Canadian Ocean Literacy Strategy 2.0

Updating the National Strategy

In March 2021, COLC published Land, Water, Ocean, Us: The Canadian Ocean Literacy Strategy, making Canada the first country in the world with a national strategy. The aim of this nationwide effort was to unite fragmented efforts, inspire collaboration, and establish a framework for action to build a more ocean-connected society across regions, sectors, and scales.

 

Now, four years into implementing the National Strategy, we are reflecting on progress, impact, and lessons learned to date. This effort is leading to the creation of an updated Strategy to serve as a blueprint to guide ocean literacy efforts in Canada through the second half of the Ocean Decade (2026–2030). The updated Strategy will be published in early 2026.

The updated National Strategy aims to:

Celebrate progress and achievements to date

Address challenges, gaps, and opportunities for growth

Streamline efforts and strengthen collaboration across regions and sectors

Better bridge the gap between knowledge and action

Accelerate sustained impact and investment

Consultation Process & Timeline

  • Public Webinar – January 15, 2025
  • Community Input Survey – February 2025
  • Focused Consultations – March–June 2025
  • Drafting of Updated National Strategy – Fall 2025
  • Review of Updated National Strategy – Fall 2025
  • Publish Updated National Strategy – January 2026

Public Webinar

On January 15, we held a public webinar to begin the community input process, sharing an overview and insights from the initial National Strategy implementation phase (2021–2025) and inviting feedback from the community.

Focused Consultations

The purpose of these focused consultations was to bring together leaders and active members within each of these areas to discuss specific priority initiatives, collaborative opportunities, and collective impact-tracking approaches to help shape the updated National Strategy.

 

In-person and virtual discussions took place with a particular focus on:

  • Formal & Non-formal Education
  • Youth & Early Career
  • Academic & Government
  • Indigenous-led Groups
  • Communications & Media
  • Business & Philanthropy