Welcome to our first newsletter of 2023!
We hope everyone’s year is off to a great start. We’re excited about what’s coming for Investable Oceans and for the Blue Economy and, as always, are thrilled to have you here with us
Davos ‘23 - A few perspectives:
Like COP 27 (Climate) and COP 15 (Biodiversity), the World Economic Forum’s recent Davos 2023 conference sought to expand and strengthen its ocean focus. This complements its yearlong initiatives which include Friends of Ocean Action, UpLink Ocean and 1000 Ocean Startups. While not having the same direct treaty mandates as the COPs, Davos provides a unique forum for global dialogue and engagement and a prismatic global view of the big issues of the day. You can find a summary from WEF of Davos ocean news here.
A sampling of Davos related topics:
- The broad theme of sustainability was certainly present, making Business Insiders top four takeaway list. The article includes some interesting observations on the readiness and capacity of corporations to address sustainability issues.
- For a more specific read on climate change and the energy transition, here’s an interesting piece by the Guardian.
- Here’s a thoughtful Davos ‘23 recap from Citi’s Keith Tuffley noting the increased presence of “Nature and Diversity” and connecting the dots between innovation, climate and various frameworks.
Speaking of Connecting the Dots:
One of our favorite expressions over the past few years has been radical collaboration, which we first heard from our friends at Lonely Whale. The phrase acknowledges that ordinary collaboration isn’t enough - we need more sense of urgency, an exclamation mark!
More recently we’ve noticed people using a related phrase - connecting the dots. Take Milly Pitts’ Ocean Exchange, a leading global ocean innovation accelerator, for example. To kick off 2023, we’ve articulated our take on "connecting the dots", including 5 specific opportunities where we believe bringing together different disciplines and initiatives could make a huge difference this year and beyond. You can read this post here, and please let us know if you have other pairs of dots that you feel need connecting!
Another unique experiential travel opportunity, as promised:
In last month’s newsletter, we featured John Englander’s upcoming expedition to Greenland and Iceland to see climate change up close. We were delighted that several members of our community reached out to John.
As previously mentioned, we plan on featuring one special travel experience each month or so going forward. This month, it’s our privilege to highlight an exciting journey to Raja Ampat with Emmy Award-winning cinematographer, photographer and marine conservationist. Shawn Heinrichs. This unique experience will be hosted by Only One - an innovative not-for-profit on a mission to restore ocean health and tackle the climate crisis through storytelling, funding initiatives and campaigns. See below for more details.
Don’t stop scrolling!
We have some terrific content below, including:
- A new podcast series from aquaculture professional and angel investor Abigail Carroll
- A cool tool that allows users to discover the connection between ocean and planetary health through three unique interactive web journeys
- A new innovation from Patagonia and Samsung that seeks to reduce microplastics that result from laundry and textiles
Wishing you all a happy and healthy 2023. And as always, we thank you for your support.
The Investable Oceans Team
