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Anchoring climate ambition in the ocean is essential to limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and to safeguarding vulnerable coastal and island communities.
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Image Source: Getty
This article is part of the essay series: Expectations from COP30
COP30 marks a milestone for the ocean in global climate discourse. The Brazilian Presidency’s appointment of Marinez Scherer as a Special Envoy for Oceans and the adoption of the Mutirão approach, which emphasises “let’s all work together,” signal that the ocean is no longer a passive backdrop but a central actor in stabilising planetary systems. COP30 underscores that recognising the ocean as a partner in mitigation and adaptation is essential to safeguarding vulnerable coastal and island communities. Advancing the ocean-climate nexus has cross-cutting implications across multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 13 (Climate Action), and SDG 14 (Life Below Water).
For decades, the ocean remained peripheral in climate policy. While the Paris Agreement acknowledges “ecosystems,” a disconnect persists in embedding marine systems within operational frameworks. Although the ocean absorbs nearly 30 percent of anthropogenic CO₂ and more than 90 percent of excess heat from greenhouse-gas emissions, it remains underrepresented in policy and finance. Recognising the ocean as the planet’s largest carbon sink and as a source of food, livelihoods, and cultural identity is crucial for integrating solutions, such as mangrove restoration, seagrass protection, blue carbon accounting, and offshore renewables into Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
COP30’s themes underscore the importance of integrating indigenous knowledge, fisheries management, and marine conservation with urban planning to create resilient pathways for communities, ranging from coastal villages to metropolitan port cities. Inclusive participation, particularly of women, youth, and vulnerable groups, is essential to operationalise ocean-climate solutions.
Similarly, global finance mechanisms, such as the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and Global Environment Facility (GEF), could establish dedicated windows for marine ecosystems and coastal adaptation. However, persistent gaps in national implementation and accountability require robust monitoring and enforcement. Importantly, connecting global ambition to local realities in coastal cities and communities is essential, as rising seas, erosion, and ecosystem degradation are already reshaping lives.
Climate and ocean governance have evolved in parallel. While the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) addressed emissions and terrestrial ecosystems, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and regional fisheries bodies shaped ocean policy. Mangroves, coral reefs, and seagrass meadows were historically valued for biodiversity rather than as vital carbon sinks and resilience buffers. At COP30, this gap is narrowing.
Coastal cities such as Mumbai, Chennai, Kochi, and Visakhapatnam are emerging as testbeds for mangrove restoration, wetland recovery, and urban flood management, demonstrating how local initiatives can scale in line with national and global ambition.
The Ocean Pavilion is structured around three tracks: Human Ocean, Planet Ocean, and Future Ocean, bringing together scientists, policymakers, community leaders, and private actors to explore themes such as Ocean Justice and Equity, Blue Economy and Finance, and Ocean Solutions and Innovation. Building on its presence since COP26, this year’s Ocean Pavilion deepens collaboration across the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), UNFCCC, and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), strengthening the ocean-climate-biodiversity nexus. It also advances the ratification of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement to enhance mitigation and adaptation in the high seas. By linking marine science, cultural narratives, and indigenous knowledge, COP30 signals a shift toward integrated, evidence-based action.
Despite the growing recognition of the ocean’s role in climate stability, funding for ocean-based solutions remains minimal, accounting for only about one percent of global climate finance. This shortfall is striking given the scale of potential benefits: mangroves store up to four times more carbon than terrestrial forests, coral reefs protect millions from coastal flooding, and sustainable ocean economies could generate trillions of dollars in annual value. Without predictable and scaled finance, especially for developing and vulnerable nations, ocean-based mitigation and adaptation will remain largely aspirational.
COP30 highlights the need to align the Blue NDCs Challenge and the Action Agenda Blue Package with concrete funding pathways. Embedding ocean priorities into the GCF, GEF, and multilateral development banks is essential. Creating dedicated finance windows for marine ecosystems, coastal adaptation, and innovation is critical. Scaling finance for the ocean will also require addressing institutional barriers and operationalising monitoring frameworks.
At the heart of ocean-climate integration is an equity imperative. The ocean underpins life, culture, identity, and livelihoods for populations in Small Island Developing States (SIDS), emerging maritime economies, and urban coastal settlements. Yet, these regions face immediate threats from rising seas, coastal erosion, and saline intrusion. Megacities such as Mumbai, Jakarta, Lagos, and Rio de Janeiro already confront overlapping risks of heat, flooding, and fragile infrastructure. Integrating the ocean into climate policy is therefore a matter of justice.
Ocean governance must elevate marginalised voices and ensure that global commitments translate into local resilience measures, including nature-based coastal defences, climate-sensitive zoning, and community-led adaptation. COP30’s themes underscore the importance of integrating indigenous knowledge, fisheries management, and marine conservation with urban planning to create resilient pathways for communities, ranging from coastal villages to metropolitan port cities. Inclusive participation, particularly of women, youth, and vulnerable groups, is essential to operationalise ocean-climate solutions.
For India, these global developments have a strong resonance. As a maritime nation with an 11,098-kilometre coastline and over two million square kilometres of Exclusive Economic Zone, India’s policies increasingly reflect the ocean-climate nexus. The Blue Economy Policy Framework, Harit Sagar Green Port Guidelines, Maritime Vision 2030, and Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047 align with global efforts to build sustainable and climate-resilient ocean economies. Coastal cities such as Mumbai, Chennai, Kochi, and Visakhapatnam are emerging as testbeds for mangrove restoration, wetland recovery, and urban flood management, demonstrating how local initiatives can scale in line with national and global ambition.
India’s coastal and fishing communities, central to its blue economy, are being increasingly integrated into national resilience planning through climate-adaptive livelihoods, early warning systems, and community-led conservation. Project-level interventions further underscore this commitment. For instance, the GCF-United Nations Development Programme-supported Enhancing Climate Resilience of India’s Coastal Communities project targets Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Odisha for ecosystem-based adaptation and livelihood strengthening; the World Bank’s Strengthening Coastal Resilience and the Economy (SHORE) project conserves 30,000 hectares of coastal ecosystems in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka while providing 100,000 jobs. Visakhapatnam’s National Disaster Management Authority-approved coastal erosion mitigation programme combines structural and nature-based interventions along a 30-kilometre stretch.
COP30 highlights the need to align the Blue NDCs Challenge and the Action Agenda Blue Package with concrete funding pathways. Embedding ocean priorities into the GCF, GEF, and multilateral development banks is essential.
India’s engagement in Blue Economy initiatives under the G20 and Indo-Pacific frameworks underscores its expanding role in mobilising ocean-based finance. India’s leadership in the International Solar Alliance and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure reflects its capacity to drive model collective action rooted in innovation, sustainability, equity, and regional cooperation. COP30 also offers lessons for India’s port-led development programme, Sagarmala, particularly the need to align port expansion and coastal urban planning with climate-resilient infrastructure and ecosystem-based safeguards. However, translating ocean-climate ambitions into results will require the government to fully integrate structural and developmental gaps and ensure inclusive measures, as well as conservation priorities that support vulnerable coastal communities.
COP30 has underscored that the ocean is central to climate stability, not a peripheral concern. Its health sustains ecosystems, regulates the climate, and protects coastal communities and cities. Translating this recognition into action requires evidence-based policy supported by stronger science-policy integration and informed by assessments, such as Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action 2024-25 under the Roadmap to Oceans and Climate Action. Specifying mechanisms such as early warning systems or ocean-health indicators can make these pathways more actionable.
Capacity building across the Global South remains essential, encompassing the strengthening of observation systems and technical expertise, as well as ensuring equitable access to ocean and climate data. Technology transfer, knowledge sharing, education, and local skill development must emphasise such measures to operationalise ocean-climate solutions that underpin such measures. Enhanced multilateral cooperation through platforms such as the High-Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy, the Our Ocean Conference, and the UN Decade of Ocean Science can help align science, policy, and finance while integrating marine priorities into adaptation planning, technology initiatives, and SDG 14.
Operationalising ocean action requires integrating marine solutions into national climate strategies and NDCs, establishing dedicated finance for coastal adaptation, and incorporating ocean-health indicators into global monitoring frameworks. Cross-sector partnerships that combine ocean science, indigenous knowledge, and urban coastal resilience planning will be vital to ensure that commitments translate into benefits for the communities most at risk.
COP30 provides the opportunity to convert ocean ambition from high-level commitments into concrete, measurable implementation. As the Earth’s primary stabilising force, the ocean anchors both climate resilience and inclusive development. Evidence-based action, scaled investment in ocean solutions, and the empowerment of coastal communities, supported by coordinated efforts across governance levels, are indispensable to keeping the 1.5 °C target within reach and securing a thriving future for people and the planet.
Anusha Kesarkar Gavankar is a Senior Fellow with the Centre for Economy and Growth at the Observer Research Foundation.
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Dr. Anusha Kesarkar Gavankar is a Senior Fellow at ORF’s Centre for Economy and Growth. Her research spans urban transformation, spatial planning, habitats, and the ...
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