World Oceans Day: UN report seeks urgent collaboration to protect marine ecosystems – EnviroNews

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The third World Ocean Assessment was released on Monday, June 8, 2026, on World Oceans Day, offering the latest insights into the health of our ocean, providing a vital evidence base to help us make better decisions for a sustainable future.

The report reflects the collective work of approximately 600 experts from 86 countries. It is said to be the only global integrated assessment on the state of the marine environment which explores the environmental, economic, and social dimensions of the ocean. Supporting policy-makers, managers, educators and students, it provides a shared foundation for dialogue, learning and decision-making and explores the ocean’s vital role in connecting people, cultures and economies worldwide.

“The third World Ocean Assessment, launched today, documents a deepening crisis driven by climate change, overfishing, biodiversity loss and marine pollution,” said António Guterres, UN Secretary-General. “We cannot keep treating the ocean as limitless.  We must build a new relationship with the ocean: Grounded in science.  Framed by international law.  And built on shared responsibility – across nations, sectors, and generations – to advance the   Sustainable Development Goals.”

The ocean is under intensifying stress

The Assessment reveals that the ocean continues to be under severe and accelerating anthropogenic pressure, from the surface to the deep sea, driven by climate change, pollution and increased human activities.

These pressures are often cumulative, combining to cause widespread biodiversity loss, undermining the ecosystems that support fisheries, coastal protection and human health. The Assessment helps us to better understand the drivers, interactions, and long‑term consequences of these changes.

“The imperative for a healthy and resilient ocean has never been more urgent. Global collaborations and research, and our increased understanding of the ocean, provide essential insights into the state of marine ecosystems, the profound changes they are undergoing and the need for our care,” said Rafael González-Quirós, Joint Coordinator of the Group of Experts for the third World Ocean Assessment.

Key findings

• Main human drivers that have the greatest influence on the marine environment:

1. Human population growth and demographic changes
2. Economic activity
3. Technological advances
4. Changing governance structures and social, economic and geopolitical instability
5. Climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution

• Approximately 16% of the total increase in ocean heat content since 1955 has occurred since 2018. The greatest relative warming has been observed in the Atlantic Ocean and the southern parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
• The sea level continues to rise at increasing rates, from less than 2.0 mm per year prior to 2015 to 4.3 mm per year in 2023.
• Each year, 52.1 million tonnes of plastic waste enter the ocean, contributing to an estimated 24.4 trillion microplastic particles, which are now known to affect more than 4,000 marine species.
• Large gaps persist in ocean knowledge, with only 27.3% of the seafloor mapped as of 2025, leaving deep sea ecosystems, biological processes, and cumulative impacts poorly understood

Ocean health and human wellbeing are deeply connected

The third World Ocean Assessment stresses the strong links between ocean health and food security, livelihoods, economic prosperity, and cultural identity.

The Assessment also brings forward new perspectives by exploring forward-looking sustainability pathways, revealing the essential role of gender, equity, and Indigenous knowledge in ocean stewardship based on science, evidence and years of research.

“Their inclusion reflects the importance of inclusivity and of drawing on diverse knowledge to ensure that responsible ocean management benefits from the perspectives and experiences of all communities,” said Renato Andres Quiñones Bergeret, Joint Coordinator of the Group of Experts for the third World Ocean Assessment.

Key findings

• Small scale fisheries employ 60.2 million people and produce 25.1 million tonnes annually, yet many coastal Indigenous Peoples and local communities are marginalised and often lack secure access to resources and participation in governance.
• Ocean governance models that incorporate Indigenous, traditional owner and local community knowledge are more likely to achieve comprehensive well-being outcomes, including by maintaining cultural and/or natural heritage, fostering community resilience and offering generational insight into marine ecosystems and their sustainable use.
• Embedding gender equality in marine policies, institutions and leadership is critical for achieving sustainable, fair and effective ocean governance.
• Ocean benefits – from fisheries, the ocean economy, and ecosystem services – are inequitably distributed among nations and to different groups within society due to inadequate attention to rights and tenure, participation in decision-making, and fairness in allocation of benefits.
• Chemical contaminants, pathogens, harmful algal blooms, microplastics and marine debris all pose increasing risks to human health through seafood consumption, recreation and coastal exposure. Climate-related changes – such as warming seas, extreme events and shifting disease vectors – are amplifying health threats.

Governance is improving, but still fragmented

The third World Ocean Assessment is the first integrated ocean assessment to include an ocean governance section, and it reveals that stronger coordination across global and regional institutions is helping connect ocean governance systems, improving collective impact. The 57 global treaties relating to ocean protection, including the recently adopted Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies and the entry into force of the Agreement on Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ), improve collective capacity to protect biodiversity, reduce harmful subsidies, and manage ocean resources more sustainably for future generations. Despite significant progress, governance remains fragmented across sectors and regions, limiting coherent management.

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Key findings

• Systemic fragmentation, for example in the uneven adoption of treaties and gaps in coordination, requires stronger integration mechanisms across climate, biodiversity, fisheries and pollution regimes that build on existing interplay pathways.
• Strengthening coordination mechanisms and ensuring coherence across institutions is critical for effective policy implementation.
• In the past five years, human dimensions, including human rights and social sciences, have gained increased prominence in ocean governance discussions.
• Proposals and practices, such as the sustainable and inclusive ocean economy and marine spatial planning, have gained increased significance in State-led governance developments. National experiences and community-led ideas are shaping how we protect our oceans today. Concepts like marine spatial planning and inclusive ocean economies now play a major role in official government decisions.

Background

Third World Ocean Assessment

The third World Ocean Assessment (WOA III), the only global integrated assessment of the world’s ocean covering environmental, economic and social aspects, is the main output of the third cycle of the Regular Process for Global Reporting and Assessment of the States of the Marine Environment, including Socioeconomic Aspects.

WOA III is a collective effort of interdisciplinary writing teams made up of almost 600 experts, providing an important scientific basis for the consideration of ocean issues by Governments, intergovernmental processes, and all policymakers and others involved in ocean affairs. It provides scientific information on the state of the marine environment in a comprehensive and integrated manner to support decisions and actions for the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals, in particular goal 14, as well as the implementation of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.

While the First World Ocean Assessment (WOA I) provided the first baseline study of the United Nations General Assembly on the state of the marine environment, the second World Ocean Assessment (WOA II) provided an update to that baseline study. Building on WOA I and WOA II, WOA III on one hand provides updated and comprehensive information on the state of the ocean across various regions, and on the other hand includes distinctive and innovative features, such as forward-looking sustainability pathways and cross-cutting themes on gender and equity considerations, as well as the inclusion of Indigenous, traditional owner and local community knowledge.