UNESCO Honors Father of Modern Oceanography

Walter Munk
Walter Munk
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UNESCO Honors Father of Modern Oceanography

Walter Munk
Walter Munk

Walter Munk, a giant of modern oceanography, will deliver the Roger Revelle Memorial Lecture during the Executive Council of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) at UNESCO’s Headquarters in the French capital, Paris, on 5 July (4.45 pm).

In his lecture, the 100-year-old scientist, described by the New York Times newspaper as “the Einstein of Oceanography,” will share his unique perspective on the evolution of oceanography over the past eight decades.

“It is an honor for UNESCO to receive Professor Munk and benefit from his insights into the great progress of oceanography and how much further it can go in contributing to the safeguarding of our shared ocean and the construction of a more sustainable world,” said Audrey Azoulay, the Director-General of UNESCO. The IOC Executive Council will present Walter Munk with the UNESCO Roger Revelle Medal, which, like the memorial lecture itself, is named after Roger Revelle (USA, 1909—1991), a pioneering researcher into, among other subjects, anthropogenic global warming.

Born in Austria in 1917, Walter Munk, has been a physical oceanographer and geophysicist with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (USA) since 1939. Over a long life of scientific inquiry, Munk has made decisive contributions to our understanding of ocean currents, tides and deep-ocean mixing, tsunamis and seismic waves, as well as the rotation of the Earth.

At Scripps, he was among the founders of the Institute of Geophysics in 1962 and in 2015 he co-founded the Scripps Center for Marine Archaeology with Damien Leloup.

Each year, the IOC's Executive Council reviews the Intergovernmental Commission’s work and prepares the General Assembly of the IOC’s 149 Member States. This year, the Council will notably focus on preparations for the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).



Countries Tell Ukraine ‘You Are Not Alone’ after UN Adopts Neutral Stance on War

 People attend a demonstration to mark three years since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Times Square in New York City, US, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)
People attend a demonstration to mark three years since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Times Square in New York City, US, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)
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Countries Tell Ukraine ‘You Are Not Alone’ after UN Adopts Neutral Stance on War

 People attend a demonstration to mark three years since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Times Square in New York City, US, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)
People attend a demonstration to mark three years since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Times Square in New York City, US, February 24, 2025. (Reuters)

Dozens of countries rallied behind Ukraine at a meeting at the United Nations in Geneva on Tuesday, a day after the UN Security Council adopted a US-drafted resolution that takes a neutral stance on the conflict.

The event, held to commemorate "resistance to the Russian aggression", follows the resolution adopted in New York on the war's third anniversary that reflects President Donald Trump's upending of US policy on Ukraine and his more conciliatory stance towards Russia.

"You are not alone. Norway and other countries, all the countries who are here, but also other countries, will continue to support you as you fight for your territorial integrity, your sovereignty and your human dignity," Norway's Deputy Foreign Minister Andreas Motzfeldt Kravik told a packed room of ministers and diplomats.

Thousands of Ukrainian citizens have died since Russia invaded in 2022 and more than 6 million are refugees abroad. Russia has said it had no choice but to launch what it calls its "special military operation" due to the NATO alliance's eastwards expansion.

Estonia's Minna-Liina Lind, Undersecretary for Global Affairs, told the room she was "extremely worried" by the fact that the Security Council passed a resolution that does not include long-held language on Ukraine's territorial integrity.

"But I think the European resolve is even greater. When there's someone else not as strong, the others fill in," she told Reuters after the meeting, co-organized by Ukraine and Liechtenstein on the sidelines of the UN Human Rights Council.

The US failed to convince the UN General Assembly to pass the same resolution that passed in the Security Council on Monday. The General Assembly instead adopted motions seen as more favorable for Ukraine, in a diplomatic victory over Washington.

Most countries attending the Geneva event were European and included France and Germany, but others such as Türkiye, South Korea, Australia and Japan were also present. Washington sent a delegate who did not take the floor.

Ukraine's ambassador Yevheniia Filipenko, who at one point became emotional while addressing the room, asked countries to continue their support for rebuilding Ukraine and seeking accountability for crimes committed since Russia's invasion.

"The road ahead is very challenging but when we are united we can prevail," she said.