Resilient urban economies need resilient oceans
The economy. Yep...pretty depressing, right? Apparently, the global economy is not at its best right now, which is why the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) has chosen the theme "Resilient urban economies. Cities as drivers of growth and recovery" as the theme for this year's World Habitat Day.
"For this economic growth and recovery to be sustainable, we need cities that can absorb, recover, and prepare for future economic shocks," says UN-Habitat. "It is crucial that this is also packaged under the green recovery framework that scales up private and public investments to finance the transition to a climate-neutral economy in a post-COVID world."
For coastal cities, that framework must also include the ocean.
The ocean provides many things for coastal cities (and beyond), like:
🚢 Ports that allow the transportation of goods and people, supporting whole industries
🍽️ Sea life that provides healthy and nutritious food
🏖️ Leisure and recreational activities
🌦️ Regulates the climate and influences weather
🌊 Options for renewable energy
💧 Freshwater through desalination
But we are also harming the ocean and its ability to provide for us through things like:
🛢️ Pollution like plastic waste, chemicals from industry, and runoff of pesticides and fertilisers from farmland
🌏 Greenhouse gas emissions that are changing the ocean
🏗️ Increasing coastal development
🎣 Overfishing and destructive fishing
⛏️ Sand mining
There is a lot of talk about the blue economy - the "sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystem." Sounds good, doesn't it, especially for "driving growth and recovery."
That last part, though - "preserving the health of ocean ecosystems" is essential, not just for a blue economy, but for sustainable coastal cities and beyond.
If you live in a coastal city, why not take a few minutes on this World Habitat Day to ask your local leaders what they are doing to ensure the health of the ocean that the city so depends upon?