Our Ocean 2019

Oslo, Norway

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

There is only one mother ocean and she is the provider of all life on this planet. We humans have been by far her highest beneficiary, yet we have forced upon her the negative impacts of decades of aggressive human behavior. Can we not hear her cries of agony?

The Nippon Foundation has and continues to be committed to the ocean. Based on our founding principle, “One World, One Family,” we have been engaging in various ocean initiatives such as the development of human resources who can arrest the crises facing our ocean.

Today, I would like to announce three new initiatives to take us to the next stage of our work. The first initiative is the NEXUS Program. The Nippon Foundation will work together with the University of Washington and over 100 research institutions involving 10,000 scientists to create the world’s largest interdisciplinary ocean network. The goal is to strive to solve the most pressing ocean issues such as climate change and marine pollution that we currently face. This program will be launched in April 2020.

The second initiative concerns the people whose lives are intertwined with the ocean and are the first to suffer the impact of climate change. The Nippon Foundation will invite the leaders of close to 50 small island states to hold what will be the first Small Island States Summit in Japan in year 2021. This summit will serve as a platform to enable the voices of small island nations to be heard, and to encourage the development and implementation of policies based on scientific evidence.

The last initiative I wish to share with you is the Nippon Foundation-GEBCO Seabed 2030 Program. We are working with diverse stakeholders from around the world to map 100 percent of the earth’s ocean floor. Bold innovative initiatives were recently announced to drive this global movement to the next stage.

Ladies and gentlemen,
From outer space, planet Earth is “One World” and all of its inhabitants are “One Family.” With this mindset, let us do our utmost to pass on a healthy and beautiful ocean to humanity 1,000 years into the future.

Thank you.