberdeen University) and Elisa Morgera, in her capacity as UN Special Rapporteur on Climate Change and Human Rights, participated in the Baku conference and contributed to various events and dialogues on the ocean-climate nexus. This blog post reflects on the importance of these conversations, and on the disappointments at COP29 from the perspective of the ocean-climate nexus and human rights.
Discussing Inter-disciplinary Ocean Science at the Marine Conservation Congress
How much progress have we made in engaging Indigenous peoples and local knowledge holders within marine conservation? The 7th International Marine Conservation Congress (IMCC7: 13-18 October 2024, Cape Town, South Africa) brought together a network of over 800 participants including scientists, academics, students, conservationists, environmental NGOs, policymakers, and community leaders to discuss interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches to marine conservation under the theme, “Making Marine Science Matter.” Key discussions addressed pressing issues such as climate change, fisheries management, conservation governance, and the inclusion of Indigenous knowledge and traditional ecological knowledge in marine science. Highlight sessions included workshops on transforming social-ecological systems and panel discussions on decolonising marine conservation.
New e-course on Art and Ocean Governance launched on the UN CC: Learn platform
We are thrilled to announce that a brand new, certified e-course, Art and The Stewardship of the Ocean, developed by the One Ocean Hub in collaboration with United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), has just been launched on the UN CC: Learn platform. The e-course explores the potential of art to transform the way we perceive, relate to and govern the ocean.
The e-course brings together insights from artists, researchers, Indigenous peoples, ocean lovers, and policy-makers, exploring the profound connections between art and ocean governance processes and practices. The contribution of arts-based approaches to dealing with ocean governance challenges can be critical in enhancing innovation and public dialogue, to enable diverse actors with diverse views and priorities to work together in addressing the planetary crises.
Sharing insights on art and arts-based participatory research with the Transformation Community
We are increasingly reflecting on, and writing about, our transferable learnings from art-based participatory research on the ocean that can inspire other action-oriented researchers who wish to support transformations to a sustainable and regenerative future. This blog post reflects on key insights arising from a webinar that One Ocean Hub researchers presented at in collaboration with the Transformation Community, a global community of action-oriented researchers and reflective practitioners who support transformations to a sustainable and regenerative future. On 5 November 2024 One Ocean Hub Director Elisa Morgera, Hub Deputy Director Philile Mbatha and one of the Hub’s other co-founders and artists, Dylan McGarry presented on “The Role of Art and Arts-Based Participatory Research”within the One Ocean Hub program and how it is reshaping ocean governance.
Further exploring the Links between Cultural Heritage and Human Rights
Cultural heritage is key to protect the human rights of ocean-dependent communities, and should also share accessible and inclusive education. In the week preceding UN Human Rights Day, Hub researchers, took part in the Symposium on Cultural Heritage under this year’s theme, “Human Rights Perspectives through Past, Present and Future” at the University of Strathclyde (UK) and promoted by and co-organised with the Heritage International Institute. This year’s edition of the symposium took place on 5-6 December, with Dr Sulley Ibrahim, Dr Harrison Kwame Golo (University of Cape Coast) and Hub Knowledge exchange associate Dr Millica Prokic presenting on their research.
A new Learning Pathway has been created for the One Ocean Learn, our knowledge-translation platform. The Learning Pathway focusing on Participatory Research: What is it, how do we use it, and its potential impact for transformative ocean governance. Participatory research has been a foundational element of One Ocean Hub approaches. In this pathway we explore how a collaborative approach focuses on meaningful representation and co-production with a variety of actors, i.e.,community members, researchers, civil society organisations, policymakers, lawyers, and artists — as active contributors in the research process.
A third new Learning Pathway has been added on One Ocean Learn: Thinking with Islands. Islands are places and spaces of wonder, each unique in their own right. The uniqueness they foster, from endemism of species to idiosyncrasies in human cultures, is also often shaped by their exposure to weather extremes. This means, on the one hand, that islands have historically been regarded as ideal sites for studying the climate. On the other hand, this prodigious exposure to extreme weather also makes them the most vulnerable frontiers of our world today. Small islands and small islands nations are often the first to bear the full brunt of climate change and other unpredictable environmental shifts that loom over the planet.
Art, Ocean, and Decision Making - New Learning Pathway
Another new Learning Pathway has been added on One Ocean Learn, exploring the links between art, the ocean, and humankind – with a focus on the transformative role that art can play in informing the way we think about, steward and govern the ocean. A focus of this Learning Pathway is ‘Indigenous art’ which explores the diverse meanings and ways of knowing the ocean. It sheds light on how arts-based participatory research methods can act as powerful tools for advocating for the protection of Indigenous peoples’ human rights and the recognition of their customary rights, and supporting the implementation of their right to be meaningfully included in decision-making processes.
Welcoming Professor Katie Boyle as an Affiliate Member
As the One Ocean Hub navigates towards its next phase through its legacy work, we are delighted to welcome Prof Katie Boyle from Strathclyde University Law School as a new member of our research community. Katie is Professor of Human Rights Law and Social Justice at the University of Strathclyde and her research addresses the legalisation and accountability mechanisms for economic, social and cultural rights. Her latest book, Access to Social Justice, uses empirical data to theorise justice as a journey, using the right to an effective remedy as a normative lens.
Tides of Knowledge: ocean knowledge co-creation at the science-society-policy nexus. Publication authored by McGarry, Morgera and Sink, in Daniela Diz, Ben Boteler and Barbara Neumann, The Elgar Companion to Ocean Governance and the Sustainable Development Goals (Edward Elgar, 2024 forth)
