To the ministers, parliamentarians, prominent NGO leaders, press and others in attendance - my wife Susan and I are honoured to be here today to talk about an issue of common concern to the people of both countries - the health and future viability of our oceans as a food source. Indeed, this issue concerns all seven billion people around the world.

Like many of you, I enjoyed playing on the beach as a child and going out to sea on a boat. The sea is magical and fascinating. The sea is rich and mysterious. And the people of Japan, through their sad experiences, know better than anyone else in the world about the power and destructiveness of the sea.

My wife Susan and I have just returned yesterday from visiting four areas in the Tohoku region of Japan that were hit by the dual devastation of the 11 March earthquake and tsunami. We met the mayor of Sendai at a damaged school, fishers in a port town, residents near the coast where rice fields have turned into a lake of salt, and evacuated residents living in temporary housing. It was difficult to hold back tears as we saw the destroyed homes and lives. Our deepest sympathies go out to the people of Japan who have suffered.

As a ship operator for many years, I have always loved the sea. However, when I was younger, I had no idea that such a huge body of water could cause such problems for its integrity. After all, yachts only sail on the surface of the ocean, so sailors often know nothing about the problems that are going on beneath the yacht.

However, in 2000, I became a member of the Pew Oceans Commission and quickly became aware of all the problems US seawater has been facing. These include declining fisheries resources; sewage flowing into the ocean from cities, farmland and industry; litter being dumped into the ocean; and the regulatory intricacies of national ocean policies.

The members of this commission included politicians, environmentalists, astronauts and several scientists, as well as philanthropists such as myself. The commission was chaired by Leon Panetta, the current Secretary of Defence and before that the Director of the US Central Intelligence Agency. It was a great honour to serve on this Commission. In 2003, we, commision members, compiled a comprehensive report.

The main conclusion reached there was that ‘the oceans are facing a problem, but few people are aware of it. And even fewer people and administrative organisations are taking any action to address this problem’. However, in the eight years since then, I am pleased to see that more people are aware of these problems and more administrative bodies are trying to address them.

After the publication of the Pew report, I decided to take action myself. (It's very American in the way that individuals address issues.) I established a private educational NGO called Sailors for the Sea. The organisation's main objective is to educate and motivate ship operators to become stewards of the sea by educating them on issues concerning the health of the sea.

And today we are honored to announce the establishment of the Sailors for the Sea Japan in Tokyo. This will be the first international office of its kind in the world. We are also pleased to announce that Sailors for the Sea has become the official sustainability partner of The America’s Cup Event Authority.

There is a strong tradition of NGOs in the USA, similar to Sailors for the Sea, which is currently being formed. For example, Trout Unlimited was founded by fly fishers to protect trout streams; Audubon was founded by bird lovers to protect bird nesting sites and migratory bird flyways; Surfrider is an association founded by surfers to save local beaches. In other words, people who use the resource for recreation are setting up their own organisations to protect it.

There are 2.5 million boat operators in the US. In addition, there are another 10 million powerboat operators. If we can find a way to unite these groups, we can have a very strong impact. Sailors for the Sea aims to educate and encourage these boat operators to become active members of rescue teams, and to protect the oceans from careless acts by humans.

I have just referred to ‘careless acts by humans’, because the vast majority of human problems were not deliberately caused by humans wanting to harm the precious oceans. Rather, until recently, we humans have been largely unaware of the dangers of accumulating harmful actions against the seemingly vast and powerful marine ecosystem.

One of the most shocking findings by the Commission comes from an article in Science, the leading multidisciplinary, international journal. This article reveals the fact that human wisdom and industrial technology has led to the capture of 90% of large fish species in just 50 years. Note here that there was nothing conspiratorial that led to the demise of large fishes. It was merely that a very large number of large fishing vessels facilitated the decline in the supply of fish.

I love eating all kinds of seafood. I love Maine lobster, New England cod, Gulf of Mexico shrimp and of course Japanese sashimi! A diet based on seafood is said to be healthier than a diet based on meat. Seafood restaurants are becoming increasingly popular in the US. Japanese-style sushi bars are also popular. Thus, the healthy demand for seafood is growing enormously.

However, there are warning signs that this popular seafood species is not as abundant as it used to be. This is because already, on a global scale, half of the seafood consumed by humans depends on aquaculture. It is therefore necessary to ask the following questions Is farmed seafood really safe? To what extent is the seafood aquaculture industry sustainable? What impact does it have on natural fish populations?

As in the livestock industry, keeping fish in very dense conditions, such as salmon farming in enclosures, increases the risk of disease and may also compromise the quality of the fish. Furthermore, if farmed fish escape, natural fish populations can be affected. And it is questionable whether this approach can be sustained when the marine protein that feeds farmed fish is itself declining.

Currently, the US is developing a regulatory framework for aquaculture that can protect consumers, entrepreneurs, and wild fish stocks – all three. Establishing this framework will take considerable time.

However, I’ve heard that the situation is quite different in Japan, as the Japanese diet relies predominantly on fish. While I can appreciate that our food cultures are quite different, I don’t believe the biology of fish in Japan is significantly different from the biology of fish in the U.S. Female fish, when they reach sufficient size, typically lay more eggs. Juvenile fish require “complex habitats” to hide from predators and to grow. For any given fish species, there is a limit to how much can be “harvested” without threatening the sustainability of the species.

Until fairly recently—specifically the start of the 20th century—when the global population was closer to 2 billion, not 7 billion—it was thought there were plenty of fish for everyone. But this no longer holds true today. For example, in China, as both population and affluence rise, increased demand for marine protein will inevitably surge.

Inevitably, the factors of human demand, technological capabilities, and finite resources create serious disagreements about who has the “right” to capture seafood. For example, my country or your country? A rich country or a poor country? And for today’s children or tomorrow’s children? So, it is paramount that we, as nations and as a global community, create appropriate mechanisms to obtain answers to these kinds of questions.

The fact that the U.S. has still not ratified the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea—despite the fact that over 130 countries, including Japan, have—is embarrassing. As the Arctic iceberg melts and creates open water in previously un-navigable waters, I anticipate the U.S. will be pressured to sign the law to protect its interests in seafood, minerals and navigation routes.

When the Arctic iceberg melts completely, it will shorten the sailing distance from Rotterdam to Yokohama by some 6,436 kilometers (4,000 miles), a huge savings for maritime shippers, but it will also proportionally increase the risks to the health of those waters should a large oil spill occur in an area with few salvage and response capabilities.

Still, our oceans are viewed as being vast, largely free resources capable of feeding a hungry world, possessing enormous interests employing large numbers of people at both the industrial and artisanal fishing levels, and supporting vibrant coastal economies. But this is only possible if governments are able to establish sufficient safeguards to balance the often conflicting interests between small-scale and large-scale fishing fleets, gear types and targeted species, today’s children and tomorrow’s.

Therefore, the challenge facing all of us, I believe, is to make «fair and transparent decisions» on how we allocate fish and the revenues derived from fishing among ourselves—who are alive today but live in different places—and between those alive today and those yet to be born.

In closing, let me just say that «our stomachs, our wallets, and our spirits benefit from the sea.»

I very much look forward to the opportunity to discuss these matters with you. And I’m happy to answer any questions you may have about anything.

Thank you for listening.