Over 200 youth and stakeholders gathered at Star Cinema Bagatelle in Mauritius for a screening of the documentary Ocean, narrated by Sir David Attenborough. Organized by IUCN Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office, Reef Conservation Mauritius, and Shoals Rodrigues under the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) initiative, the event aimed to raise awareness on marine biodiversity and empower youth-led ocean conservation. Supported by the High Seas Alliance and the Minderoo Foundation, the event used cinematic storytelling to highlight the ocean’s beauty and vulnerability, while encouraging regional youth action.
The event brought together students from eco-schools and campuses, community groups, NGOs, fishing sector representatives, and institutional partners. It featured an intergenerational dialogue through a youth-led panel discussion and a “Reflection Wall” for attendees to share their ocean conservation commitments. This initiative is part of a broader campaign using film and educational engagement to promote sustainable ocean stewardship.
The screening supports IUCN’s broader mission under the BBNJ Agreement, which focuses on conserving marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdictions. IUCN, as a global leader in environmental policy and conservation, works with a unique mix of government, civil society, and scientific networks. It offers technical support and policy advice to help countries implement sustainable environmental practices and engage in multilateral environmental agreements.
Through its Coastal and Ocean Resilience Programme, IUCN’s Eastern and Southern Africa office supports 24 countries, including Mauritius. One of its flagship efforts, the Great Blue Wall (GBW) Initiative, is building a regenerative blue corridor across the Western Indian Ocean. GBW aims to conserve 2.5 million km² of ocean, restore 2 million hectares of ecosystems, and create 2 million blue jobs by 2030 by integrating conservation, climate, and economic development.
Aligned with global goals like the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the Paris Agreement, the GBW initiative promotes sustainable ocean governance and positions African nations and islands as leaders in marine conservation. In Mauritius, IUCN implements projects such as the IslandPlas initiative, which tackles plastic pollution, and the BBNJ Ratification Support Project to strengthen marine biodiversity protection efforts.
As part of the GBW, IUCN leads a continent-wide initiative to accelerate the ratification and implementation of the BBNJ Agreement, with support from the Minderoo Foundation and Bloomberg Ocean Fund. This project focuses on awareness-raising, capacity building, legal and institutional support, and enhancing regional collaboration. It also works on developing a network of African BBNJ experts and conducting baseline studies to assess regional readiness for implementation and establish pilot Centres of Excellence.
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