Clinton praises WOC conference

Abdul Khalik ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Manado   |  Thu, 05/14/2009 12:02 PM  |  World Ocean Conference

In a rare sign of open support for environmental talks, the United States praised the World Ocean Conference in Manado on Thursday, with U.S. State Secretary Hillary Clinton praising the conference for having helped focus the world's attention on the link between oceans and climate change.

“We must do more to protect our oceans and preserve the long-term health of our planet and its people. The World Ocean Conference provides an opportunity for representatives from many nations to unite around this common concern and I urge you to make the most of this time together,” she said.

Clinton acknowledged the strong links between the health of the planet and the health of the oceans, pointing out that today the oceans were under stress from various sources, including acidification, over-fishing, unconstrained development and pollution, damaging coastal regions and causing global warming that led to rising sea levels and more intense storms.

“In just a few months the UN will host its conference on climate change in Copenhagen. It is critical that we lay as much ground work as possible now to ensure a successful outcome in December. At the World Ocean Conference you can help focus the world’s attention on the link between oceans and climate change and advance global efforts to find science based solutions to the problems we face,” the U.S. state secretary said.

The United States has been known to resist multilateral talks on environment and climate change -- underlined by its refusal to sign the Kyoto Protocol – preferring instead to conduct bilateral or regional steps to tackle the problems.

US President Barack Obama, however, has decided to change the stance, vowing to be actively involved in any climate and environmental talks.

Clinton reminded the world of the human costs of climate change, pointing to the fate of coastal communities, especially in developing countries, which have been hard hit by the effects of global warming.

“Many communities rely on marine eco-systems for their livelihoods. Changes to our oceans threaten their ability to provide for their families and make a better life for their children. Meanwhile, rising sea levels threaten the very existence of some communities and powerful storms have dealt devastating blows to developing economies.

So, I urge you to keep the human costs of climate change front and center, both in the conversations in Indonesia and in the months ahead,” Clinton said.

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