World Ocean Council Advances Ocean Industry Input to UN Sustainability Conference

News Release RIO +20: ENSURING A VOICE FOR THE RESPONSIBLE OCEAN BUSINESS COMMUNITY 18 June 2012 – At “Rio+20” – the decadal UN Conference on Sustainable Development being held in Rio de Janeiro from 15-22 June – the WOC is working to provide the eyes, ears and voice for the responsible ocean business community. As many as 20,000 people are expected to participate in both official and informal events during Rio+20, including over 100 heads of state and many other government representatives, as well as inter-governmental organizations, non-governmental organizations - and business leaders. The oceans are a major focus of the summit and governments are negotiating commitments that include proposals to amend the Law of the Sea to address marine biodiversity in the high seas, develop marine protected areas, reduce marine pollution/debris, achieve sustainable fisheries, and undertake regular assessments of ocean health. The private sector‘s role in sustainable development is also a significant theme of Rio+20. Some of the key messages WOC is delivering at Rio+20 include: Many ocean companies are working to improve their sustainability and reduce marine environmental impacts. Ocean ecosystems are interconnected, and many of the critical issues affecting ocean health are cross-cutting and cumulative. The best efforts by a single company, or an entire industry sector, are not enough to secure the future health and productivity of the ocean. In the run-up to Rio+20, the WOC was invited to participate in the U.N. Secretary General’s five-person ocean expert group, as the only representative of the private sector. To view the "Oceans, Industry and Rio +20 Workshop" report, click here. About the World Ocean Council (WOC) The WOC is the only international, cross-sectoral alliance for private sector leadership and collaboration in “Corporate Ocean Responsibility”. Companies and associations worldwide are distinguishing themselves as leaders in ocean sustainability and stewardship by joining the WOC. Members include nearly 50 leadership organizations from a wide range of ocean industries: shipping, oil and gas, renewable energy, seafood/fisheries, ocean technology, mining, maritime law, marine environmental services and other areas. Contact: Paul Holthus +1 (808) 277-9008 paul.holthus@oceancouncil.org Web: www.oceancouncil.org To subscribe to future WOC News or to update your contact information, click here.

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WORLD OCEAN COUNCIL WORKS WITH THE ECONOMIST ON WORLD OCEANS SUMMIT

Collaborative efforts like this are very heartening. Here is the latest news on the World Ocean Summit.

News Release Global Ocean Conference to Examine Future Use and Governance of the Seas 30 November 2011 – The Economist is organizing the “World Oceans Summit” (Singapore, 22-24 Feb 2012), which will bring together a program of more than 200 global leaders from various sectors and disciplines, including business, government, academia, international organizations and NGOs. The World Ocean Council (WOC) is a member of the summit’s Advisory Board and the WOC Executive Director, Paul Holthus, is an invited plenary speaker. The WOC is working closely with The Economist to ensure the program for the gathering, their first ocean event, is balanced and includes solid representation from the ocean business community. Several WOC Members are invited speakers, including: Spyros Polemis, Chairman, International Chamber of Shipping and Tim Smith, Chief Executive Officer, North Asia, Maersk Line. Other confirmed speakers include: Robert Zoellick, President, World Bank; Teo Chee Hean Deputy Prime Minister, Government of Singapore; and Ahmed Djoghlaf, Executive Secretary, United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity. The summit will present a robust and objective multi-stakeholder examination of critical issues affecting the future of the seas such as: How can the economic potential of the oceans be realized in a sustainable way? What kind of global leadership and collaboration is needed to address the challenges of ocean sustainability? Could new governance frameworks deliver better results for the oceans? How can business take the lead in reducing the footprint of human activities in the oceans? Please click here to download a copy of the latest summit program – or visitwww.economist.com/worldoceanssummit to register for the World Oceans Summit. A registration rate discount of 20% is available to WOC Members (Corporate, Association and Affiliated Institution). For WOC Membership information, contact  paul.holthus@oceancouncil.org For further information from The Economist, please contact Alice Wong(+852) 2585 3312 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            (+852) 2585 3312      end_of_the_skype_highlighting  or alicewong@economist.com. About the World Ocean Council (WOC) The WOC is the only international, cross-sectoral alliance for private sector leadership and collaboration in “Corporate Ocean Responsibility”. Companies and associations worldwide are distinguishing themselves as leaders in ocean sustainability and stewardship by joining the WOC. Members to date include over 36 leadership organizations from a wide range of ocean industries: oil and gas, shipping, seafood, tourism, ocean technology, maritime law, marine environmental services and other areas. Contact:  Paul Holthus+1 (808) 277-9008 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            +1 (808) 277-9008      end_of_the_skype_highlighting  paul.holthus@oceancouncil.org Web: www.oceancouncil.org

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Smart Ocean / Smart Industries Program Program for Data Collection from Vessels and Platforms

News Release WORLD OCEAN COUNCIL LAUNCHES “SMART OCEAN / SMART INDUSTRIES” PROGRAM ON OCEAN AND CLIMATE OBSERVATIONS Maersk, Transocean, Other Leadership Companies Joining Forces to Create International Program for Data Collection from Vessels and Platforms 31 October 2011 – Leading ocean companies are working to expand and better coordinate the collecting of ocean and atmospheric information from ships and offshore structures through the “Smart Ocean / Smart Industries” program developed by the World Ocean Council (WOC). The UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) is hosting the initial WOC workshop on 12-13 Dec 2011 in Paris. The need to better understand and monitor the ocean and climate has never been greater. Government and scientific institutions have limited facilities and resources to obtain marine and atmospheric data. Shipping, offshore oil and gas and other ocean industries, e.g. ferries, fisheries, offshore wind, aquaculture and others, operate thousands of vessels and platforms. These provide tremendous potential for cost-effectively collecting ocean and climate data. Expanded information will help improve the modeling and predictability of weather, ocean conditions and climate change, and will support responsible use of ocean space and resources – with clear benefits for science, government, society, and business. A WOC Working Group co-chaired by A.P. Moeller-Maersk and Transocean is beginning work to develop a comprehensive structure and process to scale up data collection from “smart” ships and platforms and expand the spatial and temporal extent of observations by leadership companies. At Maersk Line, Eskild Lund Sorensen, Environmental Manager stated that, "With more than 500 commercial vessels sailing on the major trade lanes of the world, Maersk Line pledges to protect the marine environment upon which its business depends. As a member of the WOC, we will contribute to promoting ocean sustainability by making our assets available to the ocean research community through strategic, structured and long-term research partnerships and collaboration." Heather Null, Transocean’s Environmental and Corporate Responsibility Manager, said, “Transocean has approximately 100 active rigs worldwide and we have a long history of partnering with the science community and oil and gas industry colleagues to collect environmental data from offshore rigs. The WOC initiative creates a new opportunity to build on this history to jointly observe and understand the marine environment.” The WOC program will catalyze the role of leadership companies from a range of ocean industries in the systematic, regular, sustained and integrated collection and reporting of standardized oceanographic and atmospheric data. This will provide critical information to scientific programs that improve the safety and sustainability of commercial activities at sea and contribute to maintaining and improving ocean health. The program is being developed in close collaboration with national and international ocean and climate observations programs, and with existing voluntary observation programs. Peter Hinchliffe, Secretary General of the International Chamber of Shipping (a Founding Member of the WOC), voiced strong support, “The ICS encourages shipping companies, other ocean industries, and voluntary observation programs to get involved in this important initiative. More and better data will result in improved ocean and climate models. These will advance the predictability of ocean and weather conditions, with tremendous benefits for the safety and efficiency of all marine operations.” The IOC will host the initial WOC “Smart Ocean / Smart Industries” workshop. The meeting will convene industry, science and government representatives to develop: a) a shared understanding of the program need and opportunity, b) the initial design of the process and institutional framework and c) the roadmap and workplan for moving forward. IOC Executive Secretary, Wendy Watson-Wright, stated, “The IOC is extremely pleased to host the initial WOC workshop on this far-reaching initiative. The WOC, with its growing network of ocean leadership companies, is uniquely positioned to catalyze a coordinated program of ocean and climate observations by industry and ensure it is integrated with international and national science and observation programs.” The workshop will bring together representatives from: a) shipping, oil and gas, ferry, offshore wind, mining, fisheries, navies, etc; b) existing voluntary observation programs; c) marine technology, instrumentation, IT/communications; and d) international and national oceanographic/metrological organizations. Space is limited. Interested parties should contact: paul.holthus@oceancouncil.org About the World Ocean Council (WOC) The WOC is the only international, cross-sectoral alliance for private sector leadership and collaboration in “Corporate Ocean Responsibility”. Companies and associations worldwide are distinguishing themselves as leaders in ocean sustainability and stewardship by joining the WOC. Members to date include over 36 leadership organizations from a wide range of ocean industries: oil and gas, shipping, seafood, tourism, ocean technology, maritime law, marine environmental services and other areas. Contact: Paul Holthus             +1 (808) 277-9008       paul.holthus@oceancouncil.org Web: www.oceancouncil.org To subscribe to future WOC News or to update your contact information, click here. To share this issue of WOC News with others (on Facebook, Twitter, etc), click here.

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Maersk Joins the World Ocean Council

AUSMEPA is very proud to be associated with companies that have a commitment to ocean sustainability like our sponsor, Maersk who have now joined the ranks of the World Ocean Council

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