Norway’s majestic sailing ship, the Statsraad Lehmkuhl, embarked on its most ambitious journey to date in August 2021: the twenty-month “One Ocean Expedition,” a circumnavigation of the globe.
This remarkable 111-year-old vessel served as a unique floating university and training platform, uniting students, scientists, and professionals from diverse backgrounds to foster a deeper understanding of our planet’s most vital resource – the ocean.
Endorsed by the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, the expedition’s core mission is to raise awareness and share crucial knowledge about the ocean’s indispensable role in achieving global sustainable development.
Equipped with state-of-the-art scientific instrumentation, the Statsraad Lehmkuhl continuously collects vital data on CO2 levels, micro-plastics, ocean acidification, and temperature, contributing invaluable insights to the global scientific community.
A cornerstone of this initiative is the partnership with the University of Bergen, which sees 90 students, predominantly from Norway, participating in a transformative semester course while sailing across the Pacific Ocean.
Notably, for a three-week period in July, the University of Bergen extended an invitation to 30 students from The University of the South Pacific (USP) to join the course onboard, fostering cross-cultural learning and collaboration.
This emphasis on knowledge-sharing and partnership building is crucial for addressing future challenges, with the course specifically highlighting SDG14 (Life Below Water), SDG13 (Climate Action), and exemplifying SDG17 (Partnerships for the Goals).
On 24 June 2025, three years after the USP students boarded the Statsraad Lehmkuhl, the profound impact of this experience was vividly brought back to life through a local screening in Suva, Fiji of Ben Wheeler’s short film collection, known affectionately as “The Ocean Talanoa Project”.
Short experimental pieces like “Lehmkuhl Dreams” and the Epeli Hau’ofa-inspired animated student manifesto “We Are Oceania” captured the students’ experiences on deck, evoking powerful memories for those involved, and deepening their understanding of their connections with the ocean.
The screening also provoked much discussion and reminiscing about how onboard interactions with international students broadened their perspectives on a wide range of subjects and issues.
The USP International Office has been instrumental in bringing this project to fruition since 2021, and its ongoing partnership with the University of Bergen has been an enriching collaboration.
The One Ocean Expedition continues to be a beacon of international cooperation, demonstrating how shared knowledge and collective effort can drive progress towards a healthier, more sustainable future for our ocean and our planet.
