If we don’t have healthy seas and oceans, we won’t have productive ecosystems. There is enough knowledge and policy available. It’s time to take action!

These were the key messages of the “Healthy Oceans – Productive Ecosystem” (HOPE) conference where the Healthy Seas Initiative was also represented. The conference was organized by the European Commission in Brussels on 3-4 March and opened by Commissioner Potočnik in the presence of 15 EU environment ministers, and over 400 other attendees, including representatives from Member States, the Regional Sea Conventions, academia, industry, NGOs and other stakeholders.

The aim of the conference was to take stock of more than five years’ of work since the adoption of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, and to reflect on the contribution that healthy oceans can make to sustainable Blue Growth.

The first day of the conference opened with discussions on the challenges faced by the marine environment and the current state of our seas (see picture below). The parallel sessions gave opportunities to discuss growing concerns about specific pressures and threats and their combined effects that have significant presence in our seas.

Day two focused on possible solutions, including the regeneration of waste fishing nets what Healthy Seas is also doing. The regeneration of fishing nets into textile products can support business models that offer a self-sustaining and scalable solution to the problem of waste fishing nets across Europe.

At the close of the HOPE conference, the “Declaration of HOPE” output document has been issued with the involvement of all participants. It will be presented to the Greek Presidency for further consideration at the Informal EU Environment Council in Athens in May.

The problem of marine litter is increasingly recognized by European policy makers. The journey of Healthy Seas in Brussels will continue at the Green Week, the biggest annual conference on European environment policy, which will take place from 3 to 5 June. The theme of the 2014 edition of Green Week will be Circular Economy, Resource Efficiency & Waste.