© Elisabeth Kruger / WWF-US
Ocean Policy
Many of the decisions that affect our ocean’s health are made far from any coastline. WWF engages in advocacy to give the ocean and those who depend on it a “seat at the table” when important decisions are made.

© Jonathan Caramanus / Green Renaissance / WWF-UK

Our goal is to ensure the world’s most important fisheries and ocean ecosystems are productive and resilient, and to improve livelihoods and biodiversity. This includes key objectives to be achieved by 2030:

  • conserve and effectively manage at least 30% of coastal and marine ecosystems
  • reduce the number of unsustainable fisheries by 50%
WWF highlights the need for and benefits of including strong provisions for ocean health across global agreements and frameworks that take into account climate change, sustainable development, marine and coastal biodiversity, and the communities that are dependent upon healthy ocean ecosystems. We work to make these policies and frameworks more effective on all fronts and to help ensure an inclusive and just approach.

Priority forums, conferences and events
Resources on the High Seas Treaty (BBNJ)
WWF Brief for Governments: BBNJ IGC-5bis
PDF 257 KB
An Ambitious New Ocean Treaty - What Needs to Be Done and Why, June 2022
PDF 231 KB
Establishing Marine Protected Areas in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction – A WWF Brief For Governments, January 2022
PDF 479 KB
BBNJ Reporting Requirements: Brief for Governments, 2021
PDF 164 KB
WWF’s Ambition for an International Legally Binding Instrument on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction – Brief For Governments, March 2018
PDF 341 KB
Matters for Inclusion in a New International Legally Binding Instrument under UNCLOS: Enhanced Cooperation and Effective Dispute Resolution
PDF 698 KB
Resources on Deep Seabed Mining
WWF Global Policy Brief International Seabed Authority, July 2023
PDF 208 KB
Business Brief for Future is Circular Report
PDF 4.63 MB
Resources on the Ocean-Climate Nexus
Blueprint for a Living Planet
PDF 5.40 MB
Unpacking the UNFCCC Global Stocktake for Ocean-Climate Action
PDF 4.67 MB
Options for Strengthening Action on the Ocean and Coasts under the UNFCCC, June 2022
PDF 1.59 MB
Coastal and Marine Ecosystems as Nature-Based Solutions in New or Updated Nationally Determined Contributions, October 2021
PDF 9.15 MB