KRISTIAN TELEKI

KRISTIAN TELEKI

The GOC secretariat ensure the smooth running of organization

Kristian Teleki was most recently Vice President of SeaWeb, responsible for its sustainable markets, science and Asia Pacific programmes. He was previously Director of the International Coral Reef Action Network and led the Marine Programme at UNEP-WCMC. Kristian chairs the reference user group of the MEDSEA ocean acidification project, and is on the boards of several environment, development and social initiatives.

While on holiday in Spain Kristian recalled that he watched as his daughter walked down a stretch of sandy beach taking an interest in the Mediterranean shoreline. He watched her stop every so often to collect little items she was finding in the sand and along the surf line. This scene reminded him og his own childhood he did exactly the same thing: picking up stones, driftwood and shells.

Kristian says that: "as a marine biologist he was proud that his offspring was taking an interest in the ocean. But, when he emptied her pockets and she opened her hands, there were no little shells or stones, but cigarette butts, pieces of plastic and chewed popsicle sticks." At which point he felt a great sense of disappointment. It was "a stark reminder of what we are doing to the ocean." This has become a challenge for Kristian, as although the ocean covers more than 70 percent of the planet, less than 4 percent remains unaffected and more than a third suffers or has suffered serious human impacts.

To add to ocean pollution Kristian recalled that it was now one of his tasks to educate his children about climate change and the effect that this will have on all aspects of life for generations to come. Most immediately that this global warming could lead to the extinction of the polar bear and to the extinction of many of the 700 species of coral.

THE GOC'S OBJECTIVES

The objective of the Global Ocean Commission is to address the issues hereis by formulating ‘politically and technically feasible short, medium, and long-term recommendations.

These final recommendations were to be published in early 2014, shortly before the UN General Assembly began discussions on protecting high seas biodiversity – a commitment made at the Rio+20 summit in 2013. The work of the Commission thus focuses on four key tasks:

1. To examine key threats, challenges, and changes to the ocean in the 21st century, and identify priority issues. The Commission will utilise both scientific and economic evidence, drawing on existing reports from world experts, as well as commencing original research in partnership with other organisations.

2. To review the effectiveness of the existing legal framework for the high seas in meeting these challenges. According to the Commission, this means a special focus on the effectiveness of regional fisheries management organisations, particularly with respect to their accountability, transparency, and performance. It also means reviewing the governance gap on biodiversity conservation and analysing options for combatting IUU fishing. The Commission will also assess the suitability of the existing legal regime for regulating emerging uses of the global ocean.

3. To engage with interested parties around the world, as well as the general public. The Commission will connect with fishers, military and merchant navies, recreational sailors, seafood companies, conservation groups and the emergent seabed mining business. The Commission also aims to raise understanding among policymakers, economists and other groups, including the general public, of the implications should high seas issues not be reformed.

4. To make recommendations regarding ‘cost-effective, pragmatic and politically feasible reforms of high seas governance, management and enforcement.’ While the threat analysis will take account of external issues such as climate change, recommendations will focus on reforms that can be achieved by evolving high seas governance. Some may concern the fundamental legal framework under which the global ocean is governed, whereas others may focus on improving the effectiveness of existing mechanisms.

The Global Ocean Commission
Somerville College
Woodstock Road
Oxford, OX2 6HS

Tel: UK+44 (0) 1865 280747

GLOBAL OCEAN COMMISSIONERS - CO-CHAIRS


José María Figueres	Trevor Manuel	David Miliband

THE COMMISSIONERS


Carol Browner	Victor Chu	Obiageli Ezekwesili	Luiz Furlan	Vladimir Golitsyn	Robert Hill	Yoriko Kawaguchi
.	.	.	.	.	.	.

Pascal Lamy	Paul Martin	Sri Mulyani Indrawati	Cristina Narbona	Ratan Tata	Foua Toloa	Andrés Velasco

GOC's SECRETARIAT


Simon Reddy	Rémi Parmentier	Clare Brennan	Kristian Teleki	Inés de Águeda	Sarah Gardner

RICH COUNTRIES PAY ZOMBIES $5 BILLION A YEAR IN SUBSIDIES TO PLUNDER THE OCEANS - Without the subsidies, most of these businesses would fail. So thoroughly have industrial fleets over-fished the seas that they couldn’t afford the fuel to travel the ever-increasing distance needed to catch the same amount of fish if their governments didn’t lavish public funds upon them.

In economics, you’d call these zombies - unprofitable companies that would fail if governments didn’t prop them up. There are two big problems with zombies. First, they take resources that could go to support new, productive companies. And by subsidizing zombies, governments allow them to keep prices low, driving productive companies out of business.

If industrial fleets weren’t subsidized, they’d go out of business. Small-scale fisheries that don’t need enormous amounts of fuel to catch huge hauls of fish - i.e. the ones using sustainable fishing practices - would then in theory thrive. Many of these fishermen are in poor countries whose governments can’t afford to compete in the industrial looting. Worse, there’s a double-whammy zombie effect going on in the fishing context. Government subsidies to highly destructive industrial fleets don’t just deprive small-scale fishermen of finite taxpayer dollars and edge them out of the market with cheap prices; they also rob them of current and long-term fishing stocks.