The international community must stop using the oceans as a garbage dump, the leaders said during the 2025 Ocean Conference in France. They expressed 'cautious optimism' about the growing momentum around marine ecosystem protection - from global agreements to scientific know-how.

Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), said:  "Global target to protect and conserve at least 30 per cent of the world's land, freshwater and ocean by 2030. The Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction will turbocharge that goal."

But conservation should not simply be about setting something aside - it is crucial to consider contiguity, representation and effective management, she added.  She cited a 2017 World Bank study called "The sunken billions:  the economic justification for fisheries reform", which concluded that trawling in protected areas means essentially leaving $83 billion on the sea floor.  Dismissing the idea that protection is anti-fisheries, she said that fish don't know whether they are in a protected area or not - protection helps increase fish stock.  She also highlighted the One Ocean Finance facility, which will help leverage new investments.

Further, WTO has also launched a fund to support least developed countries manage their fisheries by providing technical assistance.  The blue economy is worth $2.6 trillion and it is crucial to help poor coastal countries unleash the power of that.  But there is potential to unlock much more.  "We have trillions of dollars in subsidies, doing the wrong thing", she pointed out.  It is crucial to repurpose fuel subsidies and other harmful subsidies towards protecting marine ecosystems and climate change action.

"This is not a crisis of knowledge.  We know enough to act," stressed Razan Al Mubarak, President of the International Union for Conversation of Nature.  Coral reefs are under pressure and a third of shark species face extinction.  Highlighting the first of three priorities, she called for "ecosystem integrity".  While the international community must come together to protect 30 per cent of oceans, it needs to sustainably manage 100 per cent of the oceans, she said. 

Next, the Agreement on Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction needs to enter into force. Without this treaty, reaching the 30 per cent target will just not be possible, she said.  She also stressed the need for innovative financing through blue bonds, redirecting harmful subsidies and the implementation of the One Ocean Finance facility.

Peter de Menocal, President and Director for the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, stressed the need to turn knowledge into action, adding that scientists should be more than just experts, they should make complex science legible and link discoveries to solutions.  He cited the example of the emerging science on the ocean twilight zone.  "This vast and dimly lit midwater region" - once largely invisible to science and policy - is increasingly a site of collaboration, he said, as scientists explore its influence on marine food webs and climate regulations.

He also noted that oceans are increasingly visible at the heart of climate negotiations.  Exploring the ocean's deep carbon potential is key, but independent science has to lead the effort to make sure it is harnessed responsibly.  His institution is conceiving a global network of ocean sensors that will monitor ocean health, he said.  This will allow the design and delivery of nationally determined contributions and national adaptation plans.  Oceans have the largest potential for scalable climate change solutions, he pointed out.

"How do we make this happen?" asked Marc Benioff, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Salesforce and Board Member of the World Economic Forum.  He noted that he is also the founder of the Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory.  So much comes down to innovation, creativity and new ideas, he said, noting that the extraordinary technologies of the day provide potential for a new era of "ecopreneurship".  Big wins such as the Paris Climate Accords can be followed by setbacks, he said, noting that ocean advocates are exhausted because it often feels like one step forward, two steps backward.

Having seen many political administrations come and go, he said, he learned that it is possible to agree on something or the other with every administration.  Noting that he worked with the first Trump Administration in the United States on the "trillion tree initiative", he said he is now focusing on practical steps to restore coral reefs. "We need more CEOS," ecopreneurs and venture capitalists to be part of the ocean movement, he said, adding that "every company can be an ocean company".  He also highlighted the role of artificial intelligence to tackle illegal fishing and connect investors with ocean projects.