COMMUNICATIONS

June 8, 2022 

Ottawa — As part of Ocean Week Canada (OWC), the Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition (COLC), together with 15 national content partners and over 75 event partners, will be marking World Ocean Day (June 8) with a national program of over 100 events taking place across the country.  

Why a national ocean celebration matters

Canada holds 20% of the planet’s freshwater resources and has the longest coastline of any country in the world – 50% of which is in the Arctic. Of the 38 million people in Canada, over 7 million live in coastal marine areas; 1 in 2 Canadians live along the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River. Whether coastal or inland, all Canadians are connected to the ocean, and each other, through watersheds.

Canada has committed to protecting 25% of Canada’s ocean space by 2025 and 30% by 2030. Currently, we are halfway there. There is only one big interconnected global ocean. Canada has a role to play in caring for it. Biggest coastline, big responsibility. In February 2023, Canada will be hosting the global community at the Fifth International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC5) in Vancouver.

2021-2030 is the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. Canada is actively supporting and contributing to this global initiative, including the creation of a ‘community of champions’ to mobilize the Canadian ocean community and foster innovative and transformative science-based actions.

Canada is the first country with a national ocean literacy strategy. Widely defined as the extent to which we “understand the ocean’s impact on you and your impact on the ocean,” ocean literacy is fundamentally about our relationship with the ocean. The National Strategy (launched in spring 2021) provides a common framework for action over the course of the UN Ocean Decade and serves as an important opportunity for people in Canada to work together to help ensure a healthy, equitable, and sustainable relationship with the ocean and local waterways for present and future generations.

Ocean Week Canada is an annual national celebration of ocean events, learning, and engagement held during the week of World Ocean Day (June 8). This national ocean celebration is an important part of the National Strategy’s framework for action.

Giant map and augmented reality ocean learning experience

Canadian Geographic, COLC, and Ocean School have partnered to bring Ocean, Freshwater, and Us – a giant interactive floor map to locations across Canada, featuring the latest in augmented reality technology. This initiative is part of Ocean Week Canada and the Ocean Festival, a pan-Canadian ocean education and marine conservation celebration made possible through a collaboration between the COLC and 15 national partner organizations, together with the generous support of Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

The giant floor map (8m x 11m) shows that all waterways are connected to the ocean by allowing visitors to follow the flow on a massive scale. Augmented reality, 360° video, and other interactive activities help bring data layers on the map to life. The map is made to walk on – putting a network of watersheds, coastal areas, and marine protected areas right beneath your feet. Learn more about the map here.

On World Ocean Day, the map will be at the below locations.

Vancouver

Where: Science World (1455 Quebec St, Vancouver, BC)
When: June 8 — World Ocean Day, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Who: Representatives from COLC, Swim Drink Fish, Year of the Salish Sea,
Friends of False Creek, and other invited partners

The map will also be at the Vancouver Maritime Museum on June 10 and the Beaty Biodiversity Museum on June 11.

Toronto

Where: Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada (288 Bremner Blvd, Toronto, ON)
When: Through June 12 (Open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily)

An additional giant floor map is being activated throughout the Greater Toronto Area during Ocean Week Canada by COLC’s National Education Coordinator, Jae Williams, at the following locations: 

• Ecole La Mosaïque – June 9 
• North York Central Public Library and Great West Life – June 10-11

About Ocean Week Canada and the Ocean Festival

Ocean Week Canada is a national celebration of ocean events, learning, and engagement that is held annually during the week of World Ocean Day (June 8). Ocean Week Canada 2022 is taking place June 3-12. Unique to 2022, Ocean Week Canada will continue with events and activities throughout the summer as Canada gears up to host the global community at the Fifth International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC5) in Vancouver in February 2023.

Over the following three months and beyond, Canadians will learn about the importance of the ocean and sustainable interactions with it. The Festival will strengthen Canadians’ connections to their local watersheds and Canada’s coastline—the longest in the world—and inspire community-based action to ensure a healthy ocean for future generations. The Festival will celebrate Indigenous-led, community, government, and private sector conservation success stories and help to build momentum towards reaching Canada’s conservation targets of protecting 25% of Canada’s ocean space by 2025 and 30% by 2030. Through both in-person and virtual events, this national celebration includes art installations, film screenings, cultural programming, educational workshops, presentations and panels, community science activities, and many other types of events taking place in communities across the country. For the full events program, visitwww.oceanweekcan.ca

Ocean Week Canada is nationally coordinated by the Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition (COLC) project office. This year’s celebration brings together 15 diverse organizations/ institutions from across Canada as national content partners, including the IMPAC5 Secretariat, Canadian Geographic; Canadian Museum of Nature; Ingenium, Indigenous Leadership Initiative; Students on Ice Foundation; Ocean School (a collaboration of the National Film Board of Canada and Dalhousie University); Parks Canada, Water Rangers; Ocean Networks Canada; Canadian Network for Ocean Education;Hakai Institute; Early Career Ocean Professionals (ECOP) Canada; Entremission; and Emdash. Ocean Week Canada and the Ocean Festival also bring together over 100 event partners from across the country.

This national collaboration and celebration is made possible through a contribution of $2.3 million from Fisheries and Oceans Canada over two years (2021-2023) through the Oceans Management Contribution Program.

To learn more about Ocean Week Canada and the Ocean Festival, visit www.oceanweekcan.ca.

Quotes 

“Our connections with land, freshwater, coastal areas, sea ice, and the open ocean are deeply shaped by our diverse experiences. When we share, strengthen, and celebrate our relationship with the ocean and local waterways, and come together to conserve and protect what we care about, we ensure a healthy ocean for future generations. This is the core mission of our national collaboration.”
Dr. Diz Glithero, National Lead, Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition 

“At the 5th International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC5) in Vancouver, Canada, the world’s foremost ocean conservation leaders and professionals will meet to chart a course towards protecting 30% of the global ocean by 2030. For Canadians, Ocean Week Canada and the Ocean Festival will create a wave of excitement as we celebrate our universal connection to the ocean and learn more about how it sustains us. The Ocean Festival will inspire us to support Canada’s efforts to protect precious marine ecosystems—from the unique glass sponge reefs in British Columbia to the globally important narwhal habitat in Nunavut.”
Sabine Jessen, Executive Director, IMPAC5 Secretariat 

“In 2022, Ocean Week Canada and the Ocean Festival will provide unprecedented opportunities for Canadians to appreciate the critical role that our ocean plays in the health of the planet and the protections necessary to ensure a sustainable ocean future for all. As we launch into the UN Ocean Decade, Ocean Networks Canada, an initiative of the University of Victoria, will contribute to the project through the creation of toolkits and planning of local and national events together with our partners from coast-to-coast-to-coast.”
Dr. Kate Moran, President, Ocean Networks Canada 

“Canadian Geographic is pleased to bring innovative educational and engagement tools to this important collaboration to make Canada’s enormous ocean better known to Canadians and the world.”
John Geiger, CM, CEO, Canadian Geographic 

“Our research and national collections provide critical evidence of changes to Canada’s marine biodiversity over time. We want to ensure this knowledge, as well as our public-engagement expertise, supports the festival and the COLC in inspiring Canadians to care about the importance of a healthy ocean to the health of the planet.”
Meg Beckel, President and CEO, Canadian Museum of Nature

“The Indigenous Leadership Initiative is a proud partner in this national collaboration and the special attention paid to featuring and learning from Indigenous-led ocean and water conservation and stewardship by Indigenous Guardians.”
Valerie Courtois, Director, Indigenous Leadership Initiative 

“Ingenium is proud to collaborate with so many amazing partners to tell the Canadian story of how innovation and technology contributes to our better understanding and appreciation of our oceans. Supporting the critical work advancing ocean literacy in Canada through this new education and conservation celebration is an exciting way to support our mission.”
Lisa Leblanc, Director General of the Canada Science and Technology Museum, one of three national museums under the Ingenium brand

“The Students on Ice Foundation is delighted to contribute to this important and timely national project, a curated video collection of coastal community stories as shared by community members on themes of culture, livelihoods, and marine conservation.”
Geoff Green, President, Students on Ice Foundation 

“Many of us who don’t live near the ocean don’t realize how we’re connected to it. Water Rangers is excited to support this project and celebration, encouraging all of us to learn about and get involved in ocean protection!”
Kat Kavanagh, Executive Director, Water Rangers 

“The ocean connects us all, touches us all, brings us all together. As a proud founding member of the Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition, the Ocean School team looks forward to contributing to this special celebration of our ocean connections. Let’s create a wave of excitement for our ocean nation.”
Boris Worm, Scientific Director of Ocean School

“The vision of ECOP Canada is to elevate and strengthen the diverse perspectives of new generations of ocean professionals in a collective voice, ensuring that knowledge is transferred between experienced and early-career ocean professionals. The Ocean Festival is an amazing opportunity for ECOPs across the country to be meaningfully engaged in the Canadian Ocean landscape.”
Neha Acharya-Patel, Co-Chair, Early Career Ocean Professionals Canada 

“The Tula Foundation’s Decade Regional Collaborative Center and Hakai team are excited to be a part of this coalition to get more Canadians engaged with the oceans that support and surround us.”
Hakai Institute and Decade Collaborative Center for the Northeast Pacific Ocean 

“The Canadian Network for Ocean Education (CaNOE) is thrilled to participate in this collaboration and help to deliver these ocean learning opportunities across Canada to spark greater awareness and advance ocean literacy.”
Audrie-Jo McConkey, Co-Chair, Canadian Network for Ocean Education