3rd United Nations Ocean Conference, Nice, 2-13 June 2025
“Because after Nice, the Ocean will truly be better.” Sylvia Earle
Nice has won the bet of the Ocean. 175 UN Member States, 64 Heads of State and Government, 28 Heads of UN, intergovernmental and international organizations, 115 ministers, and 12,000 delegates, from all sea basins and representing more than 90% of the world’s exclusive economic zones (and nearly 85% of the volume of ocean-related resources), answered to the invitation of the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Presidents of the French Republic and Costa Rican Republic, co-chairs of the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference, held in Nice from 9 to 13 June 2025.
The exceptional mobilization of all stakeholders, galvanised by the threats to multilateralism and science-based prescription, resulted in many high-level commitments. These commitments reflect an unprecedented acceleration of decision-making on issues such as the governance of the High Seas, the sanctification of the deep sea and the enhanced protection of exclusive economic zones.
All UNOC3 stakeholders made their voluntary commitments individually or collectively during: plenary sessions of the Conference; in the context of the UNOC3’s ten Ocean Action Panels; during the three Special Events of the the Conference, on science, blue economy and finance, and resilience of coastal cities and regions and small island developing States; during World Ocean Day on 8 June; in the context of regional or thematic summits at Heads of State and Government level; in more than 1,000 parallel events organized in Nice and its region, in the blue and green zones, and in particular in the “Baleine” (Whale) and its 16 thematic pavilions, which welcomed nearly 130,000 visitors from 2 to 13 June 2025.
These “Nice Commitments for the Ocean” illustrate, through resolutely concrete actions, the political declaration of the UNOC3 which reflects the achievements of environmental multilateralism since UNOC2 and the agreement of the 193 UN Member States and non-State parties to jointly strengthen the ambition in favour of the protection of the Ocean.
These “Nice Commitments” thus constitute in their entirety an ambitious roadmap for all States and stakeholders in the context of Sustainable Development Goal 14, the cornerstone of the protection of the Ocean by 2030.
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As the largest summit ever held on the ocean issue in terms of high-level political representation, stakeholder participation and strong and ambitious commitments from various stakeholders, UNOC3 marked the determination of the international community, including representatives of the research community, civil society, indigenous and coastal peoples, regional and local authorities, businesses and financial institutions, to:
® Build equitable governance based on law and justice, ensure 360° steering of all actors and bodies related to the Ocean, strengthen multilateralism to respond to the generalized degradation of the state of health of the Ocean; put a drastic brake on IUU fishing and overfishing
® Fund, develop and disseminate knowledge of the ocean, including traditional knowledge, for the benefit of all stakeholders; protect scientists and support their work
® Mobilize significant new public and private finance and develop a sustainable blue economy that benefits all, to achieve the SDG 14 targets; plan for the total decarbonization of maritime activities by 2050
® Combating all forms of pollution; to preserve the ocean resources and biodiversity of marine ecosystems, including those of the deep seabed, and to address the effects of climate change
® Accelerate the commitment of regional and local actors, and cooperation at the level of geographical areas or ocean basins.
BUILD A FAIR GOVERNANCE BASED ON LAW AND JUSTICE, ENSURING 360° MANAGEMENT OF ALL STAKEHOLDERS AND INSTITUTIONS RELATED TO THE OCEAN
Whether it is exclusive economic zones, the High Seas or the seabed, the Ocean is, with the ratification of the “BBNJ” Treaty, now framed by an international legal corpus, developed within the framework of the United Nations. It is the responsibility of all actors, state and non-state, to respect this framework, to contribute to its strengthening, and to refrain from any action outside existing multilateral or regional conventions, treaties and agreements.
® Thanks to the momentum of the Conference and active blue diplomacy, 50 States have already deposited their instruments of ratification of the “BBNJ” (Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction) Agreement; 6 additional States, having completed their national ratification processes, and 12 additional States, in the process of doing so, have committed to depositing their instruments of ratification by the High-level Week of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2025. All these commitments ensure the long-awaited entry into force of this treaty, which regulates 64% of the ocean and therefore 50% of the globe’s surface, by January 2026 at the latest. It also ensures the holding, that same year, of the COP1 for the Ocean. The speed of the implementation process of this agreement, 2 years after its adoption at the United Nations General Assembly, is unprecedented for a text dealing with ocean governance. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea had taken 12 years to enter into force. The High Seas Treaty is a major advance for humanity.
® States have reaffirmed the central role of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), established in 1994 under the auspices of the United Nations in Kingston, to govern mineral resource activities in areas beyond national jurisdiction. They stressed that the ISA is the only competent body relating to the Area, recognized as a common heritage of mankind, and that any seabed mining activity must be based on the adoption of a rigorous mining code, guaranteeing the protection of biodiversity and marine ecosystems.
® 37 countries came together around an even more demanding position: imposing a precautionary pause on deep seabed mining by recalling the need to first explore abyssal ecosystems before considering any exploitation of their resources. These champions remind us that a science-based approach is necessary in order not to irreversibly destroy fragile ecosystems that support the overall health of the ocean. 23 States have published a joint statement to mobilize the international community in this regard. Major banks have joined this movement as well, announcing that they will no longer consider financing mining projects in the Area.
® 20 champions, both having ratified the BBNJ Agreement and supporting the moratorium on deep seabed mining, are preparing to form a group of “Ocean Pioneers” to mobilize the international community for ambitious ocean governance. They intend, in particular, to bring together the various specialized agencies and affiliated organizations of the United Nations, including at regional level such as regional fisheries management organizations and regional seas conventions, around an objective of enhanced protection of maritime space. This group is open to any country that is actively committed to the protection of the High Seas and deep seabed.
Desiring to eradicate illegal, illegal and unreported fishing, end overfishing and ensure decent work at sea:
® 103 States have today ratified the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) “Fish 1” Agreement that will end subsidies to illegal fishing, including 14 in 2025 as part of the international mobilization around UNOC3. 23 countries have now ratified the International Maritime Organization’s “Cape Town Agreement” on safety on board fishing vessels, which will enter into force once enough fleets
have ratified to reach a total of 3,600 fishing vessels. While 2,935 ships are now eligible, the commitment of several countries during UNOC3 should allow an effective entry into force at the end of 2025. Finally, China, a major country in global fisheries issues, announced its ratification of the FAO Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA), which now counts 82 parties.
® New States, such as Côte d’Ivoire and Belgium, have committed to ensuring decent working conditions for fisheries workers by endorsing the 2007 Labour in Fisheries Convention of the International Labour Organization (ILO), bringing the number of Member States to 24. These States have thus demonstrated their commitment to reducing the risks of forced labour, human trafficking and accidents at sea through minimum labour standards in the fisheries sector. An international campaign for the ratification of this Convention was initiated on 8 June by the United Kingdom, France and the ILO.
Local actors and experts in maritime realities, local elected officials, parliamentarians and territorial leaders have expressed their willingness to contribute fully to the governance and management of issues related to the ocean, in particular to meet the expectations of coastal populations:
® The first “Parliament of the Sea” was held on the occasion of International Ocean Day, 8 June 2025, and brought together close than 100 parliamentarians representing countries from all continents. These committed parliamentarians created the ICOP (Interparliamentary Coalition for Ocean Protection), an unprecedented coalition bringing together parliamentarians from around the world around the same objective of preserving the ocean. Members announced a “legislative package for the ocean” that each member undertakes to bring to its own parliament.
DEVELOPING OCEAN KNOWLEDGE AS A PRIORITY FOR THE BENEFIT OF ALL STAKEHOLDERS
® The One Ocean Science Congress brought together more than 2,000 scientists from all over the world prior to UNOC (3-6 June 2025, Nice). This Congress transmitted to the decision-makers gathered at the Conference cross-cutting recommendations on the link between science and policy, in order to support them in the management of global challenges related to the Ocean (impacts of climate change, extinction of biodiversity, overexploitation, environmental degradation), as well as on the solutions needed to address them. A second meeting of the Congress will meet in 2028 to evaluate the consideration of the recommendations made to leaders.
® The Ocean remains less explored than the Moon and Mars. In order to increase knowledge of the Ocean, including through innovation and science, a major programme of scientific exploration of the Ocean, the “Neptune Mission”, was announced at UNOC3.
The mission will bring together oceanographic expertise and the best technologies, including astronautical, to invest in knowledge that is useful and freely accessible to all parties. It will reveal the opportunities offered by the Ocean as well as the pressures and threats to marine ecosystems. It will also provide the essential new knowledge on which the implementation of the BBNJ Agreement will be based.
European expertise will be at the forefront of this observation and exploration mission, with the announced support of institutions from other States including China, India, Chile, the United Kingdom, but also the Pacific Community or private actors such as the Pink Flamingos Society, including OceanX and the Tara Foundation.
® The Space4Ocean Alliance, launched in Nice, will focus on connecting the space sector with marine and maritime stakeholders to strengthen efforts to preserve, conserve and protect the Ocean. Based on science and using the most advanced spatial data, in situ measurements and numerical models, the Alliance will address critical challenges in the ocean and coastal areas, contributing to the SDGs.
® The creation of the intergovernmental organization “Mercator International Center for the Ocean”, supported by 12 European States, was signed at UNOC3 with the first signatures of its international treaty by Norway and France. Resulting from the transformation of Mercator Ocean International, this organization will design, develop and operate world-class ocean digital systems encompassing marine physics, biogeochemistry and ecosystem dynamics. It will provide reliable digital information services that meet the needs of its Member States. It will support the latter in their commitments to the international governance of the Ocean, by fulfilling missions of Research and Development, provision of Advanced Digital Systems and co-development of a Global Digital Twin, the Digital Ocean.
® On the occasion of World Ocean Day 2025 and as part of UNOC3, the research community has committed to publish annually the Starfish Barometer, a scientific report accessible to the public, on the state of the Ocean, the pressures exerted by human activity and their societal impacts. Developed by national and international experts, this peer-reviewed barometer will help to inform marine public policies and raise awareness among civil society, in direct support of the SDGs. The barometer, representing the five arms of a starfish, will be a reference to report, with transparency and rigor, on the progress made, ensuring that the momentum initiated by UNOC is translated into tangible, measurable and solidly supported by science.
® Based on the priorities identified by States themselves, the International Platform for Ocean Sustainability (IPOS) will provide governments with tailored, science-based and locally actionable policy options to help them meet their international commitments to the Ocean.
® 140 marine universities from around the world met for the first time at UNOC to initiate the International Marine Universities Network. Comparison of international pedagogical approaches, development of training opportunities for students and professionals, consolidation of dialogue between academia, civil society and policy makers are priorities in line with the need to establish and strengthen close interactions between scientists and decision makers, and to promote science-based policies, fostering the long-term sustainability of the Ocean, engaging the public, encouraging inclusiveness and stimulating innovation through interdisciplinary research.
® After the Summit on Artificial Intelligence organized by France in February 2025, the Coalition for an ecologically sustainable AI has expanded to include a section dedicated to the Ocean, bringing together leading actors in the field of information and communication technologies, BlueTech, and oceanographic research. Artificial intelligence, as already used, makes it possible to model marine plastic pollution, anticipate coastal erosion and optimize routes in order to reduce emissions from the maritime sector. Its use must be intensified wherever it is useful and, while ensuring that its environmental footprint is controlled.
® The International Maritime Organization and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO have launched the “10,000 Boats for the Ocean” initiative to strengthen ocean observation, using artificial intelligence.
® The Decade of Action for Cryosphere Sciences (2025-2034) was officially launched on 8 June 2025 in Nice in the presence of the President of the French Republic, the President of the Republic of Tajikistan and the Director-General of UNESCO. Melting ice in the poles and glaciers is responsible for half of the sea level rise. The resources allocated to cryosphere research will be crucial for putting in place measures to adapt communities and ecosystems to the collapse of the cryosphere.
® As part of the International Year for the Preservation of Glaciers, a coalition supported by France and bringing together scientists, civil society, athletes and philanthropists was launched at UNOC3 to strengthen action for the preservation of these key ecosystems. A call was made to intensify climate change mitigation actions within the framework of the 10 years anniversary of the Paris Agreement, to increase the direct protection of glaciers and postglacial ecosystems in the territories through their legal recognition and the creation of protected areas, particularly in connection with the motion for the protection of glaciers proposed at the IUCN World Congress.
MOBILIZING NEW FUNDING AND DEVELOPING A SUSTAINABLE, REGENERATIVE AND PROFITABLE BLUE ECONOMY THAT BENEFITS LOCAL COMMUNITIES TO SUPPORT SDG 14
At the Blue Economy and Finance Forum (June 7 and 8 2025, Monaco) and in Nice:
® A total of €8.7 billion in investments has been committed over the next five years by philanthropists, private investors and public banks, supporting a sustainable and regenerative blue economy. Half of this funding comes from investors and philanthropists united in a unique “Philanthropies and Investors for Ocean” initiative that aims to mobilize even more private financing for the Ocean.
® The assets under management of institutions that have signed the #BackBlue Ocean Finance Commitment exceed €3 trillion euros, strengthening the integration of ocean priorities into global financial and insurance decision-making.
® 20 public development banks representing $7.5 billion per year of investment in sustainable blue finance have come together to form the Ocean Coalition of Finance In Common. This coalition aims to increase funding, its impacts and quality.
® 80 organisations from 25 countries, representing a combined turnover of €600 billion and employing 2 million people, have approved the call for action “Business in Ocean”. Companies commit to integrating ocean-related risks and opportunities into their strategies, disclose their impacts on the marine environment, invest in ocean-friendly solutions, and support a just transition.
® 15 leading pioneering companies and major tourism and shipping networks announced the launch of a Sustainable Blue Tourism Pact to accelerate the definition and implementation of commitments to drive the sustainable and carbon-neutral transition of the tourism sector, mobilize public-private partnerships to strengthen the foundations of sustainable tourism and establish a working group on maritime and coastal tourism, bringing together governments, destinations, industry and civil society.
® The Forum also served as a launch platform for new commitments on sustainable ports and shipping, starting with those resulting from the historic carbon pricing agreement negotiated at the IMO. This agreement reached in Spring 2025 seals the total decarbonization of maritime transport by 2050. Reaffirmed by the countries and shipowners present in Nice, it should mobilize $100 billion over the next ten years for clean fuels, maritime energy transition in the countries of the South, and the development of sail propulsion transport.
® A group of UN agencies and global partners are inviting UN Member States, the private sector and civil society to engage in a dialogue around the design of a comprehensive blended finance facility on all SDG14 targets, called the One Ocean Finance Facility, including to better integrate developing countries into global value chains.
TACKLING ALL FORMS OF POLLUTION, PROTECTING OCEANS AND OCEANIC SPECIES
® To generate an international momentum, in support of a global treaty to combat plastic pollution, 96 countries signed a declaration in Nice entitled “Nice wake up call for an ambitious plastics treaty”. In the run-up to the negotiations to be held in August 2025 in Geneva, this massive mobilization for strong measures, particularly on the inclusion of binding measures in the treaty and on the entire life cycle of plastics, in particular on the reduction of production, is a major political signal.
® Ministers of the Mediterranean adopted a declaration of commitment to support the adoption of the international treaty and to implement it on the scale of the Mediterranean basin, thus highlighting the avant-garde of the region particularly affected by plastic pollution.
® The Circemed project, the Mediterranean Circular Economy Network, was launched in Nice to implement concrete alternatives to plastic in the Mediterranean region.
® Against the pollution generated by the grounding of sargassum in the Caribbean, France, Mexico, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic, as well as regional organizations, have launched an International Plan of Action against Sargassum (PAAS), a scourge that degrades coastlines and coastal air quality.
® The Kunming-Montreal goal of protecting 30% of land and seas by 2030 must guide the ambition for the Ocean. On the eve of UNOC, 8.4% of the ocean was protected, according to Protected Planet. Thanks to the mobilization of the 14 States that have committed to expanding their networks of marine protected areas, more than 10% are now protected. The accelerated movement in Nice is intensifying thanks to the awareness and projects announced by many marine States. Several countries have committed to anticipating the implementation of the BBNJ Treaty, by identifying potential marine protected areas on the High Seas. The first transnational marine protected area on the High Seas was announced by Costa Rica, jointly with Ecuador and Colombia.
® France has contributed to this effort on the international scene. French Polynesia has announced the creation of the Tainui Atea Marine Protected Area, which will cover the entire exclusive economic zone of 4.55 million km2, including a part under strict protection (1,100,000 km2 at this stage). By 2026, France has committed to cover 78% of its exclusive economic zone with marine protected areas, including 14.8% under strong protection.
® On the occasion of Nice, 19 States announced the implementation of national plans to protect and restore ocean ecosystems such as mangroves, as well as to manage coastal waste, including plastics.
® Regarding destructive fishing methods, States have made strong commitments, such as Denmark announcing a ban on bottom trawling throughout its EEZ, or France announcing a ban on bottom trawling, but also all mining activities, in areas mapped on a scientific basis, in consultation with fishermen.
® In Nice, efforts have also been made to protect sharks and rays, as more than a third (37.5%) are threatened with extinction. The Sharks++ call launched by WWF, the Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), other NGOs and the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species, supported by France, Australia, Ecuador, Maldives, Malta, Panama, the Republic of Congo, Spain and the United Kingdom, aims to halt the extinction of the most endangered sharks and rays.
® The first international summit dedicated to the Deltas of the World, wetlands at the interface of rivers and the Ocean, took place on 9 June 2025, co-hosted by the Prime Minister of Vietnam, the President of the Republic of Iraq and the President of the
Republic of Colombia. As true biosphere reserves, deltas generate more than 6% of global GDP while occupying only about 0.65% of the surface of land. Witnessing both the richness and diversity of these spaces but also their common vulnerabilities, the summit made it possible to initiate a new collaboration between local leaders and actors of deltaic regions on the management of water resources, concrete solutions based on nature or preserving nature, and the support of local actors.
® Under the leadership of the IMO, 37 States have created a coalition against noise pollution in order to protect marine species from the noise consequences of human activities, including maritime transport.
ACCELERATE THE COMMITMENT OF REGIONAL AND LOCAL ACTORS, AND COOPERATIONS AT THE SCALE OF GEOGRAPHICAL AREAS OR CONTINENTS
® In order to allow for a better inclusion of the Ocean in the external policies of the European Union, as well as a better synergy between the policies of the European Union (EU), the first European Pact for the Ocean was presented on 9 June 2025 by the President of the European Commission, alongside the President of the European Council, and several Heads of State and Government of the Member States.
® At UNOC3, the EU committed around €1 billion euros to the Ocean, which will be invested in the Pact’s priorities, for:
o Restoring the health of the Ocean and its productivity through integrated governance and regenerative practices
o Accelerating the development of sustainable competitiveness of the blue economy
o Supporting the development of coastal and island communities
o Strengthening maritime security and resilience
o Supporting ocean research and innovation, in particular through the development of the Digital Twin of the Ocean, as well as a large-scale observation and exploration mission
o Strengthening EU Ocean diplomacy and international law-based governance
® The Barcelona Convention on the Mediterranean celebrated its fiftieth anniversary at UNOC3 with the adoption by its 22 parties of an ambitious political declaration. It recognises the role of the Convention in the protection of the Mediterranean Sea. The parties commit to act to fight climate change, stronger in the Mediterranean than elsewhere, but also against the degradation of biodiversity and plastic pollution. In this context, the entry into force of the SECA zone (zone with low emissions of sulphur oxides) is a concrete environmental step forward.
® The regional seas conventions, under the aegis of UNEP, have strengthened their dialogue with regional fisheries management organizations at UNOC3 with a view to strengthening the necessary synergies between environmental and fisheries issues.
® 6 Mediterranean Heads of State and Government, international organizations and businesses gathered around the President of the French Republic at a Summit For a Connected Mediterranean on 9 June 2025 to discuss land, sea and digital connectivity in the region. On this occasion, a series of projects around the IMEC corridor were highlighted. The European Union has raised €5.9 billion, generating a leverage effect of €27.2 billion in private financing. Mediterranean ports have announced the launch of a major mobilization effort for the decarbonization of ports, until the next COP24 in Egypt of the Barcelona Convention.
® 45 States including 13 Heads of State and Government, the Secretary General of the United Nations and representatives of international organizations met at a Summit on Africa for the Ocean on 9 June 2025, co-chaired by the President of the Republic and His Royal Highness, the King of Morocco, represented by Her Royal Highness, Princess Lalla Hasnaa. The Africa Statement for UNOC3 was presented and recalls the intrinsic link between the Ocean and Africa and the need to develop resilient sustainable maritime infrastructure to promote the blue economy on the continent.
® At the same time, a Pact for a Sustainable Blue Africa will propose at the 2025 and 2026 editions of the Blue Africa Summit (Tangiers) a maritime roadmap immediately applicable and allowing the continent to take its full place in the concert of major maritime powers.
® Co-organized with the President of the Republic of Palau and the Prime Minister of Barbados, the World Islands Forum brought together 30 Island States and territories from all continents from 8 to 10 June 2025. The Heads of State and Government present were able to promote the concrete solutions developed by and for Island States to develop a sustainable blue economy, protect their marine ecosystems and fight against plastic pollution:
o As part of the Pact for the Prosperity of People and the Planet (4Ps), the World Islands Forum called for better consideration of multidimensional vulnerability through a coalition of international donors to strengthen equity, efficiency and transparency in the allocation of international funding.
o The Forum also addressed the challenges of decarbonising maritime transport, a major aspect both for the connectivity of islands and their supply, and for the achievement of international climate objectives; pollution of coasts and waterways, including plastics, and the importance of reaffirming the need for an ambitious global treaty to end plastic pollution; as well as the preservation and enhancement of marine ecosystems in order to mobilize for the achievement of the goal of protecting 30% of the land and 30% of the Ocean by 2030.
o France also announced that Mayotte will be able to formally initiate the process of obtaining the classification of its double coral reef as a UNESCO natural World Heritage Site. The lagoon of Mayotte, with an area of 1,500 km2, is the second largest in the world. Its double coral reef is home to a biodiversity of exceptional richness: 250 species of coral recorded, more than 600 species of fish.
® The 6th Pacific-France Summit was held on 10 June 2025 on the margins of UNOC3. Ten Heads of State and Government of the Pacific were gathered around the President of the Republic in the presence of ministerial representatives from all the members of the Pacific Islands Forum and regional organizations, as well as the presidents of the government of New Caledonia, French Polynesia and the territorial assembly of Wallis and Futuna.
This summit highlighted the exceptional contribution of Pacific Island States to the preservation of the Ocean, while underlining the joint commitment with France on this subject. Emphasis was placed on cooperation in the fight against climate change, regional security, connectivity and enhancement of Pacific culture. In line with France’s strengthened engagement in the Pacific, the President of the Republic announced France’s contribution of €2 million to the Pacific Islands Forum’s Pacific Resilience Facility, in its capitalization phase.
® The Pacific Community has announced the creation of a Pacific Center of Deep Ocean Science to allow regional observation of deep-sea ecosystems, based in particular on a field approach and integrating traditional knowledge and know-how.
® More than 1,200 delegates, 450 mayors, governors and representatives of coastal communities, and Heads of State and government from small Island States, as well as civil society partners, NGOs, international organizations and networks of networks of cities and regions from more than 120 countries, gathered for the Ocean Rise and Coastal Resilience Summit (7 June 2025, Nice).
These representatives of nearly one billion inhabitants threatened by sea level rise and all the consequences of climate change have participated in the institutionalization of the Ocean Rise and Coastal Resilience coalition, which will be hosted by UNOPS and the Global Center for Climate Mobility, around a five-pronged action plan to address the existential challenge posed by sea level rise to coastal communities (sharing solutions, strengthening knowledge, capacity building, financing of adaptation specific to coastal communities, advocacy for the interests of coastal communities within multilateral entities).
On the occasion of this Summit, the members and partners of the Ocean Rise & Coastal Resilience Coalition announced commitments for the benefit of its future members:
o The European Commission’s Ocean Mission has announced €45 million for adaptation projects for cities, regions and islands as part of its Horizons Europe.
o The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced the launch of a call for projects for local authorities of €50,000 to €3 million for the analysis of the risk for coastal communities based on spatial data.
o The Global Climate Mobility Centre (GCCM) dedicates €5 million from its C-CAF fund in the form of grants.
o A partnership with the Space4Ocean Alliance has been initiated to help cities in their planning by sharing satellite data.
200 representatives of indigenous peoples and ocean communities from around the world gathered in Nice to make their voices heard and present their questions to leaders on World Oceans Day. The “One Oceana” Coalition launched on this occasion will make it possible to raise these demands and implement concerted governance with the communities most affected by ocean-related changes.
® Created in Nice, the Women Actions for the Ocean platform already brings together more than 2,000 women committed to the Ocean, representing 45 countries. This platform aims to link the experiences and expertise of women engaged and active for the ocean.
® 44 youth organisations representing 1.5 million young people participated in the publication of a World Manifesto of Young Citizens of the Ocean. The ambassadors of hese organizations called on the authorities during the Storming of the Whale on June 12, 2025, to put forward their demands and recommendations for better protection of the Ocean.
® All these actors, too often forgotten, associations, indigenous people, local communities, women, young people, citizens and users of the sea, researchers, entrepreneurs, demand that their representation is now systematically ensured in all UN bodies and in all negotiations concerning the governance and protection of the Ocean. They will address, among other topics, the issue of respect for people, human and social rights and the legal recognition of the Ocean as a humanitarian space.
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UNOC3, through the exceptional mobilization of all, has charted a path and an agenda for action. There are five years left to reach the SDG 14 targets, including through the upcoming Climate and Biodiversity COPs and the IUCN World Congress and of course the COP1 for the Ocean. Nice has opened a transformative new chapter in global ocean action, which the planet so desperately needs.
