Bridging academia and action: advancing partnerships for SDG 14, knowledge-sharing, and ocean literacy

As part of the official side events around the UN Ocean Conference 2025, the International Association of Universities (IAU), the University of Bergen, the University of the West Indies, the International Science Council and other partners organise an online event bringing together voices from higher education, science and other key partners for advancing SDG 14: Life Below Water.

Higher Education stakeholders are driving meaningful progress toward SDG 14 by fostering collaboration between academia, policymakers, industry, and civil society. At Universities, teaching, research, community engagement are areas lining to Ocean Decade Actions. In this online discussion, international experts will present how universities are building capacity and sharing knowledge to enhance ocean literacy and partnerships, while making use of research to shape the future of ocean science education. Leading experts will present innovative educational approaches and identify key tools to strengthen ocean sustainability efforts. They will also explore how to leverage the Ocean Decade and its initiatives to build a global network of ocean knowledge, catalyzing action, accelerating impact.

Organised by the International Association of Universities with the University of Bergen, University of the West Indies, University of Cape Town, Ocean University of China, International Science Council (ISC), University of Costa Rica, OceanX

Discussion topics

• What are higher education institutions doing well to build capacity and improve Ocean Literacy amongst graduates and for the general public? 
• How can these efforts be extended and improved at the institutional level? 
• What measures can be implemented by policymakers to transform education in ocean science and the marine and maritime sector? 
• How can actors outside HEIs contribute?  

More information and the list of speakers will be available soon.

Photo by NOAA on Unsplash