The oceans cover approximately 70% of our planet’s surface and, together with our soils, forests, sky, fauna, and flora, constitute the world’s natural capital. The oceans also regulate the climate and sustain vital ecosystems, both at sea and on land. They are undoubtedly a vital natural resource and an important source of goods and services, but this resource is threatened by pressures related to human activities undertaken to take advantage of these goods and services, which threatens the survival of the planet and humanity. This threat encompasses a shift from the urgency of utilizing the vast natural resources of the oceans – estimated at an annual economic value of around €2 trillion – to a widely consensual concern about transforming the excessive use of these resources into more sustainable practices, with the emergence of the so-called Blue Economy, which is attracting increasing capital and policies, as it positions the ocean as one of the sources of opportunity and prosperity to be explored.

While a healthy ocean that underpins a sustainable Blue Economy requires adequate financing vehicles that manage, invest, align, and most importantly, account for achieving sustainable ocean health and governance, the rapid unsustainable growth currently occurring can and will lead to environmental risks and losses in this natural capital, eroding the ocean’s resource base and creating risks for civilization, as well as regulatory and market pressures. Within this shift, there is also good news, namely that the financial system is finally waking up to the idea that its decisions have a considerable impact on ocean health. As a major financier of ocean-related sectors such as shipping, fishing, coastal tourism, biotechnology, and marine renewable energy, among others, the responsibility to incorporate sustainable blue finance practices into its decision-making processes presents a unique opportunity to steer ocean industries towards sustainability and, in the long term, continue to leverage this asset.

However, the current gap is large: the historical mismatch between the objectives of nations, companies, and local communities regarding ocean-related economic activities; or the current operational subsidy schemes that encourage overexploitation; hinder the three main enabling conditions for the Blue Economy: environmental sustainability, resource availability, and economic viability. Currently, the latter are primarily lacking in infrastructure and talent, which significantly increases the financial risks for these sectors. Mitigating these risks would involve the use of public funds: incentives for R&D and innovation for science and businesses, in order to improve technology adoption and attract talent that will drive private investment and make the Blue Economy thrive.

Marlos Silva
Director of R&D Projects at Sonae MC
Vice-President of B2E CoLAB