Pacem in Maribus XXXII Conference - Women, Youth and the Sea

In today’s era of globalization and global warming, our oceans and coasts are facing constant changes, which in turn are affecting the lives and livelihoods of coastal communities and endangering their environmental patrimony. Two of the social groups upon which the future of the Ocean so strongly depends and whose lives are so strongly influenced by such foreseeable and unforeseeable changes are women and youth. Sadly these are amongst the least represented and involved in national and international ocean-related debates and actions.

There is an urgent need to engage these more actively and to mobilize their skills, talents and experiences in order to advance and promote the sustainable use of marine resources and sound ocean governance over the long term. More interaction with greater emphasis on dialogue and broad participation is imperative. These are the very aims of the Pacem in Maribus XXXII (PIM XXXII) Conference, which is being organized by the IOI-Malta Operational Centre of the University of Malta and is due to be held in Malta in November 2007. The conference entitled “Women, Youth and the Sea: Partnering for the Protection of the Marine Environment and Sustainable Use of its Resources”, will centre around three main themes:

• The State of the Ocean: Current Challenges and Future Prospects – Implications for Women and Youth;
• Involvement of Women and Youth within the Millennium Development Goal’s Strategies; Options and Challenges related to ocean protection; and
• New Solidarities for Sustainable Ocean Governance: Engagement of Women and Youth.

A Youth Parliament and a Women’s Caucus will be held in parallel with the Conference and will be organized in such a way as to facilitate the advancement of PIM XXXII’s objectives and to help frame its outcome and declarations. Adequate representation of youth and of women, including women leaders and women of achievement in maritime affairs, will be crucial. The organizers of the conference seek to make PIM XXXII as inclusive and innovative as possible with conclusions that would integrate ocean concerns more fully into public activities, behaviour and lifestyle and elevate them on national and global agendas.

PIM conferences have been organized since 1970 and cover issues of fundamental importance related to the world’s oceans. The first PIM Conference took place in Malta, and subsequent conferences were held in different countries of the world in Europe, North and Central America, Africa, Asia and more recently in Australasia. The hosting of PIM XXXII in Malta during 2007 will be significant in that it comes 40 years after the famous speech of Ambassador of Malta Arvid Pardo at the UN Assembly where the Ocean was proclaimed as a Common Heritage of Humankind.

For further information about Pacem in Maribus XXXII visit the conference website www.capemalta.net/pim2007.