ISPRA's Contribution to the Third Edition of the United Nations "World Ocean Assessment"
The third edition of the World Ocean Assessment (WOA) has recently been released. Spanning more than 1,300 pages, the report is the result of five years of work by around 600 international scientists. It provides a comprehensive assessment of the growing impacts of climate change, pollution, and overfishing on the world's oceans, which cover more than 70% of the Earth's surface.
The report highlights that the health of the world's oceans is now under severe threat, with many marine ecosystems and habitats approaching—or already exceeding—their critical resilience thresholds. The third World Ocean Assessment provides a robust, integrated scientific foundation to support governments, international organizations, and policymakers in developing coordinated and effective actions to address the challenges of protecting marine ecosystems.
The report is organized into five sections. The fourth section focuses on the changes that have occurred since the publication of the second World Ocean Assessment in 2021 and includes a dedicated chapter on biodiversity. Among its contributors is ISPRA researcher Caterina Fortuna, who authored a section on the status and conservation of marine mammals.