photo courtesy the Office of the Hawaiʻi County Mayor

(BIVN) – The mayor of Hawaiʻi County has returned from an international conference on key ocean issues, which is being held this month in Palau.

Mayor Mitch Roth was participating in the “Our Ocean Conference”, which focuses on topics like marine protected areas, sustainable fisheries, marine pollution, and climate-related impacts on the ocean.

From the office of Mayor Roth:

Mayor Mitch Roth returned from the Our Ocean Conference in Palau this past weekend after representing Hawaiʻi in a myriad of pre-event functions. Invited as the personal guest of President Surangel Whipps Jr. of Palau, Mayor Roth teamed up with Hawaiʻi Green Growth to provide updates on the Aloha+ challenge here in Hawaiʻi and discuss the Roth Administration’s efforts to further sustainable actions statewide. Some of the notable presenters who spoke alongside Mayor Roth at the pre-event festivities include: Rick Spinrad, NOAA Administrator and Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, Former Secretary of State John Kerry, United States Special Presidential Envoy for Climate, and Governor Lou Leon Guerrero of Guam.

“It was an honor to be personally invited to the Our Ocean Conference by President Whipps to showcase all of the amazing things we are doing in Hawaiʻi to combat climate change and build a sustainable island chain where our keiki can thrive and succeed for generations to come,” said Mayor Mitch Roth. “We truly believe that we can be a classroom for the world when it comes to the vision and practice of sustainable actions, and creating global partnerships to ensure that happens will be paramount to our success. Fortunately, through the work of organizations like Hawaiʻi Green Growth, we were able to synthesize our approach and gain the attention of global leaders on the forefront of climate action.”

The 7th Our Ocean Conference was held on April 13-14 in Koror, with pre-event receptions and meetings beginning April 12. The Republic of Palau is the first small island developing state (SIDS) to host the Our Ocean Conference, with a theme of “Our Ocean, Our People, our Prosperity,” which drew on Palau’s rich tradition as an ocean society and focused on islander perspectives and approaches to ensuring the health of our ocean.