Regional node - Asia
Photo credit: Andrzej Suwara / Unsplash
Navigate the ECOP Asia page
Introducing ECOP Asia
Since June 2021, ECOP Asia has been established as a regional node of the Global ECOP Programme, to connect existing networks of multi-disciplinary ECOPs across Asia, and to exchange past experience and current knowledge of the challenges and objectives of the UN Ocean Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).
Extending from the Middle East all the way to Indonesia in Southeast Asia, ECOP Asia aims to develop and nurture a vibrant, engaged, and inclusive regional ECOP community in Asia, conducive to inter-generational and cross-cultural dialogues, knowledge exchange, multi-sectoral partnerships, and transformative ocean solutions. The network has significantly grown over the past two years and keeps expanding its horizons and ambitions further.
ECOP Asia Membership Distribution (November 2024)
This is an interactive map. You can zoom in and hover over any highlighted country to view the most up-to-date ECOP member count.
Action Plan
- Curating a regional inventory of ECOPs and filling gaps in geographic representation,
- Creating an interactive map of ocean stakeholders and partners across Asia,
- Conducting surveys and assessments to gather feedback and identify needs (see our reports),
- Overseeing and facilitating the establishment of national ECOP nodes and thematic hubs,
- Disseminating ocean-related news and opportunities (including jobs, events, training, etc.),
- Identifying and recommending ECOP speakers, facilitators, convenors and local champions for conferences and other ocean-related events, activities and initiatives,
- Co-designing and co-organizing workshops, training and other capacity development activities (during conferences or as standalone projects),
- Strengthening relationships with multi-sectoral stakeholders in the regional ocean space and engaging with other significant actors within the broader Ocean Decade ecosystem,
- Broadening our support base and seeking inclusive funding opportunities to support ECOP ideas, activities, training and career development.
Credit: Anatoly Anikin / Unsplash
ECOP Asia Coordinating Team
ECOP Asia welcomes you to join the network and share your activities and opportunities related to the UN Ocean Decade. The first thing we would encourage you to do is subscribe to our global monthly newsletter at this link here. You will be asked whether you would like your contact details to be added to our global registry, which directly connects to the membership map shown above.
Ready to make a difference and contribute to our regional ECOP movement? Express your commitment to driving change by initiating a national ECOP node or suggesting a new working group (read our Onboarding Handbook here).
Still unsure about why you should join our ECOP Asia network? We have compiled a non-exhaustive list of concrete benefits depending on your own engagement capacity:
- An opportunity to build a sense of community. Learn from and connect with fellow early-career scientists, government officers, environmental NGOs, ecopreneurs, policy-makers, and other key ocean stakeholders;
- Peer-to-peer knowledge exchange and mentorship across disciplines and sectors. This is a great chance for you to get involved in transdisciplinary initiatives;
- Participate in the UN Ocean Decade framework and acquire leadership and networking skills that are often challenging to develop through alternative methods and processes;
- Gain access to the latest news, jobs, projects, resources and funding opportunities in the global ocean space;
- Enhance your professional development and learning further by engaging in workshops, webinars, trainings and other sponsored capacity development initiatives;
- Receive support for your ideas and projects and actively contribute towards solutions to the 10 Ocean Decade Challenges (big announcement upcoming in 2024);
- Join our regional working group on Ocean Literacy and spearhead new priorities and topical areas that ECOP Asia should focus on.
Let’s take action together and amplify the voices of Asian ECOPs within the transformative framework of the UN Ocean Decade!
Don’t hesitate to reach out to us and share your ideas at: asia@ecopdecade.org.
For any specific questions or enquiries, please feel free to contact our Regional and National Coordinators or any of our Focal Points listed below:
Testimonials
I would describe the ECOP internship as a turning point in my career. It provided valuable learning opportunities and allowed me to connect with numerous ocean professionals in Bangladesh—connections that wouldn’t have been possible without this program. I am especially grateful to my incredibly supportive supervisor, Raphael Roman, who guided me throughout the internship. Despite working across different time zones, I never felt any pressure, and the entire experience was smooth and well-structured. This internship offered unique learning experiences that are hard to put into words. I highly recommend it to anyone seeking to advance their career as an ocean professional, as it provides unparalleled opportunities for networking both within and beyond your country.
During my internship, I have gained valuable insights and knowledge in both international organizations and marine research. This experience has not only enhanced my understanding of how international organizations operate but also has empowered me to confidently reach out to various stakeholders in order to address and resolve specific issues. I am confident that the lessons learned during my internship will serve as a strong foundation for my future endeavors in the professional world.
My ECOP Asia internship experience was simply wonderful. It was a dream-come-true when I got the internship opportunity from Asia as I always wanted to work somewhere that truly cares for Ocean and actively promotes young minds. This experience of working in a multicultural diverse global community helped me significantly with my career planning. My biggest takeaway would be the new long-term relationships and connections which I had forged with my core ECOP team.
Read more on our internship webpage.
National Nodes and Regional Thematic Hubs
Thailand
Coming soon!
Bangladesh
Coming soon!
Philippines
Coming soon!
Blue Carbon & mCDR Group
Coming soon!
Indonesia
Coming soon!
Reports & Capacity Strengthening
Click and drag to explore our various reports.
UN Ocean Decade Endorsed Actions Landscape (Dec. 2024)
Note: Endorsed Actions refer to Activities, Projects, Programmes, and Contributions. The asterisk ‘*’ for the Russian Federation indicates that we only retained endorsed Actions focusing on ocean basins and water bodies in Asia, including the North Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and the Caspian Sea.
ECOP Asia Highlights
- July-November 2024: The ECOP Korea team (“K-ECOP”) is actively contributing to and supporting the 4th Ocean Science Big Data Contest in the Republic of Korea. Learn more about last year’s 3rd Ocean Science Big Data Contest by visiting our ECOP Korea’s team page here. These annual contests are endorsed as a UN Ocean Decade Activity.
- September 30, 2024: During the “Philippines Ocean Decade Initiatives Expo“, which was organized by the Philippine National Commission for UNESCO, Camille Rivera—one of our Ocean Literacy Asia leads—gave a presentation about the ECOP Programme, our Asia node, and the future national hub for the Philippines. Her presentation officially kicked off the process of establishing the ECOP Philippines node.
- Sept/Oct 2024: Core ECOP Asia members co-organized and co-moderated three interactive and engaging virtual sessions as part of the PICES international Open Science Training. The webinars focused on: 1) International Collaboration & Science Diplomacy; 2) International Data Management; and 3) Science Communications. This training was endorsed as a UN Ocean Decade Activity and delved into real-world examples of strengthening international scientific cooperation and building trust across national borders by integrating culturally diverse perspectives and practices, with a particular emphasis on the North Pacific region.
- August 20, 2024: The ECOP Japan team held their first successful webinar, as part of a new webinar series called “ECOP Japan radio”. This Japanese series aims to facilitate casual exchanges among young Japanese marine experts (ECOPs) active in the various ocean-related fields, including research, education, administration, industry, and NPOs/NGOs. This 1st ECOP Japan radio episode focused on Coral Reefs and Sea Cucumbers. You can watch the recording here.
- July 2024: The ECOP Programme initiated a new collaboration with our Filipino colleagues at the Office of the Youth in Maritime (YIMO). The YIMO “envisions to empower young seafarers, fishers, shipbuilders, marine scientists, and other maritime professionals to join in steering the helm for our shared future”. As a result, the YIMO became the first seafarer-led youth organization recognized by the UN Ocean Decade-endorsed ECOP Programme. YIMO’s co-founder, Yrhen Bernard Sabanal Balinis, is also a member of our Ocean Literacy Asia working group.
- June 25, 2024: On the International Day of the Seafarer, together with the Office of the Youth in Maritime (YIMO), we co-designed a survey: “Through the Lookout’s Binoculars: A Global Youth in Maritime Outlook”. The purpose of this survey was to understand the perspectives of seafarers, younger maritime professionals, and the general public as the maritime industry navigates new challenges and opportunities. The outcomes of this survey will feed into the advocacy campaigns of the YIMO and ECOP Programme.
- June 21, 2024: Our regional coordinator authored a peer-reviewed, open-access article: “Building Bridges for Ocean Sustainability: The Evolution and Impact of the Early Career Ocean Professional (ECOP) programme”, published in the Marine Technology Society Journal.
- June 15, 2024: Environmental groups discussed and conducted fisheries research in Chumphon, Thailand. In a meeting between representatives from ECOP Thailand and GreenPeace, together with local leaders and government officials in Pathio District, discussions centered on the significance of the area’s coastal zones as breeding grounds for fish populations. The meeting also explored potential research collaborations where ECOP researchers could work alongside the local community to address critical marine science questions identified by the community itself. An ECOP team undertook research about the “Rainbow Warrior”, GreenPeace’s flagship vessel. Their mission was to investigate the plankton community, particularly focusing on larvae and eggs of economically important fish species.
- June 10, 2024: ECOP Malaysia team members participated in a dialogue/forum with the Minister of NRES – “Empowering Next Generations of Sustainability Leaders”, at Universiti Malaysia Terengganu. The forum itself was a dialogue between ECOPs and policymakers focusing on the science-policy interface in Malaysia on environmental sustainability. The turnout for the forum was approximately 200 people with 170 identifying themselves as early career professionals. Additionally, take a look at Malaysia Ocean Research Alliance (MORA), a pioneering initiative formed by leading institutions in Malaysia, and founded in collaboration with ECOP Malaysia members.
- June 7-8, 2024: One of our Ocean Literacy Asia leads, Afiq Durrani, participated and spoke on behalf of our ECOP Asia community at the very first Ocean Literacy World Conference in Venice, Italy. Alongside other ECOPs from the global Ocean Literacy Task Team, they actively contributed to the drafting of the Venice Delcaration and successfully pushed for the recognition and empowerment of ECOPs in one of the declaration’s key action items, namely to “[…] Encourage inter-generational dialogue and exchange, value Early Career Ocean Professionals’ (ECOPs) mindset, include them in the decision-making process and create the environment to allow them to emerge as new leaders. Inform students about job opportunities, legitimize the workforce, and offer life-long learning. This will build capacity among ocean professionals to shape an equitable, sustainable ocean economy while preserving ocean health.” Learn more about the conference and its outcomes in this blog post here.
- June 7, 2024: Our partners at Oceanus Conservation in the Philippines organized an Ocean Summit during World Ocean’s Day in Busuanga Palawan, with the theme “Collaboration in Conservation: Catalyzing Action for our Ocean and Climate”, where it gathered about 80 people from diverse stakeholder groups, including the Department of Environment Biodiversity Management Bureau, provincial and local governments, indigenous groups, village leaders, fisherfolks, academics, NGOs, private sector, tourism enterprises, Philippines National Police Maritime, armed forces of the Philippines, and local radio channels. This was a culminating activity from the project of the Canada Embassy through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI) in partnership with Lalakbayin and Sustainable Ocean Alliance – Philippines. One of the key highlights of the Ocean Summit was a presentation from Camille Rivera—one of our Ocean Literacy Asia leads—showing the biodiverse hotspots in Busuanga among the 6 villages, noting the observation of endangered and vulnerable corals in the project sites.
- May 29, 2024: ECOP China’s Training Coordination team successfully kicked off its first training webinar for skills development. Professor Yuan Shen, from the College of Ocean and Earth Sciences at Xiamen University, shared his experience on the topic of “How to give an impressive oral presentation”. The webinar was hosted by Dr. Yangyang Zhao, ECOP China’s training coordinator. The webinar attracted over 560 ECOPs in the marine field from universities and institutions across China. An event report is available at this link here.
- May 10, 2024: The ECOP China node launched its official page on the ECOP Programme website.
- May 2024: We officially closed our national ECOP survey for Bangladesh, which gathered 181 responses. This survey was co-designed with our former ECOP Asia intern and current national focal point for Bangladesh, Shahadat Hossain. The results will be published later this year into a new ECOP Asia report, available here [link TBA].
- April 22-25, 2024: The 2nd UN Ocean Decade Regional Conference & 11th WESTPAC International Marine Science Conference in Bangkok, Thailand, saw the largest in-person gathering of ECOP Asia members, including node coordinators and task team focal points. Over 50 ECOP Asia members shared their voices, energy, passion, and expertise during the Scientific Sessions, Plenaries, and Decade Action Incubators and Workshops held in Bangkok. Local ECOP champions, along with ECOP Asia leads, successfully moderated and spoke at three ECOP-led events, including two workshops and one incubator on (1) Ocean Literacy, (2) Multidisciplinary Best Practices, and (3) Citizen Science. Additionally, through the leadership of the international ECOP/MCOP committee, an ECOP/MCOP statement was unveiled and presented to all conference attendees during the closing ceremony. To learn more about how Asian ECOPs made waves in Bangkok, we invite you to read this blog post here.
- April 15-19, 2024: ECOP Asia members were selected to lead and participate in the East Asian Seas 2024 Youth Forum held in Uljin City, Korea.
- April 10-12, 2024: A few ECOP Asia core team members participated as invited speakers, panelists, or regular attendees at the UN Ocean Decade Conference in Barcelona, Spain.
- April 1, 2024: We released the 2023 ECOP Japan Survey Report, which can be read in both English and Japanese. To access our portfolio of ECOP publications, please visit this link.
- March 14-15, 2024: ECOPs in Malaysia co-organized and joined the 1st Annual Forum for Early Career Scientists in Marine Science in Xiamen University, Malaysia. This forum provided a unique platform for early-career scientists—postgraduate students and fresh PhD graduates—to not only showcase their research work, but also to receive valuable feedback from senior researchers and connect with like-minded peers. You can read the event report here.
- March 7, 2024: The “UN Ocean Decade ECOP Japan Symposium” was held as the second symposium from the ECOP Japan national node. Organized by the Ocean Policy Research Institute (OPRI) of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, the event was conducted in a hybrid format with simultaneous interpretation. Approximately 300 people registered for the symposium. More details are available in this event report, including links to recordings in Japanese and English. As an output of the symposium, and inspired by similar efforts from the ECOP Canada team, the ECOP Japan node co-designed a poster providing a graphical summary of actions that can be taken for each of the seven Ocean Decade outcomes, from the viewpoint of Japanese ECOPs. The poster can be seen on the ECOP Japan page or aforementioned event report.
- February 2, 2024: During the Indian Ocean Regional Decade Conference, ECOPs from the Indian Ocean Region, including several ECOP Asia members, made extensive deliberations during a side-event: “The Importance of Science Communication within the science-policy perspectives of ECOPs”.
- February 2024: We officially closed our national ECOP survey for Malaysia, which gathered 109 responses. This survey was co-designed with our former ECOP Asia intern and current national focal point for Malaysia, Evonne Tan. The results will be published later this year into a new ECOP Asia report, available here [link TBA]
- November 30, 2023: Launched our very first thematic hub on Ocean Literacy for Asia, coordinated by our local ECOP champions based in or from India, Lebanon and the Philippines.
- November 16, 2023: We revamped our entire ECOP Asia webpage to enhance the user experience, make it more dynamic and update the content accordingly. We hope you are enjoying the new layout 🙂
- November 9, 2023: Our ECOP China and ECOP Korea teams joined forces during the International Digital Twins of the Ocean (DITTO) Summit in Xiamen, China (Nov. 9-12, 2023). They co-chaired and co-organized a special workshop dedicated to ECOPs, which included presentations and lively roundtable discussions. This was also an opportunity to officialize the launch of the ECOP China node. Learn more here and watch the summary video here.
- October 20-27, 2023: Several members of the ECOP Asia team attended the 2023 PICES Annual Meeting (“Connecting Science and Communities for Sustainable Seas”) in Seattle, USA. More than a third (36%) of participants were ECOPs. Additionally, the Advisory Panel on ECOPs (AP-ECOP) ran their very first in-person mentorship scheme, convening 26 teams where mentors and mentees were matched across disciplines and geographies (i.e., Canada, China, Japan, South Korea and the USA). Our regional coordinator for ECOP Asia also presented a poster titled: “Engaging ECOPs in East Asia: Insights from 2023 Surveys in China, Japan and the Republic of Korea”. You can access the poster and learn more about this PICES meeting here.
- October 2, 2023: Indian ECOP focal points organized a webinar on Ocean Literacy titled: “Indian ECOPs Meet: Exploring Ocean Literacy in India with Indian ECOPs and Organizations 2023”. Watch the recording here.
- September 4, 2023: The ECOP Republic of Korea node released their own bilingual survey, which is still open and accepting responses. See here.
- August 28, 2023: Recruited two new ECOP Asia interns from Bangladesh and Malaysia. Our interns support a variety of tasks related to the development, promotion and advancement of the ECOP Programme in their own countries, including laying the foundations of a future National ECOP node.
- June 2-5 2023: During the 6th World Conference on Marine Biodiversity (WCMB) in Penang, Malaysia, several ECOPs were in attendance. With the generous support of Amanah Lestari Alam (ALAM), five ECOPs received a registration fee waiver and had the opportunity to join other ECOP volunteers either as facilitator or note-taker during one special session co-organized by Marine Life 2030, the Ocean Knowledge Action Network (OceanKAN), Amanah Lestari Alam (ALAM) and the ECOP Programme, titled: “Creating a Vision and Roadmap to Achieve the UN Decade’s Challenge #2: Protect and Restore Ecosystems and Biodiversity”. Another joint participatory workshop actively engaging ECOPs was titled: “Catalyzing Collaboration for Co-Designed Marine Life Science”. More information is available here.
- June 20, 2023: Led by our 2022 ECOP Asia intern in China, we published our second national ECOP report, available in both English and 中文. It showcases the results of the ECOP China survey and provides an update on the progress made in establishing the ECOP China node.
- June 14, 2023: Led by our 2022 ECOP Asia intern in India, we released our very first national ECOP report. The report synthesized the results of our Indian ECOP questionnaire and enhanced our understanding of the diverse profiles, needs, priorities, challenges and aspirations of ECOPs in the country. Read the full report here.
- June 8, 2023: Published our new and comprehensive report for ECOP Asia (2022-2023), which dives into the latest insights, figures and updates from our Regional ECOP node. Specifically, we explored the results of the 2022 ECOP Asia survey (which followed up on the 2021 questionnaire), uncovered the dynamic and growing network of National ECOP nodes in Asia, and provided a panoramic view of the landscape of UN Ocean Decade Actions in the region. Read the full report here.
- June 5-8, 2023: The Institute of Plastic Cycling and Innovation from East China Normal University kindly sponsored three Chinese ECOPs to attend the Fourth National Environmental Microplastic Pollution and Prevention Conference in Shanghai, China. Additionally, our ECOP China focal point and former intern gave a presentation introducing the ECOP Programme, while many ECOPs participated in a cooperative beach clean-up activity at Chongming Island, Shanghai, in collaboration with the Shanghai Society for Oceanology and Limnology.
- May 31, 2023: Launched ECOP South Korea, our second National ECOP node in Asia.
- May 30, 2023: The ECOP Japan node released their first national survey. It was a bilingual questionnaire and officially closed in September 2023. A report is currently being prepared by the national coordinating team.
- May 29, 2023: Together with the IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society, we organized a joint webinar on the topic of underwater acoustics and the role sound plays in ocean science. The webinar was titled: “Basics of acoustics in underwater applications” and the recording is here.
- April 25, 2023: As part of the Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA) Contribution to the UN Ocean Decade, we kick-started our joint global webinar series in Asia. The first episode was titled: “Learning Tide: Young leaders reimagine a clean ocean without plastic pollution.” Watch here.
- December 12, 2022: Hari Vishnu, ECOP Asia member, Senior Research Fellow at the National University of Singapore and an organizer of Singapore AUV Challenge was featured in ECOP Conversations. Hari’s talks about his work in underwater acoustic signal processing, machine learning for bio-acoustics and robotics. Watch the full video on our Youtube channel here.
- November 11, 2022: Interviewed Camille Rivera, one of our ECOP champions from the Philippines and co-founder of Oceanus Conservation. You can listen to her interview in our “ECOP Conversations” video series here.
- Sept. 23 – Oct. 4, 2022: Attended the 2022 PICES Annual Meeting in Busan, South Korea: “Sustainability of Marine Ecosystems through global knowledge networks during the UN Decade of Ocean Science”. Co-organized and co-moderated two ECOP-focused events: (i) ECOP Workshop: “Exploring Engagement Opportunities for ECOPs within PICES and Internationally” (report coming soon!), and (ii) Joint ECOP Symposium: “Developing Better Capacity for Early Career Ocean Professionals”.
- September 19, 2022: Hired two ECOP Asia interns from China and India, who will be assisting the ECOP Programme until late December 2022.
- August 22, 2022: The South Korea ECOP community had their first online gathering (~33 people attended). A National ECOP node for South Korea is currently in the works and will be established later in the year.
- August 15, 2022: The first ECOP Asia Report was published and made publicly available on the ECOP website, see here.
- August 2, 2022: Officially launched ECOP Japan, the very first National ECOP node in Asia.
- July 18-21, 2022: Took part in the 4th ICES/PICES Early Career Scientist Conference in Newfoundland, Canada, and highlighted the progress made in Asia during an ECOP engagement workshop organized by ECOP Canada. Here is a short conference-recap video.
- June 27 July 1, 2022: Attended the 2022 UN Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Portugal, and co-sponsored one ECOP from the Philippines to travel, attend and speak at the conference: Camille Rivera (meet her in this episode of ECOP Conversations). Here is an excerpt from her testimonial: : “[…] I found it very impactful to attend and contribute to these events because oftentimes, there is a huge disconnect with what is happening on the ground. I was able to share that knowledge and experience coming from the Global South and there is a need to fill up that gap, especially with the engagement of more ECOPs like me!
- March 22 – May 22, 2022: Disseminated the 2nd ECOP Asia survey as a follow-up to the first one circulated in Spring 2021. The 2022 survey filled in gaps in geographic representation, investigated funding priorities and preferred outreach initiatives, gauged interest in science communication skills and assessed regional engagement opportunities within the UN Ocean Decade, among other objectives (a report is coming up soon in November 2022).
- March 4-6, 2022: Co-sponsored a hands-on training workshop on Next-Generation Sequencing: “Peek into Biodiversity and Beyond”, organized by the Centre of Climate and Environmental Studies, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Kolkata, India. A workshop summary authored by Anwesha Ghosh can be found here.
- January 19th, 2022: Our ECOP Asia coordinator recorded a presentation for the webinar: “Engaging Early Career Ocean Professionals in the UN Ocean Decade”, which was jointly prepared by DEFRA (UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs), IOC-UNESCO and the ECOP Programme. You can access the full event recording here.
- January 18, 2022: Participated in the Virtual kick off symposium for the ECOP community in Japan: “Toward creating an ECOP network in the UN Decade of Ocean Science”. Video recordings are publicly available on the Sasakawa Peace Foundation’s YouTube channel, in Japanese here and with simulataenous English translation here. A summary report can also be accessed here and feel free to contact our ECOP Japan coordinators for any questions.
- November 25-26, 2021: Organized and moderated a Decade Action Incubator Session during the UN Decade Regional Kickoff Conference for the Western Pacific and its Adjacent Areas (WESTPAC). See video recording here and a summary prepared by Hari Vishnu here.
- June 8, 2021: Celebrated World Oceans Day with inspiring testimonials from ECOPs all across India (video).
- June 1-2, 2021: Introduced the ECOP Asia network and presented the results of the first pan-Asia ECOP survey at the Virtual Early Career Ocean Professionals Day.
Video gallery
ECOP Asia playlist
12 Videos
ECOP Asia Partners
