The One Ocean Hub is an international programme of research for sustainable development, working to promote fair and inclusive decision-making for a healthy ocean whereby people and planet flourish. The Hub is funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) through the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF), a key component in delivering the UK AID strategy to tackle the Sustainable Development Goals. It addresses the challenges and opportunities of South Africa, Namibia, Ghana, Fiji and Solomon Islands, and will share knowledge at regional (South Pacific, Africa and Caribbean) and international levels.
The One Ocean Hub is led by the University of Strathclyde, UK and gathers 126 researchers, 21 research partners, and 19 project partner organisations, including United Nations bodies and programmes.
The Hub’s programme of work includes a substantial research theme on Sustainable Fisheries. As part of this research theme, our researchers are working towards an integrated assessment of cumulative pressures on fish species and habitats including micro-plastic bioaccumulation.
The One Ocean Hub also includes a research programme on Ocean Governance that seeks to discover the full potential of law and policy across scales to foster inclusive and transparent sustainable blue economies, by considering the inter-dependencies of the marine environment and human rights to connect across sectors still operating in isolation: ocean/land/freshwater/waste management, trade, investment, innovation and intellectual property, and development cooperation.
We welcome the opportunity to provide inputs on “the lifecycle of plastics and human rights”. Our written submission consists of five different sections as follow:
1. Information on plastics generally
2. Impacts of ocean plastics pollution on human rights holders
3. Implications of ocean plastics pollution for duty bearers
4. Implementation of relevant policy and legal frameworks in recycling ocean plastics