Funding will cover FRDC partnership in the event (35,000+GST), and additional costs associated with staff and stakeholder travel, and event collateral ($15k). The FRDC will not receive funds from this activity.

Taking lead from established frameworks and commitments, the Ocean Business Leaders' Summit will be established as a regular gathering of business, finance, research, science, and government stakeholders to broker dialogue and intellectual discussion about a sustainable ocean economy and generate actions while growing awareness of the ecosystem of stakeholders, drivers and opportunities.

Thought leadership
Hosting a compelling program of keynote speakers, panel discussions and in-conversation fireside chats, these two Summit sessions will lay the foundation for talking about the systemic change required to achieve 'the ocean we want'.

Delivering a sophisticated platform for engagement, strategic networking and collaboration, international and national thought leaders will address a gathering of 220 C-Suite, Board Chairs, Directors, decision-makers and influencers across business, government, finance, research and academia, and civil society, eager to understand and contribute to an ocean conversation that is becoming increasingly imperative on the planet's climate stage.

Interactive discussions with the delegates led by the Panel moderators, keynotes and thought leaders will traverse ocean knowledge, equity, innovation and governance and align with Ocean Decade objectives, challenges and outcomes, and the Ocean Panel transformations. This strategic focus will bring together an action agenda to promote an improved and collaborative approach for a sustainable ocean economy.

Held at the conclusion of the first day, a prestigious Ocean Decade Summit Dinner will bring together the 220 Summit delegates for an evening of invaluable networking and conversation while enjoying a fine-dining experience of a uniquely created menu using sustainable and indigenous produce.

Curated to bring together 50-55 key stakeholders and Summit delegates, the primary goal of the four strategic immersions will be to increase literacy and connectivity and provide a premium forum for robust debate and the sharing of knowledge and ideas.

Networking
Held as an Executive Luncheon hosting a cross-sector and cross-disciplinary panel of invited influencers, leaders, and industry stakeholders, the interactive discussions are aimed to encourage compelling, beneficial, and intellectual conversation between all guests, while providing a premium platform for a deep dive into key areas of opportunity, driving strategic engagement and collaborative approaches to move to a plan of action.

Strategic collaboration on an Ocean Action Agenda

An Executive Summary, to be compiled by our consulting partner, will be generated from each of these discussions and distributed to attendees, stakeholders and their broader networks. The intention is to collate all summaries of the contextual discussions of each of the Immersions into a compelling and actionable document for Ocean Decade Australia to use as a working document for future Summits and discussions.

Commercial in confidence. To know more about this project please contact FRDC.

[Produce a ‘Critical Review Paper’ to provide a potential roadmap for additional research, as well as help identify communication strategies for the seafood industry. This is a development and networking opportunity to create future relationships and collaborations]

This bursary will allow Nina Wootton to attend the microplastics and seafood symposium in Edinburgh, Scotland. The focus of the symposium will be human health aspects of microplastics in seafood. The aim is to produce a critical review paper to provide a potential roadmap for additional research, as well as help identify communication strategies for the seafood industry. This is part of an international partnership between FRDC, Seafish (UK) and Seafood Industry Research Fund (USA) that will have 11 scientific experts attending along with industry. The symposium provides Australians with a unique opportunity to engage with experts and industry from around the world.

We will also visit several UK based research groups as part of our travel - we have already engaged with researchers from Plymouth Marine Laboratories, University of Plymouth and Exeter University including Professor Richard Thompson, the first researcher to identify microplastics as an issue.