United Nations Decade of ocean science
Through a suite of activities hosted under the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science, the OA Alliance supports policymakers in understanding the challenges posed by an acidifying ocean and taking action to reduce the impacts of OA.
As an implementing partner of the OARS Programme, the OA Alliance directly contributes to the global effort to identify OA data and evidence for OA mitigation and adaptation, and integrate OA across key policy and legislation.
Bridging the gap between cutting-edge research and practical applications.
Launched in 2021, Ocean Acidification Research for Sustainability (OARS) is a UN Ocean Decade endorsed programme dedicated to minimizing and addressing ocean acidification through enhanced cooperation at all levels. Aligning with Sustainable Development Goal Target 14.3, OARS was created to provide society with the observational and scientific evidence needed to sustainably identify, monitor, mitigate and adapt to ocean acidification.
OARS is developing a network of scientists and other ocean professionals who provide systematic evidence of how ocean acidification is changing the chemistry of our oceans, how these changes impact the sustainability of marine ecosystems, and how to use this knowledge to underpin better management of marine resources, from local to global scales. The OA Alliance is an implementing partner of OARS and serves as co-champion for Outcomes #2 and #7.
The science we need for the ocean we want.
Proclaimed in 2017 by the United Nations General Assembly, the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (‘the Ocean Decade’) seeks to stimulate ocean science and knowledge generation to reverse the decline of the state of the ocean system and catalyse new opportunities for sustainable development of this massive marine ecosystem.
The Ocean Decade provides a convening framework for scientists and stakeholders from diverse sectors to develop the scientific knowledge and the partnerships needed to accelerate and harness advances in ocean science to achieve a better understanding of the ocean system, and deliver science-based solutions to achieve the 2030 Agenda. The OA Alliance leads the Ocean Decade project: Understanding and Addressing Ocean Acidification and Changing Ocean Conditions Through the Development of OA Action Plans.
In 2025, the OA Alliance co-launched the OA Information for Action Framework under OARS to help decision-makers better understand climate impacts to marine resources and explore local actions that increase resilience.
To effectively address ocean acidification, policy makers must understand and harness linkages between climate-ocean change science and policy priorities.
The right information can help policymakers, resource managers, and community members understand the impacts of OA on marine resources and identify the most appropriate mitigation or adaptation actions for their region.
However, achieving impactful outcomes through appropriate policy goals and management tools requires a better understanding of the data and conditions required for leveraging the correct tools to address a specific problem.
To encourage a diversity of OA actions across different scales, OARS has outlined 6 key decision-making categories. These categories provide a framework for identifying OA information needs for specific mitigation and adaptation actions. Learn more by exploring the OA Information for Action User Guide and associated case studies.