MECOS-3 , 2020 : The Marine Ecosystems-Challenges and Opportunities (MECOS), the third international symposium is to be held in Kochi. The symposium is conducted by the Marine Biological association of India between January 7, 2020 and January 10, 2020.

The previous 2 MECOS’s have been outstanding successes.  MECOS2 brought together marine scientists, researchers and teachers from all over the world. In all, 628 authors, including four invited keynote speakers contributed and the presenting authors were from 49 affiliations such as research institutions, universities, colleges and NGOs.

OBJECTIVES :

Under the present era of global warming and climate change , oceans are being highly damaged and are effecting the global economic conditions as healthy oceans, coasts and related ecosystems are crucial for economic growth and food production.

MECOS3 aims to address the above concerns by inviting marine biology/ fisheries/ oceanography/ marine biotechnology/ social science researchers to present their new work on the following theme areas amidst their peers.  It is expected that the outcome of the deliberations in MECOS3 would be guidance for researchers and policy makers for the next 3 years.

SDG-14 The symposium is to focus on the Sustainable Development Goal of the United Nations, SDG-14. SDG-14 says, “Conserve and Sustainably use the oceans and its resources for sustainable development”

Significance :

Billions of people worldwide -especially the world’s poorest- rely on healthy oceans to provide jobs and food, underscoring the urgent need to sustainably use and protect this natural resource.  According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), oceans contribute $1.5 trillion annually in value to the overall economy. The FAO estimates that around 60 million people are employed in fisheries and aquaculture, with the majority of those employed by capture fisheries working in small-scale operations in developing countries. While ocean resources have the potential to boost growth and wealth, human activity has taken a toll on ocean health. Proper management of fisheries, investment in sustainable aquaculture and protection of key habitats can restore the productivity of the ocean and return benefits to billions in developing countries while ensuring future growth, food security and jobs for coastal communities.

Ocean acidification that is caused due to uptake of carbon-dioxide has changed the chemical composition of the seawaters. According to the United Nations, over the past 30 years, acidity has increased by 26% since pre-industrial times. The marine fish stocks that are at biologically sustainable levels have declined from 90% (1974) to 99.9% (2015).Thus, MECOS-3 can be a very progressive step to protect and promote the healthy oceans of the Earth and will prevent a huge economic loss from being caused to marginal and poor people in the future.