Quezon City, Philippines —The International Conference of the East Asian Seas Congress 2012 will be holding a series of workshops on the subtheme “Accelerating Blue Innovations in Support of an Ocean-based Blue Economy,” from July 9 to 11 in Changwon City, Republic of Korea.

 

The four workshops, each session covering an individual sub-topic, will be part of the second of five major subthemes that will be part of the triennial regional event. All themes highlight the important aspects of sustainable coastal and ocean development necessary in realizing a blue economy.

 

 

 

Quezon City, Philippines — Petron Corporation has become one of the sponsors of the East Asian Seas Congress 2012 that will be held from July 9 to 13 in Changwon City, RO Korea.

 

Petron Corporation is the largest oil refining and marketing company in the Philippines which supplies nearly 40 percent of the country’s oil requirements. The corporation operates an ISO 14001-certified refinery in Limay, Bataan with a rated capacity of 180,000 barrels a day. From the refinery, it transports their products by sea to 32 depots and terminals located all over the archipelago.

 

Calatagan, Batangas — Some 100 representatives of the business community, media, people's organizations, local government units, and international organizations trooped to Ang Pulo Mangroves in Calatagan, Batangas on May 15 for a media forum and mangrove planting activity. The multi-sector event dubbed "Conserve Marine Biodiversity, Conserve Life" forms part of the events organized for the International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB) 2012 and the National Oceans Month.

 

 

Toyama, Japan — NOWPAP Special Monitoring and Coastal Environmental Assessment Regional Activity Centre (CEARAC) convened its tenth Focal Points Meeting (FPM) on 17-18 April 2012 in Toyama, Japan.

 

The meeting reviewed CEARAC activities in 2010-2011 biennium, revised the terms of reference of CEARAC FPM, discussed and agreed on major activities to be implemented in 2012-2013:

 

 

Toyama, Japan — Taking into account suggestions of member states after the 16th Intergovernmental Meeting held in Beijing, PR China in December 2011, the NOWPAP Medium-term Strategy 2012-2017 has been finalized.

 

In the next 5 years, NOWPAP activities will be focusing on the following priority areas:

 

 

Sanya, PR China — NOWPAP representatives attended the Eastern and South-eastern Asian Seas Workshop of the Regular Process on 21-23 February 2012 in Sanya, PR China.

 

 

Nagasaki, Japan — NOWPAP representatives attended the workshop "Introduction to rapid assessment survey methodologies for detecting non-indigenous marine species (NIS)," jointly organized by the North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES), the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission's Sub-Commission for the Western pacific (IOC WESTPAC) and NOWPAP in Nagasaki, Japan, on 8-9 February 2012.

 

 

Yeosu, RO Korea —NOWPAP and the Organizing Committee of Yeosu Expo 2012 have recently signed a contract with regard to the NOWPAP participation in the Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea.