Oceans at a Crossroads: Time to Act – By Hacina Py

By Hacina Py, Group Chief Sustainability Officer, Societe Generale

The future of our oceans has surged to the forefront of the global agenda. The recent United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC), held in June in Nice and preceded by the Blue Economy and Finance Forum (BEFF) in Monaco, helped crystallise a powerful consensus: Oceans’ health is not just an environmental concern but also a cornerstone of a thriving global economy.

Oceans cover more than 70 percent of the planet’s surface. They generate more than half of the oxygen we breathe, regulate climate systems and absorb nearly a third of global CO₂ (carbon dioxide) emissions. As oceanographer Françoise Gaill recently observed at a conference held on our premises, without the oceans’ delicate biogeochemical equilibrium, life on Earth would simply not be possible.

Yet this life-support system is under mounting pressure. Ocean warming, acidification, deoxygenation, plastic pollution and overfishing are accelerating ecological degradation. These risks are real, measurable and already reshaping both ecosystems and economies.

A clear roadmap was defined in 2015 through Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG14): Life Below Water. Adopted under the United Nations (UN) 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, SDG14 sets tangible targets to reduce marine pollution, end overfishing, protect vulnerable ecosystems and develop a sustainable blue economy. It also calls for stronger scientific cooperation, the expansion of marine protected areas and enhanced access to finance and technology—particularly for developing coastal and island nations. While progress remains uneven and SDG14 continues to be among the least funded of the global goals, it remains critical to align policy, investment and innovation with the long-term preservation of marine ecosystems.

With the UNOC now behind us, the task is to maintain and accelerate momentum. The conference marked an important milestone, but its success will ultimately depend on implementation. As President Rodrigo Chaves Robles of Costa Rica (co-host of the UNOC) vibrantly stated during the concluding remarks of the BEFF: “Vision without action is hallucination”. As the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development continues, it is crucial that all stakeholders, including governments, businesses and financial institutions, step up to make this vision a reality.

The Ocean Economy: vast, valuable and vulnerable

If the oceans were a single country, it would rank as the world’s fifth-largest economy—the oceans generate more than $2.5 trillion annually and support the livelihoods of more than three billion people. This “blue economy” spans a wide range of sectors, from shipping and offshore energy to coastal tourism and aquaculture—all deeply interwoven into global value chains. Shipping, for instance, facilitates more than 90 percent of international trade, and marine cables enable 98 percent of global telecommunications, underscoring the foundational role oceans have in our global economy’s functioning.

The blue economy is not only vast and vital, but it is also highly valuable for innovation. New frontiers such as marine biotechnology are opening up breakthroughs in medicine, materials science and sustainable food systems. At the same time, clean marine energies—including tidal, wave and osmotic power—offer reliable, low-carbon alternatives that could help accelerate global energy transitions, particularly for coastal and island nations. Innovations in algae-based biofuels, offshore wind and ocean-based carbon sequestration are expanding what’s possible. In short, the ocean represents an unparalleled frontier of opportunity—but its promise is conditional: It can only be realised if we protect and restore the ecosystems that underpin it.

This is where the paradox lies. While the blue economy holds immense potential, it is also deeply vulnerable. Its infrastructure is increasingly exposed to rising sea levels and extreme weather events. Fisheries are under threat of collapse. Coastal assets face accelerating erosion and salinisation. Climate-related disruptions are already translating into measurable economic losses.

UNOC and BEFF: turning points for ocean protection

The UN Ocean Conference, along with its three official side events—One Ocean Science, the Ocean Rise and Coastal Resilience Summit and the Blue Economy and Finance Forum—delivered a clear and unified message: Reversing ocean degradation, fostering a sustainable blue economy and deepening our scientific understanding of the ocean must go hand in hand. These events brought together a wide coalition of stakeholders, including policymakers, regulators, development institutions, the private sector and civil society. The conclusion was unequivocal: Aligning financial flows with the preservation of ocean health is not only a shared responsibility but also a powerful lever for long-term value creation.

The UNOC 2025 was a success in reinvigorating global momentum around ocean action. Among the initiatives that gained significant traction were:

• The near completion of the BBNJ Agreement, also known as the High Seas Treaty, which is a legally binding international agreement aimed at ensuring the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction. The treaty’s entry into effect is anticipated by January 2026 and notably introduces a significant innovation in governance, allowing marine protected areas to be established by a three-quarters majority vote, thus reducing the risk of deadlock.
• The reinforced international support for the 30 by 30 (30×30) target, an objective established under the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) at COP15 (15th Conference of the Parties) in Montreal—to protect 30 percent of the planet’s land and marine areas by 2030; and
• The rising support for a precautionary moratorium on deep-sea mining to better explore and understand the complex ecosystems and ecosystemic services that deep seas shelter, given the potentially irreversible ecological impacts that exploitation could cause.

Crucially, this policy progress was matched by growing financial ambition. More than $8.9 billion in new funding commitments were announced during the BEFF and UNOC across public, private and philanthropic sectors. These commitments span a wide range of themes—from sustainable fisheries and marine conservation to climate-resilient coastal infrastructure—and signal a clear turning point: Ocean finance is entering the field of sustainable investment.

These outcomes are part of a broader shift in global engagement that is beginning to influence regulatory expectations and redirect investor attention. With more than 175 countries in attendance, including 64 heads of state, the vast majority of the world’s exclusive economic zones were represented, sending a strong and united signal of ambition.

The next round of international negotiations on plastic pollution in Geneva this summer, as well as the integration of the Nice Ocean Action Plan into the forthcoming COP in Belém, Brazil, will continue to build on this progress.

What can the financial sector do for the ocean?

To protect the ocean, the financial sector is looking beyond impact risk management to actively contributing to a sustainable, regenerative blue economy in which economic activity supports ecological restoration, innovation and long-term resilience. This transition can be bolstered by funding nature-based solutions such as mangrove, seagrass and salt-marsh restoration—initiatives that enhance biodiversity, boost coastal protection and sequester carbon. Through blended finance, blue bonds and dedicated investment vehicles, new forms of capital allocation are helping to scale these regenerative projects.

Supporting the decarbonisation of ocean-linked sectors is another critical lever. Maritime transport alone accounts for nearly 3 percent of global emissions and is engaging in a shift towards lower carbon models. The Poseidon Principles offer a framework to align ship financing with climate goals. As one of the founding signatories of the Poseidon Principles, Societe Generale contributes to this transition by financing cleaner ships, supporting fleet retrofits and encouraging port electrification. As our head of maritime industries finance, Paul Taylor, emphasised during a BEFF roundtable with the New Energies Coalition, the financial sector has a key role to play in this transformation.

At the same time, there is a growing reflection on the role finance can play upstream by more systematically integrating environmental and biodiversity considerations into sectoral policies, credit assessments and engagement strategies. Incorporating ocean-related indicators into decision-making—particularly in sectors such as shipping, fishing, aquaculture and coastal infrastructure—may offer a way to help mitigate adverse impacts and encourage clients towards more sustainable approaches. A number of initiatives, including the UNEP-FI (United Nations Environment – Finance Initiative) Sustainable Blue Economy Finance Principles and recent national efforts such as France’s 2025-2030 plastic plan presented at the UN Ocean Conference, provide illustrative examples of emerging best practices that institutions can join to guide their efforts. These may also help inform future thinking on how financial institutions can support clients in their transition efforts—through plastic reduction, reuse or recycling within their value chains, for example, as Societe Generale has done recently through an innovative development impact bond for Unilever in Africa.

In parallel, financial institutions can act by supporting organisations and innovators working at the forefront of ocean protection. The Ocean Cleanup, for example, is addressing plastic pollution through advanced technologies deployed in rivers and oceans. At Societe Generale, our engagement extends beyond financial support—we offer strategic guidance, facilitate partnerships and mobilise internal expertise to help scale the impact. During the UNOC, Societe Generale co-hosted an event with the French Ministry of Ecological Transition and leading NGOs (non-governmental organisations) to showcase how artificial intelligence (AI) can help accelerate ocean protection. Our partner, The Ocean Cleanup, has pioneered a solution that uses cameras on vessels and AI to identify and map the flows and types of plastic pollution to better collect it. Partnering with Mercator Ocean International and its digital twin of the ocean during this event was a unique opportunity and helped create new synergies between public and private actors to increase the impact of their essential actions on the ground.

Looking ahead

The ocean is a common good. Its degradation threatens biodiversity, food security, economic resilience and the global climate agenda. Its protection, therefore, is a central concern for the economy—not just from a risk perspective, but as a matter of economic resilience and long-term value creation.

The UNOC created decisive momentum. Stakeholders have advanced in their understanding of the issues, guided by science, and there is hope that the Nice conference will mark a turning point for ocean protection, just as the Paris Agreement did for the climate.