Protecting the oceans that cover 70% of the earth is not getting enough attention in climate change policy. Now, scientists are pushing for a dedicated international body to coordinate research and inform policymakers
Alain Schuhl, deputy CEO for Science of the CNRS. Photo: Joachim Claudet / CNRS / Twitter
An international initiative to establish a new body to protect the world’s oceans is taking shape, spearheaded by France’s National Centre for Scientific Research.
Using the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as its role model, the goal is to build a scientific consensus across all disciplines related to sustainability of oceans, creating a body of knowledge that can be used to shape policies to protect, conserve and restore them.
Although IPCC and its sister organisation on biodiversity and ecosystem services (IPBES) cover aspects of how oceans are influenced by climate change, they do not have the reach to tackle ocean sustainability, says Alain Schuhl, deputy CEO for Science of the CNRS. There is a need for a separate and distinct panel.