The 2024 East Asian Seas (EAS) Congress and World Ocean Week in Xiamen was held in Xiamen, East China’s Fujian province, from November 6 to 12.  

This is the second time that the EAS Congress has taken place in China. It not only shows China's sense of responsibility as a major maritime country, but also presents an opportunity to advance the building of a maritime community with shared future, said Hong Huasheng, chief scientist of the Coastal and Ocean Management Institute (COMI) of Xiamen University, in a recent interview with multi-language news website China.org.cn.  

Hong believed that marine economy has excellent prospects as continuous innovations in marine technology and engineering equipment enable people to explore the ocean in a boarder and deeper way. 

“However, it is very important to protect the marine ecological environment while developing the marine economy. It may sound contradictory, but environmental protection and economic development actually complement each other. In this respect, Xiamen has set a good example,”Hong said. 

When asked how to deal with new challenges facing the ocean, Hong suggested green energy like marine wind power and tidal power be well utilized. 

Additionally, she called for raising public awareness of marine environmental protection. “The public, particularly children, should be aware of the importance of marine protection, and be part of specific actions such as collecting marine litter,”Hong said.