The Global Partnership on Nutrient Management (GPNM) was launched in 2009 to address the global challenges faced by the mismanagement of nutrients and nutrient over‐enrichment. It is a global partnership of governments, scientists, policymakers, private sector, NGOs and international organizations. It responds to the ‘nutrient challenge’ — how to reduce the amount of excess nutrients in the global environment consistent with global development. The GPNM reflects a need for strategic, global advocacy to trigger governments and stakeholders in moving towards more efficient and effective nitrogen and phosphorous use and lower losses associated with human activities. It provides a platform for governments, UN agencies, scientists and the private sector to forge a common agenda, mainstreaming best practices and integrated assessments, so that policy and investment responses/options are effectively ‘nutrient proofed’. The GPNM also provides a space where countries and other stakeholders can forge more co‐operative work across the variety of international and regional fora and agencies dealing with nutrients, including the importance of impact assessment work. The work of the GPNM is advanced by a Steering Committee, a sub‐set of the Partnership members and is supported by the GPA Unit of the Marine and Coastal Ecosystems Branch of the Division of Environmental Policy Implementation of UNEP, which serves as the Secretariat to the Steering Committee.

The GPNM, in collaboration with the hosts of the 2015 East Asian Seas (EAS) Congress, the Government of Viet Nam through the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) and Viet Nam Administration of Seas and Islands (VASI) and the Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA) hosted a Technical and Policy Workshop on Sustainable Nutrient Management. This workshop, convened within the EAS Congress on 18th of November 2015, showcased the main technical deliverables of the GEF‐funded Global Nutrient Cycle Project, and focused on policy and mainstreaming of the nutrient management agenda within countries of the Asia subregion under the aegis of an Asian Regional Nutrient Management Platform of the GPNM. The technical session of the workshop presented the state‐of‐the‐art in the science and understanding of the global nutrient challenge and introduced management tools designed for technical (and policy) advisory personnel. The Policy session reviewed the relevance of the nutrient management challenge in relation to sustainable development, food security and environmental quality, presented the global agenda for nutrient management and its relationship to regional development agendas, and explored options for strengthening of the GPNM Asia Platform.

The Fifth Senior Government Officials’ Meeting (SGOM) was held at the Son Tra Hall of the Furama Resort in Da Nang, Viet Nam, on 20 November 2015. Senior government officials from 11 PEMSEA Partner Countries participated in the meeting, namely: Cambodia, PR China, DPR Korea, Indonesia, Japan, Lao PDR, Philippines, RO Korea, Singapore, Timor‐Leste and Viet Nam.

The workshop aims to: (a) review the application and benefits derived from transference and effective use of good Knowledge Management (KM) practices and platforms in various projects; (b) identify the potential use of such innovations in other projects and by other sectors; (c) determine how a regional KM platform can serve to improve access to, and scale up investments in, good practices; (d) develop ‘Best Practice Guidelines’ for regional KM in a blue economy based on the collective input and group discussions; and (e) capture the discussed KM ideas, processes and products using a visual storytelling approach.

The EAS Youth Forum Toolkit served as a guide for the youth participants during the East Asian Seas (EAS) Congress 2015. It contains useful information on the activities for the youth, as well as details about the speakers and presentations at the 4th Youth Forum.

The oceans and coasts of the East Asian region are among the most biologically diverse and productive areas in the world. However, these areas have been threatened over the years by various problems and issues due to rapid socioeconomic activities, population growth and several other factors. The youth, as inheritors of the planet, have the most at stake. But they can also play a significant role in securing their future and that of generations to come, if their potential can be properly utilized. Existing efforts for the sustainable development of our oceans and coasts will only be sustained if the younger generation gets involved in environmental and resource management. Now on its third cycle, the East Asian Seas Youth Forum gathered young leaders to share their experiences in protecting the oceans and coasts of East Asia. The Third East Asian Seas Youth Forum (YF3) was one of the special events of the EAS Congress, which was held from 8-13 July 2012 in Changwon City, Republic of Korea. The YF3 included 91 participants, 48 of which were from 11 EAS countries including Cambodia, PR China, Indonesia, Japan, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Viet Nam. Forty-three participants were representatives of various environmental youth groups in RO Korea. Carrying the theme, “Young Champions for the Ocean,” the YF3 was designed to enhance awareness and to develop the potential of the youth of East Asia as future practitioners in coastal and ocean management. This publication summarizes the outcome of the Forum.

This publication summarizes the results of the workshop on Using ICM as a Tool to Achieve Aichi Targets held during the East Asian Seas Congress 2012. The workshop explored good practices from country case studies on the use of marine protected areas (MPAs), integrated coastal management (ICM) and other approaches to address biodiversity loss, reduce pressures, improve the status and enhance benefits of coastal and marine biodiversity and ecosystem services to contribute to the achievement of the Aichi targets as embodied in the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity (2011–2020) of the Convention on Biological Diversity.

This publication summarizes the results of the workshop on Our coasts and seas: The engine of the blue economy held during the East Asian Seas Congress 2012. The workshop under Subtheme 1, "Our coasts and seas: the engine of the blue economy," aimed to: Discuss national and local level initiatives in line with sustainable development principles. Examine the contribution of integrated coastal management (ICM) in the efforts to sustain the coasts and oceans of the region. Integrate the information to see how they contribute to the development of an ocean-based blue economy in the East Asian Seas region.

This publication summarizes the results of the workshop on Food Security in Watersheds and Coastal Areas held during the East Asian Seas Congress 2012. With the WorldFish Center as the co-convenor, representatives from the national and local government agencies, nongovernmental organizations, private sector, civil society groups, research institutions and the academe from various countries participated in Workshop 1: Food Security in Watersheds and Coastal under Subtheme 3: Securing Ecosystem Services through Integrated Coastal and Ocean Management.

This publication summarizes the results of the workshop on Certifying Leaders in Integrated Coastal and Ocean Governance held during the East Asian Seas Congress 2012.

One of the issues discussed in the 2009 East Asian Seas (EAS) Congress in Manila, Philippines, was that in the future — and to further create a demand and an incentive to stay the course of integrated coastal and ocean governance — there is a need to professionalize ICM practice. A certification program for practitioners is one strategy for meeting that need.