The 10th Our Ocean Conference (OOC) was held from April 28–30, 2025, in Busan, South Korea, bringing together more than 2,000 representatives from over 100 countries, including governments, international organizations, NGOs, and the private sector.
Figure 1: Local NGOs outside the venue calling on the South Korean government to take formal action
A Ten-Year Milestone! OOC Has Catalyzed Significant Action and Funding
As OOC marked its tenth year, the World Resources Institute released a decade-long impact report. Highlights include:
- Since the inaugural conference in 2014, OOC has become the world's leading forum for ocean action across six key themes: marine protected areas, sustainable fisheries, ocean pollution, climate change, maritime security, and the blue economy.
- From 2014 to 2024, the conference generated 2,618 action commitments worth an equivalent of US$160 billion.
- As of January 2025, OOC has mobilized US$133.4 billion in real funding for ocean action, with 43% of commitments fulfilled and 38% currently underway.
The report also specifically highlighted that OOC should continue to encourage participation from the private sector and academic institutions, and to incorporate the needs and voices of least developed countries, small island developing states, youth, women, indigenous peoples, and local communities — ensuring they are included in commitments and action.
This year's conference theme was "Our Ocean, Our Action." South Korea also introduced "Digital Ocean" as a seventh thematic area, aiming to accelerate ocean action through digital technology. The Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology held a side event titled "Smart Ocean Data Applications: Toward a Sustainable Future," inviting experts and scholars from Japan, South Korea, and the Marshall Islands to share their work — including how Taiwan is leveraging technology to advance smart fisheries, marine conservation, and ocean recreation safety. The audience warmly acknowledged Taiwan's technological capabilities in driving ocean action.
Figure 2: The Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology invited scholars from multiple countries to share how technology can advance marine conservation
At the closing plenary, the organizers announced that this year's conference had generated 277 commitments worth approximately US$9.1 billion, and officially passed the baton to the next host: Kenya.
Figure 3: Before the closing ceremony, Kenya was officially announced as the next host country — marking the first time the conference will be held in Africa
The Youth Summit Running Simultaneously Outside the Main Venue
Alongside the formal conference proceedings, a key parallel event — the Our Ocean Youth Leadership Summit (OOYLS) — was held concurrently. The non-profit Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA) has co-organized OOYLS alongside OOC for eight consecutive years. This year, the event also received support from South Korea's Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and Korea Maritime and Ocean University. Forty global youth representatives from SOA's Ocean Leaders Fellowship (OLF), drawn from 34 countries, took part as ocean youth leaders. The author is honored to have been selected from among 1,300 applicants to attend this gathering.
Figure 4: Group photo from OOYLS (Photo credit: Sustainable Ocean Alliance)
In total, 80 participants took part in OOYLS — combining global and Korean youth delegates. In addition to visiting the largest maritime training vessel in all of Asia and engaging in cross-cultural exchange, the program centered on capacity building and youth-led innovative solutions. The following are the key demands that youth articulated across the seven thematic areas:
Marine Protected Areas
- Strengthen the effective management of existing and newly established marine protected areas (MPAs), and ensure meaningful participation of local communities in decision-making.
Sustainable Fisheries
- Build capacity and promote equity under frameworks advancing Gender Equality, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI), while identifying, empowering, and protecting small-scale fisheries — particularly those led by women and indigenous communities.
- Strengthen monitoring, control, and enforcement against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, and improve transparency.
Ocean Pollution
- Raise awareness of false solutions — such as plastic offsetting and biodegradable plastics — that may exacerbate pollution and biodiversity loss.
- Urge governments to educate the public and promote genuine solutions to ocean pollution, including reducing single-use plastic production and improving waste management infrastructure in marine debris hotspots, particularly in the Global South.
- Support a global moratorium on deep-sea mining in areas beyond national jurisdiction until independent scientific assessments confirm that no irreversible harm will be caused to marine ecosystems or ocean-dependent communities.
Climate Change
- Integrate ocean-based solutions into national climate policies, embedding marine ecosystems such as mangroves, seagrass, and kelp — along with innovative approaches — into Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), adaptation plans, and carbon markets.
- Continue funding youth- and women-led enterprises in fisheries, marine aquaculture, and blue supply chains to build climate-resilient livelihoods.
Maritime Security
- Increase funding, technology, and training to strengthen the detection of and response to maritime threats.
- Establish clear accountability mechanisms to protect human rights at sea, advance the rights and welfare of migrant workers, and ensure that victims of maritime crime have access to justice.
Blue Economy
- Diversify assets and financial flows to expand blue finance and public investment opportunities.
- Use blue bonds, biodiversity credits, and blended finance to drive ocean-climate solutions — including carbon capture, green energy, and sustainable fisheries.
Digital Ocean
- Create fundraising opportunities, incubators, and mentorship programs to support youth-driven digital ocean solutions.
- Develop open ocean data, especially for youth, researchers, and coastal communities in the Global South. Scale up the use of satellites, sensors, and AI to track pollution, IUU fishing, marine biodiversity, and climate impacts.
During the closing ceremony, Ankur Shah — one of the ocean youth leaders — took to the stage alongside Korean student representative Jang Jemin to present the highlights of these demands under the theme "OUR HOPE: HOLISTIC OCEAN PLEDGE." The declaration, developed through collective discussion among all 80 youth participants, powerfully conveyed the youth voice. It will continue to be discussed and deepened by SOA-supported ocean youth leaders, and will be shared once again at the United Nations Ocean Conference.
Figure 5: At the closing ceremony, youth representatives shared the key highlights from OOYLS
Youth Demands Are Substantive and Concrete — Deep-Sea Mining Emerges as a Key Focus
From the demands outlined above, it is clear that young people are calling for global policies to be formally implemented on the ground, and for the voices of diverse and inclusive stakeholders — including youth, women, and indigenous peoples — to be integrated into decision-making. Among the issues raised under ocean pollution, deep-sea mining is a topic that has received relatively little attention domestically. In reality, the world has been embroiled in heated debate this year over whether to extract deep-sea minerals — a controversy that has been further inflamed since the Trump administration opened the door to the practice, galvanizing greater opposition. The international community has yet to fully assess the environmental damage that deep-sea mining could cause, and opinions remain divided. It is our hope that, before any formal extraction begins, as many dissenting voices as possible can be gathered to draw the attention of governments worldwide. ＜Destroying Millions of Years of Deep-Sea Formation — All for One Battery? The Deep-Sea Mining Crisis Is Closing In＞
For young people, OOYLS provided a platform to unite their voices — not merely as a surge of passion from those who love the ocean and are moved to act, but as a collective effort to pave an ideal path toward our future: a utopia where our oceans are healthy.
Further Reading
