The Grand Challenges for Oceans Conservation
The ten most pressing Grand Challenges in Oceans Conservation were identified at the Oceans Big Think and described in a detailed working document
Click on the image to download the Grand Challenges document.
- A Blue Revolution for Oceans: Reengineering Aquaculture for Sustainability
- Ending and Recovering from Marine Debris
- Transparency and Traceability from Sea to Shore: Ending Overfishing
- Protecting Critical Ocean Habitats: New Tools for Marine Protection
- Engineering Ecological Resilience in Near Shore and Coastal Areas
- Reducing the Ecological Footprint of Fishing through Smarter Gear
- Arresting the Alien Invasion: Combating Invasive Species
- Combatting the Effects of Ocean Acidification
- Ending Marine Wildlife Trafficking
- Reviving Dead Zones: Combating Ocean Deoxygenation and Nutrient Runoff
The First Challenge: The Blue Economy Challenge
The goal of the Blue Economy Challenge was to crowdsource the world’s solvers for the development of transformative new innovations (technological, biological, financial) that can revolutionize aquaculture in the developing world, particularly the Indian Ocean where demand for fish and marine biodiversity are greatest, and help eradicate poverty, end hunger and ensure access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food all year round, and conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources.
The InnovationXChange and Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) in partnership with Conservation X Labs, SecondMuse, and WWF, awarded a total of $3 million Australian dollars to the top ten innovations in September, 2016.