OCEAN LITERACY for BLUE CITIZENSHIP
Photo credit: Will Van Wingerde / Unsplash
The Project
Table of Contents
The project focuses on delivering capacity-building initiatives and mentorship to enhance Early Career Ocean Professionals’ (ECOPs) understanding of policy processes, enabling them to communicate scientific information persuasively and advocate for sustainable ocean policies. It empowers ECOPs and youth through hands-on policy engagement training and facilitates direct interactions with policymakers to apply their skills in real-world scenarios. The ECOP Programme and Global Ocean Literacy Task Team will support networking, showcasing ideas, and fostering synergies, thus enhancing professional development and nurturing a global community of informed and engaged blue citizens.
Background
Ocean literacy is essential for developing informed and engaged blue citizens capable of advocating for sustainable ocean management and influencing policies. Despite ongoing efforts, a gap persists in adequately preparing Early Career Ocean Professionals (ECOPs) for this role. This project aims to bridge that gap by enhancing Ocean Literacy for Blue Citizenship, fostering a sustainable, ocean-literate workforce that connects sciences, society, and policy. By involving ECOPs in decision-making processes and empowering them to become new leaders, the project equips them with the necessary skills for effective policy engagement and creates opportunities for interaction with policymakers.
Framework
Aligned with the EU Green Deal, Mission Ocean objectives, Ocean Literacy Principles, and the Venice Declaration, this initiative emphasizes ocean literacy and cognitive equity to address UN Decade Challenge 10. It focuses on bridging gaps in understanding and encouraging action to protect marine ecosystems and support a sustainable blue economy. By fostering equitable access to ocean knowledge, it empowers communities to engage in informed and impactful ocean stewardship.
Objectives
1. To enhance knowledge about policies and how the engagement of blue citizens can influence the policy change for a more sustainable blue economy, strong measures to protect/restore marine and freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity.
2. To provide knowledge and encourage co-creation on strategic campaigns and coordinate actions from bottom-up to influence the revision of the International Ocean Governance agenda.
Components of the project
Training course
Awareness campaigns
Policy Engagement Opportunities
Training course
Awareness campaigns
We plan to develop awareness campaigns to address the gap in understanding among ECOPs and youth regarding their role in policy engagement. These campaigns will clarify the responsibilities of blue citizens in the policymaking process, focusing on active participation with policymakers and amplifying the voices of society, especially those from neglected communities. By highlighting the importance of political engagement as a means to promote environmental justice, uphold human rights, and ensure the health of the ocean—intrinsically linked to human well-being—the campaigns aim to engage both those already interested in the topic and those who may not have previously considered their potential contributions to more equitable policies and laws.
Workshop recordings
🔹 Workshop 1: BBNJ for Everyone
An easy-to-follow introduction to the High Seas Treaty (BBNJ Agreement) — what it is, why it matters for people and the planet, and how decisions made far from shore affect our daily lives. Designed for everyone, no policy jargon, just real stories and clear facts.
🔹 Workshop 2: Storytelling & Video-Making Tips for Your Advocacy Campaigns
Learn how to turn your passion into action! This session covers how to craft an advocacy story that moves people and practical, beginner-friendly tips for filming, editing, and sharing your message through video. Perfect for anyone who wants to raise their voice for the ocean.
Policy Engagement Opportunities
Through various partnerships, we aim to empower ECOPs and youth with training opportunities (online, in-person and hands-on), direct interaction with policymakers, and mentorship to enhance their understanding of policy processes, enabling effective advocacy for sustainable ocean policies.
Resources
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Current Challenges in Blue Food Policies
Catch up on this engaging session exploring the importance of blue foods in ocean and food policies, and how non-state actors — NGOs to local communities — are shaping the future of our ocean.
We dive into the vital role of civil society in empowering people to take part in policy discussions, making ocean governance more inclusive and connected to real lives.
✨ Plus, hear from our project manager as they present a case study on Blue Food policies in Europe, highlighting how collective voices are creating positive change in food systems policies and ocean health.
Watch the recording and get inspired to be part of this movement!
Focal points
Partners
Sponsors
🌊 Invest in the Future of Our Ocean:
Support the Ocean Literacy for Blue Citizenship Project 🌊
Why fund us?
Because your support will:
✅ Multiply impact where it matters.
By training Early Career Ocean Professionals (ECOPs) as multipliers, your investment won’t stop at one person — it will ripple out to communities, networks, and decision-making spaces across Europe and beyond.
✅ Fuel a movement that blends science, civic action, and global solidarity.
We’re not just offering training — we’re building a generation of blue citizens who combine ocean knowledge with advocacy, public engagement, and coalition-building for co-creation to push for meaningful, lasting change.
✅ Strengthen the personal connection between people and the ocean.
At the heart of this initiative is ocean literacy — the ability to understand the ocean’s influence on our lives and our influence on the ocean. Through this, we bring the ocean closer to people’s daily realities in ways they can feel, see, and relate to. We aim to inspire a sense of belonging, and empower individuals to become active, informed advocates for the ocean — people who don’t just care about it, but feel it’s a part of who they are, and stand up to protect it.
✅ Help shape a resilient, connected, and skilled generation ready to lead ocean governance.
At a time when marine biodiversity loss accelerates and policy windows for action narrow, we need empowered, capable leaders on the frontlines of ocean governance — and this is exactly who we’re raising.