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From 9 to 10 September 2019, the Fisheries Society of Nigeria (FISON) and the EU funded “Improving Fisheries Governance in Western Africa Project” (PESCAO)-ECOWAS met in the premises of the Nigerian Institute for Oceanography and Marine Research in Victoria Island, Lagos, to discuss potential for action of non-state actors in fisheries and aquaculture in West Africa.

Readers will recall the launch of the small-scale fisheries (SSF) academy in Senegal end of 2018 as a concrete contribution towards the implementation of the SSF Guidelines. A large group of men and women from all segments of the sector and all regions of the country, sector administrators and academics had ensured a broad-based adherence to the idea and developed recommendations for activities. The next step

WIOMSA, the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association, convened it's 11th symposium from 1 to 5 July 2019 in Port Louis, Mauritius. The Organising Committee had invited Cornelia E Nauen of Mundus maris to deliver a keynote address on gender issues to support its own efforts to raise awareness on the topic. Starting with the opening with dance programme, four days of keynotes, parallel sessions of oral presentations on a wide array of marine issues with focus on the region and crammed poster sessions gave way to this keynote and a large number of special sessions mostly in an interactive format on day 5.

On the 30th of June, as a WIOMSA pre-symposium activity, Women in Marine Science Network (WiMS), in collaboration with Mundus maris, hosted a workshop to discuss the gender dimension in marine science and practice. About 30 women, leading researchers, academics, scientists, policy makers, practitioners and students from Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, South Africa, Reunion (France) and Tanzania came together to explore “what could we start to do here and now together towards gender equity in the context of our work on conservation and sustainable use of the Western Indian Ocean?”

Are women in fisheries and aquaculture still mostly invisible and underpaid? A meta-analysis of case studies from four continents back in 2002 had identified such a pattern across a wide range of countries as different levels of socio-economic development. Mundus maris convened a panel on gender in fisheries at this year's X MARE Conference in Amsterdam, which examined whether in times of the Sustainable Development Goals adopted by the UN in 2015 these findings needed an update.

The IMBeR Open Science Conference Future Ocean 2 in Brest from 17 to 21 June 2019 brought together scientists and students from many different fields of research around the challenge of "Ocean sustainability for the benefit of society: understanding, challenges, and solutions". More than 300 female and 270 male registered participants representing 59 nationalities from 48 countries spent a week debating and sharing research results. Aliou Sall of Mundus maris was among the approximately 45% of participants with many years of experience.

This year's European Development Days on 18 and 19 June in the Tour and Taxis complex in Brussels were again the who is who in the politics, advocacy and practice of international development cooperation. Stella Williams and Cornelia E Nauen of Mundus maris attended the event and participated actively in a number of sessions, panels and workshops as well as engaging with staff at several booth. Here are a few impressions.

We are thrilled to announce the winners of the Mundus maris Awards 2019. The theme chosen by the United Nations for World Ocean Day was particularly timely, but also challenging: Gender and Ocean. It underscored how important it is to enrol the whole of humanity, men and women and people of all ages and orientations in the efforts to restore and protect the Ocean. What better motto to illustrate to which extent the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) are interconnected. These messages are not yet universally understood. We all have still many stereotypes in our heads that are often obstacles for openness, engagement and critical understanding of one another and the great challenges of our times, which need more cooperation than ever before and scaling up. The international jury laboured extensively to distill the best entries submitted by more than 100, mostly young people, from six countries (three continents).

Women and the Ocean - that is the fitting focus of World Ocean Day this year. It reminds us that probably 50% of workers along the fish value chain are women - but data are for the most part missing except for some case studies - one of the many things to change for healthy oceans, prosperious and sustainable fisheries and respectful conditions ensured for women, men and ocean life. Brussels kicked off again the series of events by Mundus maris and its partners on three continents to celebrate the Ocean.

More partnerships and a boost of activities are needed to accelerate the implementation of Agenda 2030. That was the message of the meeting of the Communities of Ocean Action that took place in Incheon, Korea, on 30 and 31 May 2019. On invitation of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA) Mundus maris participated together with other experts from civil society organisations (CSO), UN agencies, research organisations and governments taking stock of the more than 1500 commitments for SDG 14 made since the 2017 UN Ocean Conference. The entire focus was on exchanging experiences on how to accelerate and scale up action.

Slow Fish was again at Porto Antico in Genoa, this year from 9 to 12 May. Good seafood and regional specialities from around the country and even from further afield appealed to the senses. Good books, some educational games and a stream of conferences nutured curiosity and a playful way of learning. The strongest part, feeding us into the future, was the stream of engaged conversations among people from small-scale fisheries and their support structures from different parts of the world debating about how to ensure sustainable futures for the Blue Commons. Already the Slow Fish title "The Sea: A Common Good" set the tone.