Since 1973, The Ocean Race’s competitors have been sailing across the globe, and on 29 May, the inaugural edition of The Ocean Race Europe started from Lorient, France and finished in Genova, Italy on 19 June. As the final leg was coming to an end, on Wednesday 16 June The Ocean Race Summit Europe was held online, bringing together sailors, experts and policymakers to discuss ways to tackle urgent threats to the seas.
Patron on The Ocean Race Europe was European Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius responsible for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, who took the floor during the event to explain Europe’s and the Commission’s plan to tackle these challenges. Participating in the meeting was also Pascal Lamy, former Director-General of the World Trade Organization and Chair of Mission Starfish 2030, which aims to restore the EU water bodies by 2030. With the support of Commissioner Sinkevičius, Mission Starfish’s proposals include: a) integrating the EU system of ocean and water governance, in order to avoid a fragmented approach; b) deploying Europe’s external action instruments; c) developing an EU marine strategic autonomy, to improve the security of European maritime space; and d) establishing a network of assemblies to enable stakeholders’ and citizens’ participation. EBI was involved in providing input to the Mission on aspects related to the recreational boating industry and blue economy, which feature at high importance in the mission.
During the event, Genova’s Mayor Marco Bucci presented the city’s objectives for more sustainable economic development on the ocean. These include making Genova’s harbour fully sustainable and eliminate CO2 emissions by 2030.
You can rewatch the full Ocean Race Summit Europe here.