Kazakhstan: Marine Environmental Issues of the Caspian Sea and Potential Solutions;
Online, 26 March – 24 April; in Russian Language
IOI Focal Point in Kazakhstan, Alma Martin, organised and directed the online event for an audience of laypersons as part of the IOI’s global Ocean Literacy Programme. This IOI Ocean Academy was designed to provide a general introduction to ocean governance while focusing on marine environmental issues and challenges present around the Caspian Sea.
27 participants successfully completed the course, having actively participated in the lectures, zoom chats and polls. Lectures focused on general information on the Caspian Sea, the main environmental issues and the solutions and actions taken to date; ecosystem services present; the biodiversity of the Caspian Sea & monitoring of the marine environment; overfishing and endangerment of the Caspian Seal population; climate change; waste Management; sustainable Travel & Tourism; current policies in place & what they mean for the Caspian Sea.
Singapore: The Ocean, Source of Life and Livelihoods, An online ocean literacy course;
Online, 21 March - 12 April; in English Language
15 participants successfully completed another IOI Ocean Academy course organised by IOI Focal Point in Singapore, Jai Acharya. The training course established a good understanding about our ocean as as a symbol of our lifeline, management of our sustainable relationship ocean, its rich resources, beauty and blessings of our ocean and contributions towards our well-being. The main focus was on East Asian and Southeast Asian Seas with a global and local touch-up on Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia’s marine ecosystem, mangroves, marine parks, marine protected areas (MPA), Bio-diversity and Ocean related local issues. Discussions were held on the Ocean as a living entity, its bio-diversity, marine environment, the concept of sustainability and application of blue economy for the ocean related activities and business ventures. A brief introduction of sustainable development, Rio+20 and UN Agenda 2030 (UN SDGs) was also included. Below, testimonials from the course:
“I had the opportunity to participate in a really interesting and topical Certificate Training Program on Ocean Literacy Training Program of IOI Ocean Academy (Singapore). Thanks to Dr Jai Acharya for such a well-curated program covering aspects of sustainability, bio-diversity, environmental protection, regulatory compliance, future challenges, etc. Highly recommend it!”
Yogyata Kapoor, Director at ISFGI & Convener of IMRC, Japan
