Presenting in the the Norwegian Shipowners Association’s offices at the end of March 2023 in Oslo, the UN Global Compact, special adviser, ocean, Sturla Henriksen explained the organisation’s role and its presence at Nor-Shipping 2023
“We are the private arm of the UN,” he said.
This refers to the 10 principles of the UN Global Compact on corporate sustainability to which companies can sign up to. The core of the agreement is that signatory companies will operate in ways that, at a minimum, meet fundamental responsibilities in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption. The responsible businesses enact the same values and principles wherever they have a presence, and know good practices in one area do not offset harm in another
Over 21,000 companies have signed the Compact which encompasses 17 sustainable development goals, and includes the Paris Agreement and various other agreements and frameworks.
Sustainability means using environmentally friendly ways of producing energy, “We need to produce more energy from the oceans,” said Mr Henriksen, “We have an ambitious target of 2,000 GW (from wind and waves).” He noted the current total is around 16 GW from wind and waves.
The need to reduce ocean pollution is another ambitious aim, “As we speak, 15 tonnes per minute of plastic is entering the ocean,” he said, “And 90% of this will stay there for decades.”
He said proper management of the oceans is required, “It is a paradox that this vital, important biosphere is poorly managed, is weakly governed and little understood,” he said.
UN Global Compact assistant secretary-general and chief executive Sanda Ojiambo will take part in two high-level roundtables on the oceans on 5 June 2023 during the week of Nor-Shipping 2023.
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