TM10 | Capacity Development in the UN Ocean Decade ECOP Programme: successes, challenges, and ways forward

TM10

Capacity Development in the UN Ocean Decade ECOP Programme: successes, challenges, and ways forward

Convener: Evgeniia Kostianaia

Wed, 04 Jun, 12:45–13:45 (CEST)|Room 4

The proposed town hall will first highlight diverse and inclusive capacity development strategies employed by the UN Ocean Decade endorsed Early Career Ocean Professionals Programme (ECOP Programme). We shall share the lessons learned from the past four years and discuss recommendations for further cooperative actions. In the second part of the town hall, moderated open discussion with the audience, the event will discuss current gaps in achieving better inclusivity, specifically funding gaps for certain geographies, inclusion of underrepresented communities, and challenges for the successful uptake of capacity development opportunities. We will touch upon geopolitical, intergenerational, and intersectoral aspects of inclusivity, and discuss ways to amplify the voices of those often underrepresented in high-level discussions. We will review DEI tools that can be used in capacity development activities, such as inclusive language, assertive communication, and consideration of cultural background. As a UN Ocean Decade programme working with and for ECOPs, with over 6,000 members across over 160 countries, we are in a unique position to share the voices and perspectives of these professionals to ensure more effective and inclusive ocean policies and solutions for all.

All our speakers, chairperson, and moderators are ECOPs. The moderators are included in the list of suggested speakers. Although it is problematic to confirm anyone’s participation almost 6 months before the Congress, we have done our best to ensure that the suggested list is geographically diverse. Currently, the list of our speakers, chairperson, and moderators features nationals of Ireland, Switzerland, El Salvador, Morocco, Canada, and Russia, however we expect that representatives of the different ECOP Programme nodes and task teams of many other nationalities will be involved as speakers from the audience in the moderated second section of the town hall. If the application is successful, we will ensure even broader representation of nationalities.

Our target audience will be ECOPs and established professionals, working in the capacity development field, such as training providers, interested in identifying ways to solve related capacity development challenges. We also welcome anyone interested in sharing their experiences related to barriers and inclusivity challenges in capacity development and career growth within the ocean sciences.

This town hall strives to share the successes of the ECOP Programme in their capacity development work and aims to find innovative and efficient solutions to address specific challenges related to capacity development/sharing. By ensuring an inclusive, international, and intersectoral atmosphere, we aim for an impactful and meaningful event by supplying concrete suggestions for further capacity development. The moderated open discussion will provide some successful examples of solving capacity development challenges by highlighting stories from our worldwide experience. The audience will be invited to share their experiences and learn new ways for creating opportunities that are truly inclusive. The open discussion will be highly interactive and action-oriented. This will result in a post-event report with a set of recommendations and actionable strategies that will feed into UNOC3 discussions.