Moderated by Mr. Charles Goddard, Asia-Pacific Editor at the Economist, the webinar also featured distinguished speakers from both the public and private sector. H.E. Mr. Tommy E. Remengesau Jr., President of the Republic of Palau, announced that blue recovery will be a major theme during the “Seventh Our Ocean Conference” to be held in Palau in December 2020. President Remengesau also highlighted examples of successful partnerships, including the Palau National Marine Sanctuary project as well as his work as co-chair of the “High-Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy,” and expressed his intention to work on various ocean-related problems with many partners going forward from the perspective of a small island country.
From the point of view of technological innovation, Ms. Armida Alisjahbana, Executive Secretary at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN-ESCAP), addressed the knowledge gaps that remain especially when it comes to ocean-related issues, and stressed the important role that data collection can play in spurring blue recovery efforts.
Mr. Tatsuhiko Kashimura, managing director of Refinverse, presented a view from Japan’s private sector, introducing the firm’s efforts to work with local fisheries networks in various parts of Japan to collect discarded fishing nets to produce nylon fibers for recycling and to reuse these materials for other purposes.
Concluding the session, Dr. Sunami expressed his hopes toward the further promotion of blue recovery, emphasizing the importance of the “United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development,” which begins in 2021, and the further implementation of blue finance mechanisms. As for Japan’s blue recovery initiatives going forward, he said “the partnership between the government and private sector is going to be very important.” Lastly, Dr. Sunami highlighted some of OPRI-SPF’s efforts toward further research on blue recovery, including collaboration with the Asian Development Bank to create a policy that leverages blue financing to help regions recover from the pandemic, as well as a partnership with the Stimson Center in Washington D.C. aiming to develop a model for economic resilience using financial insurance mechanisms to attract necessary investment for economic recovery.
A summary of the webinar is also available on the Economist Group’s World Ocean Initiatives website.
Ensuring a robust “blue” recovery in Asia and the Pacific
To view the full webinar, please see the video below.