The World Oceans Day was observed across the world on 8 June 2017 with the theme “Our oceans, our future.”
This year’s theme is connected to the Ocean Conference which took place from 5 to 9 June at United Nations headquarters in New York.
The concept of a World Oceans Day was first proposed in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro as a way to celebrate world’s shared oceans as well as to raise awareness about the crucial role the ocean plays in our lives and the important ways people can help protect it.
Following this, the UN General Assembly (UNGA) on 5 December 2008 designated 8 June as the World Oceans Day through its resolution.
The World’s oceans cover about two-thirds of the surface of the Earth and are the very foundations of life.
They generate most of the oxygen that we breathe, absorb a large share of carbon dioxide emissions, provide food and nutrients and regulate climate.
Unfortunately, human pressures including overexploitation, illegal and unregulated fishing, destructive fishing, marine pollution, habitat destruction, climate change and ocean acidification are putting threat to these oceans.
