WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine), a member of the Senate Climate Action Task Force, today attended the “Our Ocean” Conference hosted by Secretary of State John Kerry at the State Department. The conference, which focuses on sustainable fishing, marine pollution and ocean acidification, is bringing together more than 350 participants from across 80 nations – including government officials, scientists and leading international institutions – to review the state of the science and determine concrete actions that can be taken at all levels to help protect ocean ecosystems.

“I see and hear about the practical implications of climate change in Maine almost every day, but climate change isn’t a problem that’s exclusive to Maine. It’s not an issue that’s confined by state or national borders. It impacts every country across the globe – and that means nations across the world are going to have to band together to develop a strategy and forge an international initiative in order to stem the tide of a changing ocean environment,” Senator King said. “Today’s conference was a promising step in that direction, and I am hopeful that these discussions are just the beginning of a larger conversation that will result in a concrete international agenda to combat climate change.”

Participants of the conference include: Prince Albert II of Monaco, President of the Republic of Kiribati Anote Tong, President of the Republic of Palau Tommy Remengesau, Chilean Foreign Minister Heraldo Muñoz, Foreign Minister of the Republic of the Marshall Islands Tony DeBrum, Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Federated States of Micronesia Lorin Robert, New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully, Norwegian Foreign Minister Børge Brende, Togolese Foreign Minister Robert Dussey, and World Bank President Jim Yong Kim.

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