Handbook on Conservation and the Sustainable Use of the Ocean

In their introduction, the editors highlight the central role of the ocean in the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While some progress has been made since 2015 – including on SDG 14 (‘Life below water’) – significant challenges remain. Climate change impacts and biodiversity loss are increasing pressure on marine ecosystems, plastic pollution remains unchecked, and funding shortages hinder progress towards global goals and targets.

Fragmented governance – the system of rules, institutions, processes, instruments and actors for steering and managing the conservation and use of the ocean – hinders coordinated and effective action. Greater efforts and evidence-based policies are essential to achieve the SDGs and safeguard the ocean for future generations.

The introductory chapter provides an overview of the handbook, which analyses global ocean governance in the context of the SDGs. It emphasises that the ocean should not be considered an ‘endless resource’, but rather as a complex system in which the marine environment is intertwined with human activities and planetary boundaries. The close connection between land and sea is also highlighted in this context, for example in relation to pollution. The authors emphasise that effective marine conservation requires a ‘source-to-sea’ approach to governance. Similarly, a holistic approach to the management of ocean resources, based on the ecosystem approach, is urgently needed to safeguard marine ecosystems and their functions.

The adoption of SDG 14 as part of the 2030 Agenda – the first global development agenda to explicitly include a stand-alone ocean goal within its scope – marked a paradigm shift. However, progress towards its implementation and targets remains patchy and uneven.
 

A selection of progress:

• International Agreement: The UN Agreement on Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement), adopted in 2023 after over 20 years of negotiations and entering into force in 2026, is the first international agreement to regulate the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ).
• Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF): With its ‘30x30’ target of protecting 30 percent of marine areas by 2030, this framework systematically advances the protection of marine ecosystems. Other GBF targets, including those related to marine spatial planning, ecosystem restoration, species and fisheries, are also crucial for ocean governance and achieving SDG 14.
• Global Plastics Treaty: Since 2022, negotiations have been underway under the auspices of the UN Environment Programme on an international treaty to combat plastic pollution and littering in the environment, including the ocean. Although no agreement has yet been reached, the process continues.
• Nice Declaration: In the final declaration of the 2025 UN Ocean Conference held in Nice, over 170 states committed to increase their efforts to protect the ocean, including through the designation of marine protected areas and the decarbonisation of shipping.

A selection of challenges:

• Climate change: Climate change is accelerating the pressures on marine ecosystems and the services they provide, threatening the livelihoods of coastal populations. Key challenges for ocean governance arise from the lack of integration between climate protection and marine conservation.
• Pollution: Plastic, nutrient and pollutant contamination are exceeding critical thresholds, and there is still no coordinated global regulatory framework with which marine pollution could be curbed and prevented.
• Governance fragmentation: Multi-layered and uncoordinated regimes governing fisheries, trade, shipping, deep seabed mining, and marine conservation lead to gaps in mandates, hinder the implementation of global obligations, and result in incoherent management.
• Funding gaps: Significantly fewer financial resources are being allocated to the implementation of SDG 14 compared to other SDGs.

Future areas of focus:

• Governance: Improved coordination and coherence in the implementation of policy objectives, for example through polycentric approaches that link local, regional, and global levels. Integration of ocean targets into other fields such as climate and biodiversity strategies, and enabling greater integration of science and indigenous knowledge.
• Equity: Comprehensive partnerships with developing countries, Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and, more generally, better involvement of countries in the Global South, Indigenous Peoples and local communities in decision-making and implementation processes.
• Technology & Science: Promotion of technologies such as ‘digital twins’, satellite-based monitoring or the exchange of knowledge between politics, science and civil society via an International Platform for Ocean Sustainability as decision-making aids.
• Long-term goals: Carrying forward the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs beyond 2030 as a guide for global cooperation, with adjusted goals and defined milestones, to ensure effective global ocean policy and governance. 

The introductory chapter emphasises that cooperative and inclusive approaches, combined with systems thinking, are essential to preserving our ocean – a call to the international community to act decisively before 2030 and set a sustainable course for present and future generations.

480 pages and 22 chapters

Written by international ocean experts, the following 21 chapters present innovative approaches to promoting marine conservation, sustainable fisheries, the blue economy of the maritime space and marine spatial planning. The handbook highlights the vital role of knowledge, research and technology for informed decision-making and the development of effective strategies to address these challenges. Practical examples are used throughout the book to illustrate potential solutions to key challenges hindering progress towards SDG 14 and ocean sustainability more broadly 

“The book is intended as a guide for policy, science and practice – and for anyone interested in and committed to the protection and sustainable use of the ocean,” says editor Barbara Neumann from RIFS. “It offers a critical overview of the current state of marine governance. We identify areas for action and innovative approaches to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 and beyond. We discuss challenging issues such as deep-sea mining and marine geoengineering from a sustainability perspective and shed light on questions of justice – for us humans just as much as for the marine environment. By linking scientific findings with practical examples, we hope this book will help shape a sustainable future for our ocean – and above all for the people who live from and with the seas!”

“This book explores the challenges of ocean governance in areas critical to achieving SDG 14 and offers insights on solutions and pathways to overcome those challenges” says editor Daniela Diz from the Lyell Centre, in Edinburgh. “This publication is extremely timely, considering the latest developments in international policy and law regarding the marine environment: from the adoption of the GBF under the Convention on Biological Diversity, to the BBNJ Agreement entering into force, and the Nice Declaration reaffirming states’ commitment to cooperation on ocean conservation and sustainable use. We hope this book can inspire decision-makers and stakeholders to implement political commitments and legal obligations in a holistic manner, halting and reversing marine biodiversity loss to ensure healthy marine ecosystems everywhere.”

“Bringing together ideas from some of the best minds in ocean governance, this book is a great resource for those wanting to learn more about potential solutions to overcome pressing challenges in ocean conservation and sustainable use” says editor Ben Boteler from RIFS. “As we move closer to 2030, the book will be a source of ideas and motivation for early-career students as well as seasoned professionals, and we hope it will remain a source of inspiration for many years to come.”

Publication:

Neumann, B., Diz, D. und Boteler, B.: The Elgar Companion to Ocean Governance and the Sustainable Development Goals, Cheltenham/ Northampton, Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd., April 2026. ISBN: 978 1 80392 356 7.