2022 World Ocean Week to kick off in Xiamen

The China (Xiamen) International Boat Show held during the 2020 World Ocean Week in Xiamen, Fujian province. [Photo/China Daily]

The 2022 World Ocean Week is scheduled to open in Xiamen, East China's Fujian province, on Thursday, offering a maritime-focused gala for participants from home and abroad.

Under the theme of New Engine of Blue Development for the Maritime Community with a Shared Future, the weeklong event has invited officials, industry experts and business representatives from embassies and international organizations to hold discussions on topics including maritime economic development, ecological construction and the establishment of a maritime partnership.

It will hold 40 activities centering on three ocean-themed sections of conferences and forums, ocean exhibitions and cultural carnivals.

This year's ocean week will focus on international cooperation, the forefront of industries, ecological civilization and cultural communication, said Lin Huaiyuan, chief engineer of the Xiamen bureau of ocean development.

The organizers have arranged a series of activities this year under the framework of BRICS featuring technological exchanges and cooperation, overseas training and project matchmaking of the maritime industry, as part of the effort to assist Xiamen's construction of the BRICS PartNIR Innovation Center.

China is the rotating chair of BRICS, a group composed of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

For example, a symposium on China and Russia's sustainable maritime development and interdisciplinary cooperation will be held, and maritime industry experts and professors from the BRICS countries will share their insights in roundtable meetings on building sustainable maritime partnerships among stakeholders and symposiums on climate-related topics.

In addition, other activities centering on international cooperation such as the China-Island Countries High-Level Forum on Ocean Cooperation, the Sino-French Deep-Sea Microbiology Workshop, the 1st Workshop on Marine Observation and Data Application in the Mediterranean Sea and a symposium on the maritime technology and engineering will be highlighted during the week.

Organizers said this year's ocean week will have many industries covering sectors including ocean negative carbon emissions, microbial cycling, biopharmaceuticals, healthy food, intelligent shipping technology, maritime new energy and green finance.

Regarded as an industry indicator, the 2022 China Seafood Summit will continue to play a role in the ocean week. The summit will gather industry-leading parties to contribute to the progress of the maritime industry.

Industry associations and aquaculture alliances in freshwater fish, shellfish, shrimp and crab, marine fish and algae will support the summit. It has also invited industrial chain businesses engaged in aquatic goods production, processing, transportation, trade and cold chain logistics.

The summit forum on the innovation and development of Xiamen's emerging maritime industry and an international academic conference focusing on intelligent transport, modern logistics and information technology will debut during the ocean week.

Apart from conferences and forums, exhibitions are another highlight of the event.

The organizers said the 15th China (Xiamen) International Boat Show will be held online and offline. Focusing on the topics of the secondhand yacht market and new energy yachts, the show will have 230 exhibitors from more than 15 countries and regions to demonstrate 530 products, helping domestic businesses conduct commercial communication with overseas brands.

The show has invited top industry experts to participate in its online forums to share insights on the industry in terms of its international development.

Another exhibition, the fifth International Diving Salvage and Marine Engineering Equipment Exhibition, will set up a total of 11,000 square meters of exhibition area during the ocean week. It will set up six specific zones to showcase offshore wind power, municipal engineer diving, public safety and emergency rescue diving, ship pollution prevention, diving rescue technology and equipment and ship construction and supporting facilities.

With the aim of building an example of green development, this year's ocean week will see themed forums on achieving ocean negative carbon emissions, carbon neutrality, marine biodiversity conservation and financing.

There are also symposiums on issues such as climate change, ocean and atmosphere circulation, and the technological innovation of marine microbial resources under the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.

To closely link ocean and humanity, the ocean week will offer several carnivals, attracting more residents to participate in this event and enjoy the charm of the city of Xiamen.

The Dream of Ocean 2022 International Contemporary Arts Exhibition opened in the Nordic Contemporary Art Center on Saturday. The exhibition invited 34 artists from countries and regions including Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Germany, the Philippines, South Africa and China to create works through formats such as sculptures, photography and paintings to depict the theme of this year's ocean week.

The exhibition, which will last until Jan 30, 2023, showcases the beauty of the ocean and helps to raise global attention on maritime ecology. It also aims to emphasize the international community's recognition of ocean innovation and highlight the role of China's sustainable maritime development in socioeconomic recovery.

Another cultural activity of the ocean week, the fish bone art exhibition, also kicked off at Jimei University on Saturday. The exhibition demonstrated the art of fish bone crafts which originated from Xiamen, also adopting fish scales and eyes as materials to create artworks.

During the ocean week, the second Chinese Ocean Culture Xiamen Forum will provide guests with a feast of knowledge, telling stories of the maritime cultures of Xiamen and Minnan, south of Fujian province.

Children learn about a tortoise model on an Ocean Open Day. [Photo/China Daily]

A man introduces an ocean-themed painting to visitors at the Dream of Ocean 2022 International Contemporary Arts Exhibition, a part of the 2022 World Ocean Week in Xiamen. [Photo/China Daily]