(Kerry) Remarks at the Economist World Ocean Summit
Remarks at the Economist World Ocean Summit
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Via Video Teleconference
February 25, 2014
SECRETARY KERRY: John, thank you very much. I’m – first of all, I’ve been listening to you and agree with everything you’ve said, and very sorry that I can’t be with you in San Francisco this morning personally, but obviously I’m happy to be able to come by video and delighted to be able to offer a few thoughts about this from the State Department.
Let me start by thanking The Economist and National Geographic for bringing together a whole bunch of influential people from so many different industries. John, I see you motioning. Is there a – can you hear me?
MODERATOR: Secretary Kerry, thank you very much for coming – for addressing us like this. And I wondered if you could say a few words about the oceans, and then I might ask you one thing about your personal involvement in it.
SECRETARY KERRY: Sure. I was – I started. I didn’t know whether you were hearing me or not, but it’s my pleasure to be able to be with you to share some thoughts about this. And as I was listening to you, I was thinking about some of the challenges, obviously, of responding to this notion that restaurateurs and businesses and other people are talking about it, but we’re not necessarily doing it or doing what’s necessary.
Look, the challenge of meeting the current problems of our oceans is really one of the most complex global challenges that we face today. As everybody knows, oceans are three quarters of our planet. And the oceans are in trouble, just to follow up on the comments previously made. And there isn’t any doubt about that.
But the good news is we know exactly what is threatening our oceans, and we have a very good understanding of what we need to do in order to deal with these threats. We don’t yet have the political consensus or the urgency translated into political action. And we know that there’s no way that governments are going to tackle this enormous challenge, frankly, without significant impetus from the private sector, the NGO community, academia, media, and others. So that’s why I’m – I was particularly excited to take part in this session today and to simply underscore to everybody that we need a far more robust international dialogue on protecting and governing our oceans.
I’ll just share with you very quickly, coming from Massachusetts, it’s hard not to have a connection to the sea. And I grew up with a family that has a very deep connection. My mother’s side of the family, my ancestors, were sea merchants back in the 1800s, 1900s. My father was a recreational fisherman, a sailor, a passionate sailor who introduced me to the ocean at age three. And after he retired, he sailed across the Atlantic several times for the sheer pleasure and adventure of it. And I’ve been a sailor all of my life, a fisherman, and somebody who enjoys taking a break by the sea as often as possible, and I learned early on to appreciate the wonders of the oceans.
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http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2014/02/222532.htm