IW:LEARN, together with the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) organized a successful satellite event at the Ocean Decade Conference (10-12 April 2024) on strengthening partnerships between the Large Marine Ecosystem (LME) community, the GEF International Waters (IW) LME portfolio, and the Ocean Decade partners. 

The event helped increase awareness of the GEF IW community on the outcomes and achievements of the Ocean Decade and vice versa, planting the seeds for concrete collaboration and increasing the visibility of the LME concept for the ecosystem-based management of coastal and marine areas. The panel discussion highlighted the links between the Ocean Decade and the LME community, with the ambition to transfer scientific innovations into solutions. The participants acknowledged that the connections between LMEs and ocean science are crucial, recognizing that the LMEs as both generators and users of ocean science at the science-policy interface. 

The satellite event was a continuation of the ongoing efforts and the discussion launched at the LME22 meeting (11-13 July 2023) and feeding into this year’s LME23 meeting (3-5 June 2024) on how to strengthen links with the Ocean Decade. It was also a testimony of the role of IW:LEARN in delivering its services and support to the GEF IW focal area and portfolio, by catalysing knowledge management and experience sharing. IW:LEARN also supports capacity development to improve transboundary water management, facilitating replication of best practices from the LME community to enhance impact on the ground.

The LME community is invited to harness this unique opportunity and to get engaged with the Ocean Decade by signing up to the Ocean Decade Network!