Protect Baltic

16/04/2026

This week, key marine protection actors from across the globe are gathering in Taghazout, Morocco ❤️💚❤️ to dig deep into the systemic barriers holding back effective marine protection.

🤔 What challenges do we all struggle with—and why?
🛠️ More importantly, how do we fix them?

From individuals to organizations to entire systems, it’s clear we need to rethink conservation more strategically—and then build the capacity to turn that vision into reality.

Grateful that Helsinki Commission & Protect Baltic are a part of the conversation with such an inspiring group of leaders working at the forefront of marine conservation around the world.

14/04/2026

🗺️ Mapping life in the Baltic Sea

To protect biodiversity, we first need to understand where life exists across the entire ecosystem, not just in isolated areas.

In the Baltic Sea, this is a challenge. Much of what lies beneath the surface remains unseen, and monitoring data is often unevenly distributed across countries and habitats.

Through PROTECT BALTIC, scientists are combining monitoring data with environmental information to build species distribution models that help fill these gaps.

These models cover a wide range of life — from fish, benthic invertebrates, and underwater plants to birds and marine mammals — creating a more complete, basin-wide picture of biodiversity.

What makes this work powerful?
🗺️ Predicting species habitats even in areas without direct sampling
🧠 Combining multiple modelling approaches and expert knowledge for more robust results
🤝 Integrating data across borders for a truly regional perspective

This work will help to support better decision-making for marine protection, restoration planning, and ecosystem-based management.

Read more at: https://protectbaltic.eu/f/mapping-life-in-the-baltic-sea-filling-in-the-blanks

10/04/2026

Our latest dives beneath the surface to the hidden banks of the central Baltic Sea — where life begins on the seabed and rises all the way up the food web.

At Hoburgs bank and Midsjöbankarna, there are no coastlines. Only subtle underwater ridges shaping entire ecosystems far beyond what the eye can see.

💡 Where shallow banks rise from deep basins, light reaches the seafloor & unlocks life in a way that is rare in the Baltic Sea.

🦪 Vast beds of blue mussels act as living engines that filter water, capture energy, and build the foundation for a rich, layered ecosystem.

🐟 Fish like Baltic herring & sprat feed here, carrying this energy across the wider sea.

🦆 In winter, the surface tells the story below: thousands of long-tailed ducks, common eiders & scoters gather — diving deep to reach the seabed’s hidden abundance.

🐬Even the critically endangered harbour porpoise depends on these banks, drawn by reliable feeding grounds shaped far below the waves.

⚠️ But this delicate system faces growing pressures. Increasing shipping noise and climate change threaten the structure that holds this ecosystem together.

🌍 Through protection, monitoring, and international cooperation, efforts are underway to ensure these offshore ecosystems continue to function and to prove that protection delivers real results.

💬 "These banks aren’t visible in the way coastlines are, but they shape life across a much larger area. They influence where food is found, where species gather, and how energy moves through the system. So protecting them isn’t just about protecting a place. It’s about protecting the processes that sustain life far beyond it." - Alexandra Colbing, Marine biologist & MPA Manager at the County Administrative Board of Gotland

👉 Explore the full story at: https://maps.helcom.fi/portal/apps/storymaps/stories/6806242269964a30936eb56c427fd182

Photo credit (harbour porpoises): Solvin Zankl

11/03/2026

🌊 Protection on paper doesn’t always mean protection in practice.

The Baltic Sea has nearly 2.5× the global average of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). But designation alone doesn’t guarantee biodiversity is actually protected.

So how do we know whether the measures in place are truly reducing environmental pressures?

In our latest Protect Baltic article, we explore the project’s work on Sufficiency of Measures (SOM) — an approach designed to evaluate whether protection measures are strong and comprehensive enough to address the multiple pressures affecting the Baltic Sea.

The article features insights from the work of Ísis Gomes de Almeida, Luke Dodd, Jannica Haldin and Camilo Hernández Nyreen, and builds on earlier work within the project by Venla Ala-Harja.

🔍 Identifying which measures directly reduce environmental pressures
📊 Classifying 200+ protection measures across the region
🛠 Developing a practical assessment tool for managers and policymakers

With information on measures from more than 1,500 MPAs in the Baltic region, this work helps shift marine protection from designation to measurable impact.

👉 Read the full article: https://protectbaltic.eu/news/f/making-protection-work-rethinking-measures-for-the-baltic-sea

🟩 🟨 🟦 And check out our conceptual measures hierarchy scheme: https://protectbaltic.github.io/Measures_hierarchy_visual/

On paper, the Baltic Sea performs well when it comes to protection. Nearly 2.5 times the global average of its waters are designated as Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). But the reality is that designation alone does not gu...

05/03/2026

Protect Baltic is taking part in the Mission Ocean and Waters Ocean Forum at today.

The forum brings together researchers, policymakers, and practitioners working towards the goals of the EU Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030”.

It’s a useful space to exchange ideas, connect with other initiatives across Europe, and discuss practical pathways for protecting marine ecosystems.

For us, it’s an opportunity to share experiences from our work in the Baltic Sea region and learn from other projects tackling similar challenges across European seas.

If you’re attending EU Ocean Days, feel free to reach out and connect.

04/03/2026

🌊 The Baltic Sea needs protection — and progress is happening.

At the Blue Parks Community open dialogue during , R**t Ulm from the Permanent Representation of Estonia to the EU represented Kliimaministeerium.

Her presentation highlighted Protect Baltic's work in mapping Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and collating management plan information across the Baltic Sea.

Protection coverage has now reached 20.9% of the Baltic Sea — an important milestone on the path toward healthier marine ecosystems and stronger biodiversity protection. See: https://protectbaltic.eu/news/f/baltic-sea-protection-at-209%25-over-twice-the-global-average

The presentation also showcased the annual in-person workshops organised for MPA managers through the project. These gatherings bring practitioners from across the Baltic region together to exchange knowledge, strengthen management practices, and build a stronger community of MPA managers — including one held in Lahemaa.

Better mapping, clearer management, and stronger cooperation are key to ensuring that Baltic MPAs deliver real conservation outcomes.

04/03/2026

Marine Protected Areas are central to restoring Europe’s seas. 🌊🐟🌿

At the Blue Parks Community open dialogue at , the European Environment Agency emphasized that the EU’s priorities should be:
🛡️ stronger strict protection
🔗 coherent and connected MPA networks
⚙️ effective management
📊 better reporting on ecological outcomes
🌱 alignment with restoration objectives

Encouraging to see these priorities being closely reflected in our work at Protect Baltic.

09/02/2026

🌊 Linking human activities to environmental pressures in the Baltic Sea

From shipping and dredging to agricultural runoff and underwater noise, the Baltic Sea is shaped by overlapping human pressures, many of them cumulative, interconnected, and hard to trace.

In our newly published article, we highlight the work of Aino Ahvo, Project Researcher and GIS Data Analyst at PROTECT BALTIC, who is helping make these connections visible.

Her work focuses on developing a threat matrix that systematically links human activities to the environmental pressures they generate - and ultimately to the species and habitats they affect.

🔍 Why does this matter?

Because effective marine protection depends on understanding where pressures come from, how they overlap, and which ones can realistically be managed, particularly within Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).

By supporting spatial pressure assessments and distinguishing between direct and indirect pressures, this approach will help policymakers, scientists, and MPA managers target the right levers.

👉 Read the full article to learn how PROTECT BALTIC is turning complex data into practical tools for a smarter, science-based future for the Baltic Sea: https://protectbaltic.eu/news/f/linking-human-activities-to-baltic-sea-environmental-pressures

19/12/2025

🎄✨ Season’s Greetings from PROTECT BALTIC ✨🌊

As we approach the holiday season, we want to extend our heartfelt appreciation for your support and engagement throughout the year 💙

Thank you for being part of our community and for your continued commitment to protecting the Baltic Sea 🌍🐬

We wish you a peaceful and restorative break, joyful celebrations 🎉and a wonderful start to the new year 🌟

See you in 2026! 🚀💫

11/12/2025

🐬 How can harbour porpoises still be at risk inside protected areas?

Our new article explains the paradox — and the work underway to fix it.

Building on discussions from our recent webinar with ASCOBANS and HELCOM - Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, the article highlights first-hand perspectives on setting clearer conservation objectives and measures, strengthening monitoring, and overcoming the political challenges that lie beyond local control.

It’s an honest look at conservation in practice: part science, part negotiation, part persistence — and a reminder that protecting these migratory species is a shared responsibility.

🔗 Read the full article at:

ASCOBANS' push to strengthen MPA management in Europe

08/12/2025

🌊 Mapping invisible threads: rethinking ecosystem services in the Baltic Sea 🌐

How do tiny bivalves, migrating birds and marine mammals connect to clean water, nutrient cycling or carbon storage? 🦪🕊️🐬

PROTECT BALTIC is building a new species-to-service model (BALM) that traces the link from organisms 🧬 → traits 🧩 → ecosystem functions ⚙️ → the benefits society relies on.

By understanding how species contribute—not just where they are—we can make smarter decisions about protection, restoration and planning across the Baltic Sea region. 🌍✨

Highlights from the new article:
🐾 Species-based approach
🔗 Linking traits to ecosystem functions
📊 Clearer evidence-based pathways
🧭 Better support for decision-making
🖥️ Visual tools that communicate complexity

This is a big step toward a more resilient and well-protected Baltic 💙🌊

Read more: https://protectbaltic.eu/news/f/mapping-invisible-threads-rethinking-ecosystem-services

In the depths of marine and coastal ecosystems, life is intricately layered – from the unseen activity of burrowing bivalves to the grand migrations of birds. But what connects these living organisms to each other, and t...

05/12/2025

🎥 Webinar materials now available!

If you missed our session on strengthening MPA management for small cetaceans 🐬 you can now watch the full recording and access the presentation.

🔷 Presentation: https://protectbaltic.eu/ascobans-small-cetaceans

👉 Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SxTcUcXJd4