Sustainable Ocean Summit 2017

The Sustainable Ocean Summit (SOS) is the only international forum to provide an annual review of status and trends in the ocean's economy.

Organized by the World Ocean Council (WOC), the 5th edition takes place in Halifax, Canada, from 29 November - 1 December, with the theme “The Ocean Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 14): Business Leadership and Business Opportunities”.

The key objective at SOS 2017 is to ensure the sustainable growth of the ocean economy and its contribution to the food, energy, transport, communications and other needs of society as part of the UN SDG Process/Agenda 2030.

Over three days, an impressive lineup of representatives from all sectors of the Ocean Business Community will deliver a series of talks and workshops to explore issues of relevance across the marine sector to identify industry-driven solutions to ocean sustainable development in regards to:

• Marine pollution

• Ocean industry projections

• The future of the ocean economy

• Climate change and ocean acidification

• Sustainable fishing and aquaculture

Key Speakers 

The Sustainable Ocean Summit is the only international ocean business event to provide a yearly review of status and trends in ocean economic activity.

SOS is uniquely designed to bring together leaders from shipping, oil and gas, fisheries, aquaculture, seabed mining, tourism, renewable energy, ports, dredging, mining, submarine cables, marine science, engineering and technology, the maritime legal, financial and insurance communities, and others – as well as ocean stakeholders from the government, inter-governmental, academic and environment communities.

Last year, the Sustainable Ocean Summit was held in Rotterdam, with over 200 participants discussing critical marine environment and sustainability challenges. The theme last year was “Ocean 2030: Sustainable Development Goals and the Ocean Business Community”. Previous editions include SOS 2010 in Belfast, SOS 2013 in Washington DC and SOS 2015 in Singapore.

The World Ocean Council (WOC) is the only international, cross-sectoral alliance for private sector leadership and collaboration in “Corporate Ocean Responsibility” at a time when companies worldwide are distinguishing themselves as leaders in ocean sustainability, stewardship and science by joining in its mission.

Members include over 70 companies from a wide range of ocean industries and WOC's network includes 35,000 ocean industry stakeholders around the world.

With the growing use of marine areas for a variety of commercial interests there is a growing risk of environmental impact. Historically, policies and regulations had insufficient industry input and both SOS and WOC seek to address this. 

The WOC brings together ocean industries to address shared environmental concerns, more effectively engage in ocean policy and planning, and develop science-based solutions to environmental challenges that cannot be solved by one company or one industry alone. 

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