The Ocean Foundation

05/07/2026

The ocean absorbs a significant portion of the carbon dioxide humans emit every year. Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal — mCDR — is an emerging field of research exploring whether we can enhance that capacity as part of our response to climate change.

The science is early, and the honest answer is that we don't yet know whether these approaches can work safely or at meaningful scale. What we do know is that as investment and commercial interest in mCDR grows, the standards governing how this research is conducted matter enormously — for ocean ecosystems, for coastal communities, and for the integrity of climate science itself.

But good science requires clear rules — especially when the stakes are this high.

Today, The Ocean Foundation joined eight leading environmental organizations to release 10 recommendations for responsible mCDR field research. They address ethical conduct, the rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities to meaningfully shape decisions about research in their waters, independent verification of results, open-access data, and public financing. They also draw a clear line: mCDR trials should not generate carbon credits until the science can genuinely support them.

mCDR research funding should not displace investment in emissions reductions or proven carbon removal approaches like reforestation.

The ocean deserves research that is as rigorous as the problems we are asking it to help solve.

https://oceanconservancy.org/newsroom/press-release/2026/05/07/new-recommendations-for-marine-carbon-dioxide-removal/

“Climate change is the biggest threat to our ocean, and we must balance urgent work to address carbon pollution with robust protections for ocean ecosystems and the people that rely on them,” said Dr. Fatima Candace Vahlsing, Ocean Conservancy’s Vice President for Climate and former White Hous...

04/27/2026

Global ocean exploration didn't begin with Europe — Arab navigators were sailing the Indian Ocean long before the Age of Exploration. 🌊

This Arab American Heritage Month, we're looking back at the Arab navigators who dominated the Indian Ocean and the remarkable legacy they left behind.

Ever heard of Ahmad Ibn Mājid, the sailor known as the "Lion of the Sea"? Head to our latest blog post to meet him. ⚓

https://oceanfdn.org/arab-maritime-heritage

Long before European exploration, Arab sailors ruled the Indian Ocean—trading goods, sharing ideas, and shaping a connected maritime world.

04/23/2026

How much salt is too much for mangroves?

04/23/2026

Happy Earth Day — with full honesty about what this past year has meant for our ocean. 🌊

The wins deserve to be celebrated:
✅ The High Seas Treaty entered into force on January 17, 2026. For the first time in history, the open ocean — 61% of our planet's surface — has legal protection. After two decades of negotiations, the world got it done.
✅ More than 170 countries signed the Nice Ocean Action Plan at the UN Ocean Conference in June, committing to expand marine protected areas, reduce ocean pollution, and protect vulnerable coastal nations.
✅ At COP30 in Brazil, the ocean was recognized as central to climate action — not just a victim of it.

The losses cannot be ignored:
❌ 500,000 square miles of protected Pacific waters opened to commercial fishing.
❌ NOAA — the agency that makes responsible fisheries management possible — was gutted.
❌ Four days after the High Seas Treaty entered into force, NOAA fast-tracked deep-sea mining permits. One company immediately filed to mine an area of the Pacific the size of the state of Washington.
❌ 1.3 billion acres of coastal waters were opened to oil and gas leasing.

Both things are true. And both things call us forward.

The ocean covers 71% of this planet. It absorbs 90% of the excess heat from our climate crisis. It sustains more than 3 billion people. It is part of the common heritage of humankind.

We continue to support the local stewards, scientists, and researchers protecting their resources, their coastlines, their futures — and ours.

We continue — for the 71% of this planet that needs us more than ever.

Learn more and support our work:
www.oceanfdn.org

As the only community foundation for the ocean, our mission is to improve global ocean health, climate resilience and the blue economy.

04/22/2026

A remarkable 30-year study is changing how we understand Atlantic bluefin tuna—and it’s a powerful example of what long-term science can achieve.

Led by Dr. Barbara Block of Stanford University and Tag-A-Giant (a fiscal sponsorship project of The Ocean Foundation), scientists have been tracking these fish across the Atlantic using electronic tags to follow their movements, behavior, and survival.

By tracking over 1,700 tuna, researchers discovered something important: many Atlantic bluefin migrate from heavily fished Mediterranean waters to the western Atlantic, where stronger conservation measures give them a chance to feed, grow, and thrive.

The Tag-A-Giant project has played a key role in making this research possible, supporting the long-term tagging effort that underpins these findings.

The result is clear: science-based fisheries management is working. Stronger protections and reduced fishing pressure have helped drive a real recovery in Atlantic bluefin tuna populations.

It’s a reminder of what sustained research, international cooperation, and evidence-based policy can achieve for our oceans. 🌊🐟

https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/western-atlantic-provides-refuge-bluefin-tuna

A 30-year study shows that conservation measures in the western Atlantic have created a vital haven, contributing to the recovery of bluefin tuna.

04/20/2026

Today marks 16 years since the Deepwater Horizon explosion. 🌊

Eleven lives lost. Nearly 200 million gallons of oil. Eighty-seven days of uncontrolled flow into one of the most biodiverse marine environments in the world. The damage — to wildlife, to coastal communities, to the ocean itself — has never been fully undone.

We hold this anniversary with both grief and purpose.

Meet the Rice’s whale. 🐋

America’s only endemic whale lives year-round in the Gulf of Mexico. There are just 51 individuals left on Earth. Deepwater Horizon alone killed or seriously harmed an estimated 20% of the population. Last year, NOAA Fisheries concluded that continued oil and gas operations in the Gulf likely threaten the species’ survival.

Just three weeks ago, a rarely convened federal committee — the Endangered Species Committee, known as the “God Squad” — voted to remove Endangered Species Act protections from all Gulf oil and gas drilling. It was only the third time this committee has ever granted such an exemption in its nearly 50-year history. At risk are not just the Rice’s whale, but also sea turtles, s***m whales, manatees, corals, rays, and more than two dozen other protected species.

We believe the ocean is a shared inheritance. The protections we extend to species like the Rice’s whale reflect the values we hold as stewards of this planet — and the commitment we owe to future generations.

Photo Credit: NOAA Fisheries 2019

04/15/2026

114 years ago today, the RMS Titanic slipped beneath the North Atlantic. 1,500 lives lost. A world in shock.

But the Titanic's legacy didn't end with the tragedy — it rewrote international law.

Today, on the anniversary of the sinking, TOF President Mark J Spalding is sharing a new blog on how one shipwreck changed maritime safety forever — and sparked a decades-long legal battle over the wreck itself.

From the birth of the SOLAS convention to a landmark international agreement protecting the Titanic as a maritime memorial, this is the legal history you probably never learned.

Mark's blog also previews the forthcoming book by Ole Varmer and James P. Delgado: Titanic Law and Policy: The Wreck's Role in Changing International Maritime Safety and Salvage Law (Springer, 2026) — which will be free to download open access thanks to our partner the Lloyd's Register Foundation.

Read the full story: https://oceanfdn.org/titanic-law-and-policy-how-a-shipwreck-changed-international-law-and-why-it-matters-today/

04/14/2026

This week, TOF President Mark J Spaldingand Dr. Ben Ferrari are in London at the International Maritime Organization — the UN agency responsible for global shipping — representing The Ocean Foundation's Ocean Heritage Initiative. 🌊

They're there to make the case for protecting communities from Potentially Polluting Wrecks (PPWs) — thousands of WWII-era ships resting on the ocean floor, slowly corroding and releasing oil and hazardous materials into the sea. When these wrecks leak, it's small island nations and coastal fishing communities that pay the price, with closed fisheries, lost livelihoods, and no global system to help them.

We're hopeful this week's conversations move us closer to the international framework these communities deserve.

📸 IMO HQ, photo credit Mark J Spalding

04/10/2026

The Deep Sea Conservation Coalition has launched a new FAQ on deep-sea mining — and it's an essential resource for anyone following this issue.

The debate is not going away. As our President Mark Spalding wrote earlier this year, the deep seabed is not the barren wasteland that mining proponents would have us believe. It is home to a staggering array of biodiversity — much of it still undiscovered. With 80% of the seabed still unmapped, we don't yet have the baseline data to understand what we would be destroying.

The business case doesn't hold up either. Battery technology is moving decisively away from the metals that mining companies are targeting. Between 2016 and 2023, EV production increased by 2,000% — while cobalt prices fell by 10%. The market is telling us something that those rushing to industrialize the seabed are not hearing.

The deep ocean is the largest habitat for life on Earth. It is part of the common heritage of humankind. We have time to get this right — and every reason to be careful.

Read the DSCC FAQ at the link below. 🌊
https://deep-sea-conservation.org/solutions/no-deep-sea-mining/deep-sea-mining-faq/

The latest session of the International Seabed Authority may have ended without approval for deep-sea mining, but the debate is far from over.

From unilateral mining to the circular economy, from the Clarion-Clipperton Zone to the principle that the deep seabed is the common heritage of humankind - the conversation around deep-sea mining is full of complex terms and concepts.

Even for those following closely, it can be difficult to keep track.

To help bring clarity to the discussion, the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition has launched a new Frequently Asked Questions page on deep-sea mining.

Whether you're new to the issue or looking to refresh your understanding, the FAQ breaks down the key terms, debates, and why a moratorium on deep-sea mining is increasingly supported by governments, scientists, businesses, and civil society.

📖 Explore the FAQ and learn more about what’s at stake for the deep sea.

https://deep-sea-conservation.org/solutions/no-deep-sea-mining/deep-sea-mining-faq/

04/07/2026