The themes of women and youth actions for a sustainable ocean is an imperative human value instilled within us to protect women and the ocean as young individuals seeking to lead society. Today, we see various people - women and men of various ages - acting upon the theme of sustainable oceans. 

In particular, the fourteenth Sustainability Development Goal - Life below Water - plays an important role in this theme of “Women and Youth Actions for Sustainable Ocean”. In the past years, there have been various youth and women-led organizations that have had the sole purpose of helping out the ocean and cleaning up the ocean in various countries around the world. 

Furthermore, this year, in early June, the United Nations held the first Ocean Conference at the United Nations Headquarters in New York with the theme of “Our Oceans, Our Future”. The conference discussed the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal #14, which urges action to sustainably use the world’s oceans, seas, and marine resources.

In Korea, there are various examples and forms of women and youth actions for a sustainable ocean. Particularly, on Jeju island, there are the haenyeo women, who are groups of women who are sea divers mainly to collect seafood for their local communities. However, though their main job is to dive for seafood for their families, recently, haenyeo women groups have been coming together to find ways to clean up the ocean around Jeju island. For example, a group of women in the southern parts of Jeju has been contributing to the act of sustainability in regard to oceans and the natural environment by picking up trash around the beaches of Jeju, as well as cleaning up after themselves after a long day in the depths of the ocean. Through these actions, many of the families of the haenyeo women have been helping out as well, and eventually bringing out their small community to help out.