Backed by 26 foundations, the 2024 Rio Action Statement lays out a bold roadmap for philanthropy to drive resource mobilization, outreach, advocacy, and partnerships in support of Ocean Decade initiatives ahead of the 2025 UN Ocean Conference.
Click here to read the 2024 Rio Action Statement.
The joint Statement was developed during the Fourth Ocean Decade Foundations Dialogue Meeting, held this year from 3 to 5 September 2024 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The meeting was hosted by the Boticário Group Foundation, a long-standing member of the Ocean Decade Foundations Dialogue, and co-organized with UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) in its role as coordinating agency of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development 2021-2030 (‘Ocean Decade’).
“Sustainable Development Goal 14 – Life Below Water – holds great potential in addressing the triple planetary crisis, yet remains the most underfunded. Philanthropic organizations and the in-kind and financial resources that they can mobilize can be game-changers resources to accelerate investment in the generation and use of ocean science,” said Vidar Helgesen, UNESCO-IOC Executive Secretary. “With the 2024 Rio Action Statement, the Ocean Decade is scaling up philanthropic engagement and investment in ocean science ahead of the 2025 UN Ocean Conference.”
Over three days, leaders from 26 philanthropic organizations – environmental foundations, climate organizations, and public health groups – discussed the crucial role of philanthropy in strengthening the science-policy-society interface. Recognizing that ‘the science we need for the ocean we want’ requires significant financial resources, the Dialogue is taking steps to mobilize funding and ensure its equitable distribution.
“To safeguard the ocean’s health and sustainability, we must rally various departments to join our efforts,” says Malu Nunes, executive director of the Boticário Group Foundation for Nature Protection. “This requires not only mobilizing resources for research and innovative economic solutions, but also strengthening communication to raise public awareness about the global threats facing our ocean and the future they pose to us all.”
Building on the priorities identified in the 2023 Monaco Statement, the 2024 Rio Action Statement aims to transform commitments to action and is structured around four key action areas: supporting new funding models, refining investment practices, enhancing strategic communications, and increasing collaboration across philanthropic initiatives.
Through a novel OceanMatcher platform set to launch at the 2025 United Nations Ocean Conference, Foundations Dialogue members aim to connect Decade Actions with funders committed to sustainable ocean science. This tool is part of a broader effort to raise awareness of the importance of ocean science for action and cultivate a sense of shared responsibility. This also includes creating resources for ocean communicators, supporting inclusive communications practices, and investing in data-driven approaches to better understand and shape public opinion. Additionally, the group calls for investment strategies to reflect diverse perspectives and directly address the needs of coastal communities, Indigenous groups, and small-island nations.
The collaborative nature of the Foundations Dialogue is key to ensuring continued progress of the Ocean Decade. By encouraging philanthropic funding organizations to share best practices and pool resources, the Dialogue strengthens the network’s capacity to develop large-scale ocean science projects and attract new members to join the initiative.
Click here to read the 2024 Rio Action Statement.
For more information, please contact:
Ocean Decade Communications Team (oceandecade.comms@unesco.org)
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About the Ocean Decade:
Proclaimed in 2017 by the United Nations General Assembly, the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) (‘the Ocean Decade’) seeks to stimulate ocean science and knowledge generation to reverse the decline of the state of the ocean system and catalyse new opportunities for sustainable development of this massive marine ecosystem. The vision of the Ocean Decade is ‘the science we need for the ocean we want’. The Ocean Decade provides a convening framework for scientists and stakeholders from diverse sectors to develop the scientific knowledge and the partnerships needed to accelerate and harness advances in ocean science to achieve a better understanding of the ocean system, and deliver science-based solutions to achieve the 2030 Agenda. The UN General Assembly mandated UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) to coordinate the preparations and implementation of the Decade.
About the UNESCO-IOC:
The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (UNESCO-IOC) promotes international cooperation in marine sciences to improve management of the ocean, coasts and marine resources. The IOC enables its 150 Member States to work together by coordinating programmes in capacity development, ocean observations and services, ocean science and tsunami warning. The work of the IOC contributes to the mission of UNESCO to promote the advancement of science and its applications to develop knowledge and capacity, key to economic and social progress, the basis of peace and sustainable development.