Global Trade & Investment

Latest Comments from UN President Reflect Expectations for Advancing Ocean Conservation

While the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the postponement or cancellation of many in-person events around the world, the push for a new global agreement to address marine litter and microplastics is continuing via virtual and online meetings. On June 8th the United Nations (U.N.) hosted a day-long event, to kick off World Oceans week. The President of the U.N. General Assembly, Tijjani Muhammad Bande, called attention to the issue of marine litter in his 2020 message, stating “This year we must take action to prevent a further eight million tons of plastic waste from entering the ocean and protect global ecosystems. We simply cannot stand by while oceans acidify, sea levels rise and pollution increases.”

The need to continue efforts to combat marine litter and advance discussions at the international level was underscored in many of the events held throughout the week.

Read more about our work on marine litter here.