Convenor

Conveners

Korea Maritime Institute (KMI), COBSEA, PEMSEA, World Bank, ADB(TBD)

 

Venue

TBC

 

Background

Marine plastic litter has emerged as a significant global environmental challenge that demands immediate and effective intervention. The East Asian Seas region is a major contributor to marine plastic litter, due to factors such as high population density, rapid urbanization, and inadequate waste management systems. Consequently, this region is responsible for over 50% of the world’s marine plastic litter. Given the interconnected nature of marine ecosystems, addressing this issue requires coordinated and collaborative efforts among neighboring countries. Effective collaboration between developed and developing nations that share these marine resources is crucial, especially in supporting countries that lack the necessary technical, policy, and economic capacities to tackle the problem independently.

Despite the critical nature of the marine litter problem, international cooperation remains insufficient, especially within the East Asian Seas region. It is imperative that we move beyond merely recognizing the issue and towards implementing concrete, actionable solutions. Establishing a dedicated fund to expand international cooperation is the first step towards developing practical solutions that yield tangible results. Given the substantial contributions to marine litter from the East Asian Seas region, there is an urgent need to discuss the formation of a fund to enhance international cooperation in this domain.

In response, the Korea Maritime Institute, COBSEA, PEMSEA, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) are jointly organizing this forum to foster international cooperation on marine litter and to discuss the establishment of a dedicated fund. We anticipate that this forum will serve as a crucial foundational step in deliberating the necessary funding mechanisms to jointly address the marine litter issue in the East Asian Seas region.

The purpose of this forum is to share the necessity of raising funds to address the marine litter issue in East Asia and to explore cooperative strategies among East Asian countries. Through these efforts, we aim to strengthen international cooperation for the protection of the marine environment and sustainable development. The specific objectives are as follows:

1. Sharing Trends and Policies on Marine Litter in East Asian Seas region: Discussing the current state of marine litter pollution, the policies implemented to address it, and the status of international cooperation to reassess the severity of the issue and emphasize the necessity of collective response.
2. Examining International Cooperation Efforts: Analyzing funding strategies and the effectiveness of international cooperation through case studies from the World Bank, and discussing the implications for East Asia.
3. Exploring the Marine Plastic Value Chain: Investigating areas for collaboration based on the analysis of the marine plastic value chain, which constitutes most of the marine litter.
4. Reviewing Private Fund Trends and Potential: Examining the trends and future potential of private funds in addressing marine litter, focusing on initiatives by financial institutions involved in the UNEP Finance Initiative.
5. Assessing International Cooperation and Fundraising Case Studies: Reviewing the current state of international cooperation on marine litter in East Asia and exploring case studies of international environmental funds to propose possible directions for establishing a marine litter fund

Program

Time	AGENDA
13:30-14:00	Registration
14:00-14:20	Opening Ceremony Opening Address   Jong-Deog Kim, President, Korea Maritime Institute Welcome Address    Aimee Gonzales, Executive Director, PEMSEA   Mahesh Pradhan, Coordinator, Coordinating Body on the  Seas of East Asia (COBSEA)
14:20-15:35	Panel Discussion
14:45-15:35	Presentation 1: Current State of Marine Litter in East Asia  Xinhong Wang, Professor, College of the Environment & Ecology, Xiamen University Presentation 2: World Bank’s Marine Litter Fundraising and International Cooperation Cases   Milen Dyoulgerov Vollen, Senior Environment Specialist, World Bank Presentation 3: Areas of International Cooperation from the Perspective of the Marine Plastic Value Chain Vivek Anand ASOKAN, Policy Researcher, Institute for Global Environmental Strategies Presentation 4: Trends and Potential of Private Funds for Marine Litter UNEP FI (TBD) Presentation 5: Directions for Establishing a Fund to Achieve a Plastic-Free East Asian Sea  Yoonjung Lee, Associate Research Fellow, Korea Maritime Institute
15:35-15:50	Break
15:50-16:30	Panel Discussion
14:45-15:35	Moderator: Jong-Deog Kim, President, Korea Maritime Institute   Panels Panel 1. Mahesh Pradhan, Coordinator, COBSEA Panel 2. NORAD (TBD) Panel 3. Maeve Nightingale, Senior Programme Officer, IUCN  Panel 4. ADB (TBD) Panel 5. Jongmyoung Lee, Director, Korea Marine Litter Institute of OSEAN
16:30-16:50	Q&A
16:50-17:00	Closing Remarks