Over the next two weeks, world leaders are meeting in Glasgow, Scotland for the 26th annual UN Climate Conference (COP26). Against a backdrop of intensifying climate impacts — such as stronger and increasingly-common hurricanes and wildfires, rising sea levels, and melting glaciers — COP26 is a make-or-break moment for climate action after the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change described the climate … Continued
Meg Caldwell
6 min read
The main finding of the recent climate report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is clear: to curtail rising temperatures, we must take action now. As the ocean heats up, destructive erosion and flooding caused by sea level rise are not only putting humans at risk but also also threatening coastal habitats that support many fish, birds, and plants. Fortunately, scientists and conservationists are … Continued
As the Packard Foundation works to more intentionally weave together human well-being and ocean health, we are sharing a series of perspective pieces written by our grantees. These stories highlight their efforts to manage ocean resources in a more just and equitable way to improve outcomes for the ocean and the people who depend on it. The … Continued
3 min read
Transforming ocean conservation communications People all around the world are passionate and enthusiastic about the ocean – even if they’ve never personally dipped their toes into its salty waters. How can we better understand and tap into people’s deep connections to the ocean to strengthen the ways we protect it? Beginning in 2016, with support from the … Continued
4 min read
Within the field of ocean conservation, as in many areas of social and environmental change work, we are witnessing a call to authentically advance equity issues, particularly within the context of the global pandemic and the social and racial disparities it has resurfaced. This includes an emphasis on protecting human rights, supporting gender equity, and centering the expertise of Black, Latinx and Indigenous communities. For the ocean community specifically, … Continued
5 min read
Last month, FisheryProgress launched its Human Rights and Social Responsibility Policy. The policy is a meaningful starting point for helping fishery improvement projects take steps to improve their social performance, and for providing seafood buyers with essential information to understand human rights risks in their supply chains. A fishery improvement project (FIP) brings together all … Continued
Over the past year, the world has faced incredible health and economic challenges, fueled by long-seeded inequities that left those who already had the least suffering the most. On World Ocean Day 2020, the Packard Foundation reflected on what was happening and our own role in addressing inequities. We challenged ourselves—and invited our colleagues and partners—to … Continued
For over three decades, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), one of the Foundation’s marine science partners, has researched and revealed the astounding diversity of life deep beneath the surface, and the institute’s technology innovations have provided priceless insights into the ocean’s biogeochemical processes. MBARI is now embarking on its next chapter with the construction of a state-of-the-art ship. This new research vessel will be … Continued
5 min read
Illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing is a global problem that removes 32 million tons of seafood from the ocean each year – as much as one-quarter of the seafood eaten worldwide. It contributes to overfishing and threatens the livelihoods and food security of coastal fishing communities. And technology used to track illegal fishing has identified cases of forced … Continued
Meg Caldwell
3 min read
A healthy ocean is a powerful force for good, providing oxygen and food, economic benefits, and opportunities for recreation and spiritual renewal, while sustaining cultural traditions. However, these ocean benefits do not flow equitably. A recent report from the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy found, “overwhelming evidence that current access to ocean … Continued
