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SKEMA professor at United Nations oceans conference

Published on 12 July 2017

Christophe Mocquet (SKEMA professor) was sent by the University Côte d’Azur (UCA) from 5 - 9 June 2017 to the UN in New York, to take part in this world conference as co-director of the MARRES Master (Science & Management of the Marine Resources) that is opening in 2018 (joint SKEMA-Nice University master).

As a member of the French delegation, Christophe Mocquet had the honour of representing our country and helping our ambassador during the General Assembly plenary sessions.  


This conference is for high level (heads of state, ministers and ambassadors) and is in a way the follow up to the COP21 in Paris at the end of 2015 (known as the conference on the climate or the Paris agreement). After the COP21, states adopted 17 sustainable development goals (SDG) linking scientific, economic and social aspects (see the list). Everything to do with the oceans corresponds to goal 14 (SDG14). Goal 14 is the only one to have its own high level UNO conference. 

“Since SKEMA is an integral part of the UCA, my work at the UNO last week will have good effects for SKEMA. Our BBA students in “Management of the Marine Environments” and “Sustainable Developments” can validate the first year of a master in their fourth year, so they will be able to benefit from the progress made for MARRES. Our programmes will benefit directly from this experience: we can integrate the latest approaches that were discussed and adopted at the UNO at the highest level. Our students will also benefit from the international network that we want to develop with UCA (student projects, internship offers, exchanges etc.). 

This conference confirmed what I already thought: at SKEMA, with our BBA offer, and now at UCA (with the MARRES Master) we are one of the rare training offers to link scientific knowledge, management and sustainable development in different locations. Cleary, the current trends of the world economy in emerging and industrial countries correspond to our multi competence approach » explains Christophe Mocquet. 

What was his most memorable moment in this experience? “The day when the general assembly adopted the agreement on the oceans. A great moment that I could experience from the inside with the small delegation of the ambassador. At the end of the session, the American speech questioned many points of the agreement including those about climate change, and unlike the usual applause at the end of a UNO speech, this one was met by a very long silence. It was embarrassing. Just after that, France took the floor. In a simple but highly relevant speech, the ambassador pointed to the need to implement all the points of the agreement, including those that were related to the Paris agreement. He was applauded for at least a minute by the whole room – the exact opposite of how the American speech had been received. I was very proud to be French and to be standing beside the ambassador at that moment.” 

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