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PROBLUE Global Engagement Forum

June 6, 2024

Invitation only | In-person encouraged (livestreamed)

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Sharing knowledge and expertise from a broad range of stakeholders is a crucial element of implementing a blue-economy approach. In this spirit, the PROBLUE Global Engagement Forum has been established to convene a wide range of stakeholders on blue-economy priority issues - to help build relationships and identify opportunities for collaborative and coordinated interventions in countries.

The second PROBLUE Engagement Forum will convene on Thursday, June 6^th under the theme “Enhancing Biodiversity within the Blue Economy.” It will occur on the margins of the High-Level Event on Ocean Action, to be held on June 7 - 8, 2024 in San Jose, Costa Rica.

About PROBLUE

Administered by the World Bank, PROBLUE is a multi-donor trust fund that supports the sustainable and integrated development of marine and coastal resources in healthy oceans.

The second PROBLUE Engagement Forum will convene on Thursday, June 6^th under the theme “Enhancing Biodiversity within the Blue Economy.” It will occur on the margins of the High-Level Event on Ocean Action, to be held on June 7 - 8, 2024 in San Jose, Costa Rica.

The event is invitation-only. If you are interested in participating, please contact PROBLUE at problue@worldbank.org

About the session:

It is a global priority to develop and support transformative actions to halt and reverse biodiversity loss in our ocean for the benefit of people and nature. Knowledge gaps remain about the coastal and marine biodiversity, with many new species still left to be discovered. These gaps relate to the distribution and status of marine biodiversity, the functioning of coastal and marine ecosystems and the means by which they furnish goods and services, as well as the rate of biodiversity decline due to multiple stressors, e.g. overfishing, habitat-degradation, climate-change, etc.. What makes certain species and ecosystems more resilient to cumulative pressures, and when and how tipping points occur, is also poorly understood, but vital for informing management. Addressing these knowledge gaps is critical to support the design and implementation of management, policy, and financial measures for reducing and halting biodiversity loss, and to achieve the WBG’s vision, and mission and the four goals and 23 targets of the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF).

Building on the World Bank’s blue economy approach, which refers to the sustainable and integrated development of economic sectors in a healthy ocean, the proposed PGEF expects to present and analyze different approaches beyond the 30x30 commitment, including the equitable and inclusive participation of indigenous peoples and local communities, women, youth, and other underrepresented people, as well as the recognition of other conservation-area based management (OECMs), to achieve the GBF goals.

A focus on Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and OECM will be given at this event due to its alignment to the “Blue Economy” approach. MPAs and OECMs can be governed, or co-governed, by a variety of rights holders and actors including Indigenous peoples and local communities, government agencies, as well as sectoral actors, private organizations, and individuals.

Speakers from the First PROBLUE Global Engagement Forum

Anjali Acharya
Anjali Acharya is leading the World Bank’s global marine plastics agenda, while also supporting country programs on marine plastics and circular economy. She also serves as the pillar manager for PROBLUE –a multi-donor trust fund for the blue economy. Anjali brings over 25 years of development experience at the World Bank leading projects and analytical work on climate resilience, watershed management, pollution management, environmental health, biodiversity and environmental policies. Her positions have covered programs in Latin America and East Asia Pacific regions, including field assignments in Vietnam and Singapore. An Indian national, Dr. Acharya holds a Ph.D. degree in International Environmental Health from Johns Hopkins University and a master’s degree in Environmental Economics from Duke University.
Amparo Perez Roda
Ms. Amparo Perez Roda is a Fishery Officer at the Operations and Technology team of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Division of FAO. Prior to that, she coordinated the Glo Litter Partnerships project at FAO. She has extensive work experience in food loss reduction in marine capture fisheries, fishing gear management, and plastic marine litter prevention and reduction from fishing operations, in particular, ALDFG. She is Licensed in Biology by Universidad de Valencia, and she holds a Master’s in Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning and Management at the Universidad del Pais Vasco.
Janaka Da Silva
Dr. Janaka de Silva, Senior Programme Coordinator, Ocean Team, Centre for Conservation Action, IUCN specializes in Marine and Coastal issues. His experience includes working in the Government, Academic and Non-Profit sectors and has included, designing, implementing and managing ecosystem based programs that integrate forests, watersheds and marine systems, providing advice on species management to governing bodies and developing and implementing results based monitoring at program and project level scales. He currently manages IUCN`s Global Plastic Portfolio “Closing the Plastic Tap” that is being implemented in 11+ countries that advances knowledge and takes action to address the impact of plastic waste and leakage on the marine environment. Janaka also supports the Ocean Teams programme of work on Ocean Multistressors and Sustainable Blue Economy.
Heidi Savelli-Soderberg
Heidi has led marine litter and plastic pollution related activities within the Marine and Freshwater Branch of the United Nations Environment Programme since 2009. She has worked with coastal and marine management including prevention of land-based sources of pollution for 20 years. She trained as an ecotoxicologist with an MSc from Lund University, Sweden.
Henrique Silva Pacini
Henrique is an economist at UNCTAD in Geneva, working on trade and circular economy themes. He is a member of the leadership team for the Sustainable Manufacturing and Environmental Pollution (SMEP) program, a GBP 25 million initiative established by UK Aid focusing on pollution prevention in manufacturing sectors of Africa and Asia, including plastics. Pacini holds a degree in economics from the University of São Paulo, a M.A. in European Studies from Hochschule Bremen, and a Ph.D. in Energy Technology from KTH in Sweden. He recently completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard University examining global trade networks of plastic scrap material. Mr. Pacini also co-chaired their first Circular Economy Symposium at Harvard. He has published over 30 articles on environment, trade, and development and has worked for various private and public institutions.
Hannah Pragnell-Raasch
Hannah is a Project Specialist at the Global Ghost Gear Initiative. Based on the Central Coast in Australia, she holds a BSc with Honours in Marine Biology and MSc with Distinction in Biodiversity Conservation and brings with her over 10 years of experience working in the marine conservation field. Prior to her role, Hannah spent 8 years with PADI AWARE Foundation (formerly Project AWARE), leading their global Clean Ocean Strategy. As an avid scuba diver and surfer, she has been lucky to have experienced the beauty of our marine world and, in turn, has also seen first-hand the impact that ALDFG causes to the underwater world as well as the challenges associated with removing ghost gear from the ocean.