Activity One - Create

For this activity you are going to be asked to create a guide by hand to outline who owns what 'bit' of the ocean. Collect a piece of A4 paper and a set of coloured pens to help you present this guide. You will need to include the following in your guide:

• • 1. Who owns the sea?

    2. Who owns the Arctic Sea?

    3. What is the Exclusive Economic Zone? How is it governed?

    4. How do nations zone their section of the ocean?

    5. What are the high seas?

    6. What is the law of the sea?

    7. Using Image One for information, is there anything surprising about who owns which part of the ocean?

    8. Who owns the area around the Ascension Islands? Why might this ownership become controversial?

    9. There has been a recent change into how the High Seas are going to be managed. Using the fourth and fifth link in the 'Useful Resources' box write a brief summary of the changes that are taking place. A brief summary is between 5 and 7 sentences. 

Activity Two - Conflict - Discussion

As you have discovered in Activity One it is difficult to define who should own certain aspects of the oceans and once decided on by the UN it still comes with issues. The group are going to be divided into four groups to investigate a dispute over ocean ownership. Each team are going to decide on who should own the disputed area of ocean and why. By prepared to convince your audience!

Useful Resources

Activity Three - Mining in the Oceans (Optional)

While countries may fight over the borders of their EEZ there is a new frontier, the ocean bed. Countries continue to want more and more resources which has led to increasing exploration of our sea floors for critical metals and minerals. It is said that 2025 was supposed to be a crucial year in exploration in terms of regulations and expectations. 

Useful Resource

Activity Four - Sustainable Development Goals

It is clear from Activity One that while the oceans are perhaps seen as 'International Water' and no one owns it in reality countries have a huge impact on how their use. While the EEZ is a global agreement the Sustainable Development Goals help to transcend the idea of national ownership to the fact that we are all responsible for the impact we are having on the ocean environments. Even here in Switzerland, as a land locked country, we are impacting the quality of the ocean water, the habitats it contains and the resources we demand from it. Therefore, the United Nations Sustainbale Development Goals are vital to transcend traditional ownership laws to encourage all to behave responsibly towards our oceans. 

• • 1. Click on the link in the 'Useful Resource' box and decide on which goals relate to the protection of the oceans. Write the name of the goal(s) down on lined paper.

    2. Describe what the goal is and what they hope to achieve. Don't panic this is just a short summary of the goals. A sentence on each is plenty. 

    3. Choose two of the 'Goals in the Action' about conservation of the ocean and write a summary of each of what is being done and whether it is being achieved or not.

Useful Resources