Decade Collaborative Centre for the Southern Ocean Region (DCC-SOR)

The Decade Collaborative Centre for the Southern Ocean Region (DCC-SOR) is key in coordinating international efforts to protect and conserve the Southern Ocean.

It is hosted by the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR)– an international organisation coordinating scientific research in the Antarctic and Southern Ocean region, and advising policymakers. A long-standing partner of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC/UNESCO), SCAR coordinated with the Southern Ocean Task Force the Southern Ocean Action Plan– a framework for Southern Ocean stakeholders to develop tangible actions to support the Ocean Decade.

The DCC-SOR will coordinate existing Decade Actions for the region, catalyse new initiatives, lead targeted communications and outreach, engage diverse stakeholders, and mobilise resources. The DCC-SOR will work across all ten Ocean Decade Challenges in the Southern Ocean region, focusing on:

• Challenge 1: Understand and beat marine pollution
• Challenge 2: Protect and restore ecosystems and biodiversity
• Challenge 3: Sustainably feed the global population
• Challenge 4: Develop a sustainable and equitable ocean economy
• Challenge 6: Increase community resilience to ocean hazards
• Challenge 9: Skills, knowledge and technology for all
• Challenge 10: Change humanity’s relationship with the ocean

The Southern Ocean has a global impact on the Earth system. The relationship between the Antarctic Ice Sheet and the surrounding Southern Ocean impacts global sea-level rise. The Southern Ocean also acts as a strong yet exhaustible buffer against climate change, as it stores some of the excess carbon from the atmosphere, and it plays a crucial role in ocean circulation by distributing atmospheric heat from pole to pole.

Start Date: 2023
End Date: 2030