by Marisa Drew (chief sustainability officer at Standard Chartered) Despite carrying 80% of the world’s trade, absorbing 30% of its carbon-dioxide emissions and providing food security for almost 3 billion people, the global “blue economy” (oceans and waterways) is suffering from acute underinvestment, and nowhere more so than in Africa.
Key Impact Points: Nasdaq and AirMiners Team Up on Carbon Removal Education Nasdaq has unveiled the Nasdaq Carbon Academy, a free, self-paced online course designed to educate professionals on carbon dioxide removal (CDR) and its integration into corporate climate strategies. The program was co-developed with AirMiners, a climate innovation hub
Key Impact Points: ERS Acquires Indigenous-Focused Forest Carbon Standard ERS, an ICVCM-approved carbon standard focused on nature-based solutions, has acquired Equitable Earth, a forest carbon standard co-developed by Indigenous leaders, community stakeholders, and technical experts. The move marks a significant shift in voluntary carbon markets toward prioritizing high-integrity, community-rooted REDD+
“It seems to me that the natural world is the greatest source of excitement; the greatest source of visual beauty; the greatest source of intellectual interest. It is the greatest source of so much in life that makes life worth living.” — Sir David Attenborough At 99 years old, Sir
Key Impact Points: Connecting Capital Markets with Conservation As the world prepares for COP30—the “COP of Solutions”—one urgent challenge remains: how to finance global goals for nature and biodiversity. Meeting the Rio Conventions’ targets will require more than public funding; it will demand bold private sector investment and partnerships. The
Key Impact Points: SWEN Capital Partners Scales Ocean Impact Strategy with Second Blue Ocean Fund SWEN Capital Partners has raised €160 million in the first close of SWEN Blue Ocean 2, the world’s largest ocean-focused impact venture fund. With a €300 million target, the fund will back startups advancing technologies
Key Impact Points: Fugro to Develop First-Ever mCDR Environmental Impact Standards Fugro has been tapped by Ocean Visions to lead the development of a standardized Environmental Impact Assessment Framework for marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) technologies—advancing a critical area of climate innovation focused on the ocean’s capacity to store carbon.
Capital markets need to be better attuned to individual countries’ goals and the interests of workers By Larry Fink – Originally published in the FT June 2025 The global economy is in a strange place: we know more about the next seven years than the next seven days. For nearly
Key Impact Points: €3 Billion Push to Stem the Tide of Plastic Pollution A coalition of development banks has pledged at least €3 billion ($3.4 billion) by 2030 to address plastic pollution in oceans—marking the world’s largest coordinated investment effort to tackle the crisis. The announcement came as the second
Key Impact Points: CAF Doubles Ocean Commitment to Lead Blue Finance in the Region CAF – the development bank of Latin America and the Caribbean – has announced a bold new investment of $2.5 billion through 2030 to advance a sustainable blue economy and preserve ocean ecosystems in the region.
