A virtual workshop on maritime decarbonization and Research and Development (R&D) in Latin America and globally was held in Panama (9 February). The workshop was organized by the IMO Coordinated Actions to Reduce Emissions from Shipping (IMO CARES) project and MTCC-Latin America with the aim of highlighting the role of green technologies in achieving more sustainable shipping.
Maritime experts and sector specialist speakers discussed green energies and technologies (such as wind propulsion systems and solar energy); alternatives fuels (such as ammonia and hydrogen); the relevance of innovation, research and data collection to tackle emissions; the need for financial investments and collaboration withing stakeholders; and the importance of capacity building and inclusion, so no one is left behind in the journey towards decarbonization in the Latin America region and internationally.
Over 200 participants from around the world also learned about how the IMO CARES project can help to support technology transfer globally, by bringing together stakeholders in the maritime sector and technology providers to help solving challenges in the work towards emission reductions.
The objective of the IMO CARES project is to link the research and development initiatives in the Global North and the Global South to accelerate demonstration of green technologies and promote their development in a manner that assists blue economic growth in developing regions while creating new technology markets. The project is currently in its preparatory phase. It was launched in April 2022, and is financed by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. As part of the foundation phase activities, similar workshops were organized between June and August 2022 in collaboration with Maritime Technology Cooperation Centres for the Caribbean, Africa and Pacific.
The full IMO CARES Programme is expected to be launched in March 2023.
