R 357
2022 -- H 8331
Enacted 06/08/2022

H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N
RECOGNIZING JUNE 8TH OF 2022, AS "WORLD OCEANS DAY" IN THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND, AND THE URGENT IMPORTANCE OF PROTECTING AND PRESERVING OUR OCEANS AND THEIR RESOURCES

Introduced By: Representatives Cortvriend, Carson, Shekarchi, Blazejewski, Filippi, Speakman, Donovan, Fogarty, and Ajello

Date Introduced: June 08, 2022

     WHEREAS, World Oceans Day is an international day that takes place annually on June
8. It was originally proposed by Canada’s International Centre for Ocean Development (ICOD) in
1992 at the Earth Summit's United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
(UNCED). World Oceans Day received official recognition by the United Nations in 2008; and
     WHEREAS, The ocean covers more than seventy percent of planet Earth, and produces
approximately fifty percent of the planet's oxygen. It is home to most of the earth's biodiversity
and is the primary source of protein for more than a billion people. The ocean is one of the most
important sources of economic activity across the globe, with it being estimated that forty million
people will be employed by ocean-related businesses by 2030. More than ninety-five percent of
the ocean remains unexplored; and
     WHEREAS, Today, the ocean is at a tipping point and desperately needs to be protected
by all nations. It is estimated that ninety percent of the fish populations have been depleted and
fifty percent of the coral reefs have perished. We are currently taking far more from our oceans
than can be replenished, and it is essential to work together today to restore our oceans vibrancy
and bounty; and
     WHEREAS, The United Nations Decade of the Ocean Science for Sustainable
Development began in 2021, and is seeking to accelerate research in ocean science, strengthen
international cooperation, improve ocean management and eventually develop a complete digital
atlas of the ocean. Incredibly, less than twenty percent of the global ocean is currently mapped;
and
     WHEREAS, The theme for this year's United Nations World Oceans Day is
"Revitalization: Collective Action for the Ocean." This celebration will be hosted at the United
Nations Headquarters in New York and will be broadcast live across the globe. The hope and
goal is to "shed light on the communities, ideas, and solutions that are working together to protect
and revitalize the ocean and everything it sustains"; now, therefore be it
     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island hereby
recognizes June 8th of 2022 as "World Oceans Day" in the State of Rhode Island, and the urgent
importance of protecting and preserving our oceans and their resources; and be it further
     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to
transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to Mr. António Guterres, Secretary-General of the
United Nations, Ms. Kate Sutter, Community Engagement Manager, the Ocean Project, and Mr.
Stan Brajer, Chair, the Surfrider Foundation, Rhode Island Chapter.
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LC006082
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