3 - 5 September, Tokyo, Japan
IOI was invited to contribute to the Fifth Ocean Decade Foundations Dialogue Meeting at the Sasakawa Peace Foundation (SPF) in Japan, with a special focus on the theme “Ocean literacy and capacity building”.
Convened by the Ocean Policy Research Institute of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, and co-organised with the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO in its role as coordinating agency of the Ocean Decade, the gathering charted the next wave of investment in science for the ocean we need. The meeting’s 2025 Tokyo Statement was a key outcome of the Fifth Ocean Decade Foundations Dialogue Meeting, held from 3 to 5 September in Tokyo, Japan.
IOI was represented in Japan by A Vassallo (Managing Director) and Peter Leder (IOI Governor). Over the course of the visit, as well as contributing to the Foundations Dialogue, they attended a number of meetings with representatives of the Ocean Policy Research Foundation (OPRI) of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation; the University of Tokyo Ocean Alliance; and IOI Japan. Cordial encounters with other friends, colleagues and IOI Alumni during the stay made the visit even more memorable.
2 September: a meeting was held at SPF between the IOI HQ delegation and Mitsutaku Makino (President of OPRI), Yasuhiko Kagami (Director IOI Japan), Kensuke Yamaguchi (University of Tokyo Ocean Alliance) and students from Tokyo University, to discuss potential collaboration. Emeritus IOI Japan Director, Masako Bannai Otsuka also attended the meetings, a reflection of her strong regional expertise and long-standing connection with IOI.
3 September: during the Oceans Decade Fifth Foundations Dialogue, A Vassallo contributed to the afternoon session on Ocean Literacy and Capacity Building “Transforming Ocean Knowledge into Action: Ocean Literacy and Capacity Building as a Foundation for the Ocean We Want”. The event, moderated by Amb Dr Fabrizio Bozzato, (Senior Research Fellow, Planning and Coordination Department, SPF) also featured other experts in the field: Janaína Bumbeer (Boticário Group Foundation for Nature Protection) Sachiko Oguma (OPRI SPF) and Sophie Wachtmeister (Voice of the Ocean Foundation). IOI was also honoured with the presence of Malta’s first resident Ambassador to Japan, H.E. André Spiteri, during the presentation of the Ocean Capacity building and Literacy programme under the theme of Transforming ocean knowledge into action: developing capacity, enhancing ocean literacy, creating leadership. The IOI’s hallmark Ocean literacy programme, the IOI Ocean Academy, is endorsed as Decade Action “No 65.6. IOI Ocean Academy - Ocean Knowledge for All”
5 September: IOI was invited to present its mission and activities to the assembled group of experts. A Vassallo spearheaded a lunchtime event which comprised a video showcasing the IOI foundational ethos, mission, vision and programmes, and the event also featured brief and focussed interventions by P Leder, M Bannai Otsuka, and Emi Shimada, an Alumnus of the IOI (IOI Canada, 2012) who elaborated on their connections and experiences with the IOI. The event was very ably moderated by F Bozzato.
More information on IOI’s global Capacity Development and Ocean Literacy programmes.