The All-Atlantic Ocean Research and Innovation Alliance Forum, co-organised by the South African Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) and the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission took place in Cape Town, South Africa, on 21-22 November 2023.
The forum took stock of the success and challenges of programmes and initiatives contributing to the implementation of the Galway and Belém Statements and help to shape Atlantic Ocean research and innovation cooperation for the next decade in alignment with global commitments such as the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).
The 2023 Forum demonstrated the value of AAORIA in providing a unique platform for successful collaboration and joint initiatives, as well as a commitment to advance solution-based and impact-focused ocean science, notably for the benefit of communities. In addition, discussions highlighted the need to address challenges throughout the Atlantic Ocean basin at local and regional scales and acknowledged the important linkages with the polar seas.
Inspired by the discussions at the Forum, and recognizing that work may continue in all areas of the All-Atlantic Declaration, the AAORIA High Level Board agreed to initially focus on the following two areas of action that aim to inspire transformative ocean science:
- Increasing our understanding of the relationship between the ocean and climate and developing outcome-oriented science for mitigating and adapting to the consequences of climate change, particularly for the benefit of increasing resilience of coastal communities;
- Coordinating Atlantic Ocean observing and improving modeling capacities, including in support of marine ecosystems and biodiversity.
Dates: November 21st – 22nd, 2023
Location: CTICC (Cape Town International Convention Centre), Convention Square, 1 Lower Long
Street, Cape Town, 8001, South Africa
Read more about the outcomes here
Rewatch the Forum here
Access the programme here
