International ocean institute - kids : targeting awareness on the sea with the younger generations

Abstract

The Internet revolution has led to the proliferation of accessible web-based educational resources. The International Ocean Institute (IOI), initiated through its operational center at the University of Malta, has funded the IOI-KIDS project, the institute’s flagship educational activity targeting awareness and knowledge- sharing about the sea with younger generations. The IOI was founded in 1972 and is an International NGO, with centers in 25 different countries and special consultative status within the United Nations. Some of the key missions of the IOI are to disseminate information, share and transfer knowledge and experience, and instill, within the younger generations, a greater interest in the sea. To further spread the legacy of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), IOI organizes the Pacem in Maribus (PIM) conferences. At the 32nd PIM conference in Malta in November 2007, the emerging Malta Declaration called for youth to help protect the marine environment, to move beyond the narrow circles of ocean professionals and stakeholders to broader audiences, whose knowledge and understanding are key to the support of sound ocean policy, and to change perceptions and heighten appreciation for the oceans and its importance to our lives and future, especially among the young (Drago 2008a).