Bangkok, Thailand — The enlarged session of WESTPAC Officers took place in Bangkok on 20 September 2012 with participation of the Chair, Vice Chairs of the IOC Sub-Commission for the Western Pacific and invited experts.

 

 

Laguna, Philippines — Taxonomists, as well as fisheries and aquatic resources workers, from the ten ASEAN Member States, PR China, RO Korea, Japan and Mongolia will attend a training course to upgrade their skills on fish taxonomy. The course, which also aims to expand the network for taxonomical information of fishes in East and Southeast Asia, will be held on 5-11 November 2012 in Bangkok and Ubon Ratchathani in Thailand.

 

 

Sihanoukville, Cambodia — The Royal Government of Cambodia approved Decision No. 152 SSR on the Establishment and Function of the National Committee for Management and Development of Cambodian Coastal Area on 13 July 2012 to promote sustainable management of coastal areas through integrated planning and monitoring of development activities along the coasts. The decision was developed following the country's acceptance as a member of the Club of the Most Beautiful Bays in the World in May 2011.

 

 

Bangkok, Thailand — The Regional Scientific and Technical Capacity Building Workshop on the World Ocean Assessment (WOA), contributing to the UN Regular Process, was held on 17-19 September 2012 in Bangkok, Thailand.

 

The workshop was co-organized by COBSEA, NOWPAP, IOC/WESTPAC and GRID Arendal with financial support provided by UNEP, IOC/WESTPAC and Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN).

 

 

Toyama, Japan — In conjunction with the 4th Northeast Asia Region Youth Environmental Program sponsored by the Toyama Prefectural Government, a special lecture on NOWPAP and its activities was delivered to local school students by the NOWPAP Deputy Coordinator on 19 August 2012.

 

A complimentary speech was also given at the opening of a workshop where students from PR China, Japan, RO Korea and Russia shared their experiences on conducting environmental activities in their respective countries.

 

 

Yeosu, RO Korea — The Oceans Compact, an initiative to strengthen United Nations system-wide coherence to deliver on its oceans-related mandates, was launched by the UN Secretary General in Yeosu, RO Korea on 12 August 2012, the closing day for the 2012 Yeosu Expo.

 

 

Kyoto, Japan — NOWPAP representatives attended the Marine Litter Summit on 25-26 August 2012 in Kameoka city of Kyoto Prefecture, Japan where participants from environmental NGOs, central and local governments discussed ways of dealing with marine litter in Japan and in the region.

 

 

Bangkok, Thailand — The GEF International Waters Science Conference (IWSC 2012), attended by over 160 managers, scientists and officials, was held September 24-26, carrying the theme "Setting the International Waters Science Agenda for the Next Decade." The conference adopted a statement summarizing the major conclusions of the three-day conference.

 

 

Beijing, PR China — In the Regional Experts Workshop on the Preparation of the Program Framework Document (PFD) and Eighth Meeting of the Project Steering Committee of the UNDP/GEF Regional Project on Reducing Environmental Stress in the Yellow Sea Large Marine Ecosystem, held on September 18-19 and September 20 respectively, PR China and RO Korea agreed to a plan to seek GEF support in implementing the Strategic Action Plan (SAP) of the Yellow Sea Large Marine Ecosystem (YSLME).