Get involved in the UN Ocean Decade

GET INVOLVED IN THE UN OCEAN DECADE

Photo credit: Shaun Wolfe / Ocean Image Bank

How to get involved in the UN Ocean Decade?

Have you been navigating around our website and started thinking that the UN Ocean Decade is really cool and you want to get involved further? Wondering how you can have your Action be endorsed under the UN Ocean Decade? This page is dedicated to giving you the information you might need to do exactly that. Follow our step-by-step guide below!

Step 1. Learn about the UN Ocean Decade Framework

It's best to start at the very beginning and have a good overview of the entire UN Ocean Decade framework.

If you need to go back to our previous page to reacquaint yourself with the UN Ocean Decade vision, mission, 10 challenges and 7 outcomes: click here.

The UN Ocean Decade is working on a global, regional and local level, across multiple themes, through many partnerships and within a strategic timeframe – in order to co-design solutions to achieve the science we need for the ocean we want by 2030.

We highly recommend signing up to the Ocean Decade Network, which is the forum that you can access through the Ocean Decade website. On this Network platform, you can liase with other members and stakeholders, find events or opportunities and use many helpful other resources. You can also learn about other UN Ocean Decade Actions, and how they are categorized.

National Decade Committees are set up to coordinate, support and increase a country’s participation in the Ocean Decade by mobilizing the whole “ocean community” at the national level. To date, 37 countries have established a National Decade Committee. Find out if your county has a National Decade Committee here.

Decade Collaborative Centres (DCCs) and Decade Coordination Offices (DCOs) provide targeted support to the Ocean Decade through a coordination and catalysis role for Decade Actions at the regional or thematic level. DCCs and DCOs also proactively support the Ocean Decade Communities of Practice that correspond to their thematic or regional focus, facilitating their structuring, membership and active engagement via the Ocean Decade Network.

Decade Implementing Partners (DIPs) are stakeholder institutions, networks or groups whose vision, mission or mandate align with the priorities of the Ocean Decade. Unlike Decade Collaborative Centres (DCCs) and Decade Coordination Offices (DCOs), DIPs sit outside the regional/thematic governance and coordination structure and provide targeted support to the Decade.

Step 2. Decide where your Action fits within the framework

Depending on the scope of your Action (whether it is short/long term, incorporating one or more partners, working across countries or regions) you will need to match it to the appropriate category. Here are the categories:

Activities are one-off events, webinars, conferences, workshops, publications, and at times, creative outputs such as poster competitions and postal stamps. They are typically 1-28 days long, and at maximum are one year. This form will let you request the Ocean Decade logo to be used for the activity proposed specifically.

Endorsed events (which includes webinars, conferences, exhibits, and workshops) will be shared on the Ocean Decade Network by the Decade Team. Members may share any events as well, as long as they are a maximum of one month in length. If you are hosting a multi-month or multi-year campaign, please share your individual activities or events rather than the entire campaign.

Read the guidance notes and sign up to the Ocean Decade Network, when you are ready to submit your application (it is recommended to apply at least 6 weeks in advance).

Contributions are accepted on a rolling basis, at any time. Contributions are in-kind or financial contributions to the coordination functions of the Decade or to Decade Actions. This includes Decade Collaborative Centres or Decade Implementing Partners.

For any contribution we suggest that you reach out to: oceandecade@unesco.org to discuss it first. All contributions will be able to use the logo once endorsed.

Learn more about Contributions through our ECOP focal points.

Programmes and projects are solicited through regular Calls for Decade Actions every 6 months throughout the Decade.

The Call for Decade Actions No. 08/2024 is now open for submissions. The current Call for Decade Actions is soliciting Decade Actions in four different parts.

Programmes are large-scale initiatives implemented at the global or regional scale and will contribute to the achievement of one or more of the Ocean Decade Challenges. They will be long-term, multi-year, and typically interdisciplinary and multi-national. They should be comprised of component projects, which may or may not be fully or partially defined at the time of endorsement.

Projects are discrete and focused undertakings. They may be regional, national or subnational and will typically contribute to an identified Ocean Decade programme. Once endorsed programmes and projects will be provided guidance on logo use.

Learn about Programmes with our ECOP focal points.

If your Action is a discrete and focused undertaking, and it is obviously aligned with Early Career Ocean Professionals, providing them with various capacity development and networking opportunities, and overall corresponds to the mission of the ECOP Programme, then you can apply to be affiliated with the ECOP Programme as a project, just like our endorsed projects.

Contact us to learn more.

Step 3. Get ready apply to the Call for Decade Actions No. 08/2024

The Call for Actions No. 08/2023 is now open.

The current Call for Decade Actions is soliciting Decade Actions in four different parts. The figure below provides a diagram summarizing the main of the components of the Call, including the main deadlines. Interested parties should complete and submit the relevant online “Request for Endorsement” form. Please note that there are several different online forms and different deadlines depending on the type of Action you are submitting. Please ensure that you complete the online form that corresponds to the type of Decade Action for which you are seeking endorsement and that you carefully check the relevant submission dates:

Part 1 – 10 November 2024 23.59h UTC: Submission of Expression of Interest for Decade Programmes.
Part 2 – 31 January 2025 23:59h UTC: Submission of full applications for all Decade Programmes and Projects
Part 3 – 31 January 2025 23:59h UTC: Submission of Ocean Decade Contributions.

During review of the requests for endorsement received during the Call for Decade Actions, the Decade Coordination Unit may contact proponents to discuss the proposal, suggest modifications, or make connections to other parties working on similar issues. As such, interested parties are encouraged to submit their requests as soon as possible.

Part I: Ocean Decade Programmes

The thematic focus of the Call for Decade Actions No. 08/2024 has been determined based on the results of the Vision 2030 process and subsequent discussion with the Decade Advisory Board. The scope of the Call is on programmes that contribute to the achievement of one or more of the following Ocean Decade Challenges:

Challenge 6 ‘Increase community resilience to ocean and coastal risks’: Enhance multi-hazard early warning services for all geophysical, ecological, biological, weather, climate and anthropogenic related ocean and coastal hazards, and mainstream community preparedness and resilience.
Challenge 10 ‘Restore society’s relationship with the ocean’: Meaningful society-ocean connections are strengthened, driving increased motivation, capability and opportunity for people, across all sectors of society, to make decisions, act and behave in ways that ensure a healthy ocean.
Programmes with a focus on engaging the health sector and on better understanding the intricate connections between ocean health and human health. Proponents are encouraged to consider the issues identified in the Blue Paper commissioned by the High Level Panel for Sustainable Ocean Economy ‘How can a healthy ocean improve human health and enhance wellbeing on a rapidly changing planet’ that was launched at the 2024 Ocean Decade Conference.

To submit a Programme application that contributes to Ocean Decade Challenges 6 and 10, and programmes that address any of the Challenges with a focus on the ocean-human health nexus, please fill this form: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Prog_CFDA8

Part II: Expression of Interest (EOI) for Decade Programmes

Alternatively, via this call, applicants will also have the possibility to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) for a potential Decade Programme proposal for any of the other Decade Challenges that are not contemplated in Part I of this call and that contributes to the priorities identified in the Vision 2030 process. The Decade Coordination Unit will review the submissions for completeness and ask for recommendations of the Decade Advisory Board on which proponents should be invited to make full programme submissions. If successful, the applicant will be invited to submit a full proposal by 31 January 2025.

Invitations to submit a full proposal will be sent by 1 December 2024. Those whose applications are not identified as potential Decade Programmes, might be potentially recategorized into another Decade Action (Project, Contribution or Activity) or be invited to submit in another Call.

To submit the EOI for a Decade Programme proposal, please fill this form by 10 November 2024 23h59 UTC: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/EOI_CFDA8

Decisions on full applications will be made in the first half of 2025.

Part III: Ocean Decade Projects

This Call is soliciting projects that will contribute to endorsed Decade programmes that have chosen to be part of the Call. Of the currently endorsed programmes, 29 are soliciting projects via the current Call for Decade Actions.

Applicants interested in submitting a Project to an endorsed Decade Programme are requested to carefully read the descriptions of the Programmes contained in Annex I of the Guidance Note for Applicants for Call for Decade Actions No. 08/2024, as well as relevant information on any geographic or thematic priorities that the programmes have identified for the Call.

To submit an application for a Decade Project please fill this form by 31 January 2025 23h59 UTC: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Proj_CFDA8

Decisions on project applications will be made in the first semester of 2025.

Part IV: Ocean Decade Contributions

Under this Call, the solicitation for contribution is focused on in-kind or financial resources that could support:

priority in-kind or financial needs of one the 29 endorsed Decade Programmes participating in this Call (see Annex II of this Guidance Note);
(current needs for Decade Implementing Partners (see Annex III of the Guidance Note); and
capacity development initiatives to contribute to specific needs of the Ocean Decade Capacity Development Facility (see Annex IV of this Guidance Note).

Applicants interested in submitting a Contribution to an endorsed Decade Programme are requested to carefully read the relevant information priorities that the programmes have identified for the Call, which are contained in Annexes II, III and IV.

Decade Contributions applications are accepted on a rolling basis, but applicants are encouraged to fill this form by 31 August 2025 23h59 UTC: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DecadeContribution

Decisions on full applications will be made towards the first half of 2025.

Step 4. Head over to www.oceandecade.org to apply now.

Step 5. Join the Information sessions

Two virtual Q&A sessions are planned to provide interested parties with additional information on the Call for Decade Actions nº 08/2024:

The first session will be held on 29 November 2024 from 07:30 – 08:30 UTC. Register here.
The second session will also be held on 29 November 2024 from 13:30 – 14:30 UTC. Register here.

Step 6. Check out these Ocean Decade resources

Catch up on the Call for Decade Actions No. 08/2023

Want to learn more about the process itself? Check out the latest stats from July 2024 and the recorded information session about Call No. 05 with Alison Clausen, Programme Specialist at IOC-UNESCO.

Listen to the Voices from the Ocean Decade Advisory Board

Learn more about the vision behind the UN Ocean Decade from The Decade Advisory Board – an advisory body to UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC). The fifteen experts selected by the IOC-UNESCO serve for a period of two years and in their individual capacities. The 2022-2023 Advisory Board members hail from thirteen countries, and come from government, private sector, philanthropy, civil society and the scientific community.

In English

In French

In Spanish

Stay up to date with the Ocean Decade

The best place to do this is through the official UN Ocean Decade website!

Click Here