Oceans. Everything begins and ends there. The thought that the health of the place where all life on earth originates is in danger is terrifying. The species that inhabit the oceans are facing grave threats because only 3% of the ocean surface area is protected. Meanwhile, the scientific community is warning that at least 30% should be protected before 2030 to ensure their survival and, naturally, ours as well. 

 Thanks to pressure brought to bear by Greenpeace and other organizations and institutions, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution to begin negotiations for a new agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea to protect marine biodiversity in areas outside the jurisdiction of national jurisdictions. This new treaty was negotiated in 2020 and was to be approved that same year. These negotiations afford a historical opportunity to establish a global regime for international waters and are key in meeting the conservation objectives set for ocean sanctuaries enjoying real protection around the globe. We needed to seize this decisive moment to develop a campaign demanding the protection of marine sanctuaries and to exert the greatest global pressure on the UN. Furthermore, we must urge for the establishment of the first marine sanctuary under this treaty, the marvelously mysterious Sargasso Sea, the only shoreless sea in the world whose calm waters lie in the middle of the Atlantic, and whose bounds are set every day to the north and south by ocean currents.

On Thursday June 30th 2019 Viernes once again joined its destiny with that of Greenpeace, together with more than 100 movie, television, music, fashion and journalism personalities from Spain, to support the establishment of marine sanctuaries and demand that the government of Spain defend the United Nations Global Ocean Treaty.

 We needed their engagement, so we wrote to them and asked them to take an oath. It was a must to disseminate this poetic pledge made to the seas, so we had our ocean ambassador, captain Javier Bardem, holding the old wooden helm in candlelight, recite it. He was the one to later attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York to defend the treaty. We also had the engagement of Inma Cuesta, Jon Kortajarena and Álvaro Longoria, who were the ones to personally invite all Greenpeace ambassadors to the ceremony. Javier’s brother Carlos Bardem gave his all to the campaign and recorded the oath-taking video of all of the invitees. We made an official seal to seal the oath as an ambassador of the oceans symbol.

 The idea behind the event was to subtly and modestly, with no superfluous bragging, create an intimate, magical marine ceremony in Madrid’s Botanical Garden, which for a few hours became an island in the middle of the oceans from which to defend their waters. Two Greenpeace divers welcomed the guests. We projected the imposing movement of the waves and their pounding, all accompanied by cello music and the movement of choreographer Mar Aguiló together with Manuel Rodríguez. We were able to build an emotional setting where we could stir and involve the audience, enveloping them in the sense of urgency to join the campaign presented by Pilar Marcos, coordinator of Greenpeace Spain’s Area de Biodiversity. We had Silvia Pérez Cruz take the stage to sing “Oración Del Remanso” and Miguel Poveda spontaneously came out with his “Todo es de color”. And everything became impregnated with blue and emotion. And everyone raised their hand and took the oath.