Sir Richard Branson delivers over 1 million signatures urging governments to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030
**Avaaz campaign delivered to Peter Thomson, President of the United Nations General Assembly, calling on governments to keep their 2016 pledges**
New York -- Today, Virgin Group Founder Sir Richard Branson presented a petition backed by over one million citizens from around the world to Peter Thomson, President of the UN General Assembly, at the United Nations Oceans Conference urging governments to implement their historic commitment to protect at least 30% of our ocean by 2030.
The commitment was made in September 2016 at the IUCN World Conservation Congress, where 180 governments and over 600 NGOs voted to strongly protect at least a third of the world’s ocean by 2030. Now citizens are calling on governments to execute on this.
The commitment was made in September 2016 at the IUCN World Conservation Congress, where 129 governments and over 600 NGOs voted to strongly protect at least a third of the world’s oceans by 2030. Now citizens from every country on earth are calling on their governments to execute commitment.
Sir Richard Branson, Founder of the Virgin Group, said: “The Ocean covers 2/3 of planet yet today less than 3% is strongly protected. The science says we need protect at least 30%. Through this petition, over 1 million people from around the world have called for action to reach this ambitious target. I am pleased to add my voice and look forward to working with political and business leaders and citizens to make it a reality.”
Dalia Hashad, Campaign director at Avaaz, said: "We are choking our oceans with plastic pollution, but they generate most of our oxygen, and the best way to save them is to move fast to protect 30% by 2030. Today, over one million people from all over the world are demanding their leaders act to ensure our oceans are teeming with technicolor fish and healthy coral reefs not with garbage.”
Protecting at least 30% of ocean is the widely accepted scientific level of protection required to conserve irreplaceable marine ecosystems, build resilience to change and sustain fisheries. Over the last year, more ocean was protected by governments than in the past decade yet less than 5% of the Ocean is strongly protected. Leadership from Small Island States in the Pacific in addition to international action to create the Ross Sea marine reserve in Antarctica; and President Obama’s expansion of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument off Hawaii, the UK also recently announced massive marine sanctuaries around the Pitcairn islands in the Pacific and Ascension Island in the Atlantic. Now countries around the world need to take this progress further to protect even more marine areas including high seas.
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