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COP30 Programming

Calendar of Events

Pacific Solutions are Global Solutions

Format:Roundtable
Themes:Blue Economy & Finance, Ocean Solutions & Innovations
Lead Organization: Office of the Pacific Ocean Commissioner

The Blue Pacific has long been a global leader in ocean stewardship and climate diplomacy. This event will showcase Pacific-led ocean-climate solutions at national and regional levels, identify ongoing challenges to Pacific SIDS, and identify opportunities to partner and invest in Pacific solutions as global solutions through the region's 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific…

Listening to Nature: Harnessing eDNA and Storytelling for Ocean and Climate Action

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Life & Biodiversity, Ocean Voices
Lead Organization: Minderoo Foundation

This interactive session brings science and storytelling together to explore how we can better listen to the ocean. Featuring films and discussion on environmental DNA, biodiversity, and climate change, it highlights how creativity and innovation can reveal new ways of understanding and protecting marine life in a rapidly changing world.

Challenges for Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal in the High Seas

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Solutions & Innovations, Ocean, Carbon & Climate
Lead Organization: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

To stem the tide of the global climate crisis, we need to shift away from our fossil fuel-based economies. But this is not enough. We must also develop methods to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Because of its large capacity for storing carbon, marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) must be considered, including in the…

Accelerating Blue Action: Ocean Pathway to a Pacific COP31

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Life & Biodiversity, Ocean Solutions & Innovation
Lead Organization: Office of the Pacific Ocean Commissioner

The Blue Pacific has repeatedly conveyed to the world the vital importance of the ocean to its peoples – their identity, culture and livelihoods. Since UNFCCC COP23, the Pacific has stepped up advocacy to leverage the consideration of the ocean-climate nexus within the UNFCCC Processes and continues to build alignment between ocean-climate-biodiversity challenges. This panel…

The One Ocean Science Congress : Science at the UN Ocean Conference to make the difference

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Justice & Equity, Sustainable Ocean Resources
Lead Organization: IFREMER

The One Ocean Science Congress organized by IFREMER and CNRS in June 2025 in Nice, France, was the first ever UN Ocean Conference Special Event dedicated to Science. Representing the global community of ocean scientists committed to truth, knowledge and the common good, the OOSC delivered vibrant recommendations to heads of State and civil society,…

Blue Carbon Collaboration: Sharing Japan’s Coastal Solutions with Asia and Beyond (Including Marine CDR Pathways)

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Solutions & Innovations, Ocean, Carbon & Climate
Lead Organization: Ocean Policy Research Institute, Sasakawa Peace Foundation

Macroalgal ecosystems—especially seaweed beds, kelp forests, seaweed farms, and mangroves—are fast-cycling coastal carbon engines. As nature-led, low-risk climate-repair options, they require rigorous MRV and lifecycle checks, and should be assessed alongside other climate interventions and solutions. Together with our global partners, its an effort to demonstrate how these different climate solutions could be assessed and…

Ethical Pathways Ocean Solutions: Guiding Principles for Responsible Climate Intervention Research

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Solutions & Innovations, Ocean, Carbon & Climate
Lead Organization: American Geophysical Union

The ocean plays a vital role in regulating Earth's climate, yet new scientific approaches to address climate change in marine environments raise complex ethical, governance, and equity concerns. This panel explores how AGU's Ethical Framework for Climate Intervention Research can guide responsible ocean-based research, emphasizing justice, transparency, inclusive engagement, and ecological integrity in both science…

Neptune Mission: Navigating the High Seas from Nice to Belém

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Life & Biodiversity, Ocean Solutions & Innovation
Lead Organization: Neptune Mission

The event introduces the Neptune Mission - a new global initiative launched at UNOC3 to accelerate ocean exploration and support its sustainable governance. Focusing on Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, Neptune brings together research fleets, scientific institutions, and philanthropic partners. The purposes are to advance ocean observations, data sharing, and capacity building, underpin the High Seas Treaty,…

Funding Strategies to Promote the Science We Need for the Ocean We Want

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Solutions & Innovations, Sustainable Ocean Resources
Lead Organization: São Paulo Research Council - FAPESP

The cross-cutting role of oceans in promoting sustainability, including the ocean-climate nexus, relies heavily on scientific foundations that need strengthening and diversification. This requires sustained and innovative funding schemes tailored to specific needs. The panel will bring together globally relevant institutions to share the challenges and strategies for promoting the science we need, both during…

Protecting Ocean Ecosystems: Marine Protected Areas Essential Piece in Climate Change Resilience

Format:Panel
Themes:Blue Resilience & Adaptation, Ocean Life & Biodiversity
Lead Organization: Minderoo Foundation

This session explores how Marine Protected Areas safeguard climate sinks, protect biodiversity, and build resilience in a changing ocean. Through examples of leadership and collaboration, it highlights how protection of marine ecosystems supports climate regulation and ocean health.

Top 5 Ocean Action Items to Watch at COP30

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Justice & Equity, Ocean Solutions & Innovation
Lead Organization: Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego

In this student-led panel, Scripps Institution of Oceanography researchers will share their perspectives on the most pressing issues facing our ocean and what we would like to see come out of COP30. Drawing on diverse backgrounds in oceanography, marine biology, chemistry and climate science, the panelists will highlight the most urgent issues that demand attention…

Tides of Collaboration: Safeguarding Ocean Climate Science Amid Policy Shifts

Format:Panel
Themes:Blue Resilience & Adaptation, Ocean, Carbon & Climate
Lead Organization: American Geophysical Union (AGU)

As U.S. climate policy shifts, researchers and institutions worldwide are stepping up to sustain momentum. This panel highlights efforts to preserve the scientific foundation of climate resilience, including a new AGU–AMS journal initiative and U.S. contributions to the IPCC AR7. It underscores the critical role of international collaboration and scientific continuity in advancing global climate…

Elevating Voices: Co-Designing Research with Critical Communities for Science-Policy Impact

Format:Roundtable
Themes:Ocean Justice & Equity, Ocean, Carbon & Climate
Lead Organization: Ocean Frontier Institute

Co-designing projects with critical partners can enable projects to be conducted equitably, align with interdisciplinary priorities, and involve communities while disseminating science to help decision-making and technical/social innovation. This open roundtable will bring together practitioners across industry, science, policy, and communities to discuss mechanisms to enhance co-design pathways for ocean-climate solutions such as ocean renewable…

Measuring What Matters: Ocean Metrics for a Nature- and People-Positive Energy Transition

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Life & Biodiversity, Ocean Solutions & Innovations
Lead Organization: Renewables Grid Initiative (RGI)

Offshore wind and electricity grids are vital to tripling global renewable energy, but they must advance in harmony with ocean life and coastal communities. This session, organised by GINGR, the Global Initiative for Nature, Grids and Renewables, explores how shared, science-based ocean metrics can help governments, industry, and financiers align offshore renewables with Nature- and…

Aligning Science, Policy, and Safeguards for Ocean-based Carbon Removal (oCDR)

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Solutions & Innovations, Ocean, Carbon & Climate
Lead Organization: Carbon to Sea Initiative

The ocean is profoundly affected by climate change and a source of solutions. To stay within 1.5°C, the IPCC has confirmed that carbon removal is needed. Ocean scientists, policy experts, and government representatives will discuss how to align scientific research with robust safeguards for oCDR. The conversation will review emerging monitoring frameworks and policies, and…

Scaling Land & Ocean Carbon Sequestration through Blue Economy & Finance

Format:Panel
Themes:Blue Economy & Finance, Ocean, Carbon & Climate
Lead Organization: NOW Partners Foundation

This event will explore how soil- and marine-based carbon sequestration solutions can be scaled and financed across agriculture, forestry, and ocean-based approaches. With the blue economy emerging as one of the fastest-growing sectors worldwide, the discussion will focus on designing financial mechanisms that support sustainable ocean initiatives, address loss and damage needs, and incentivize private-sector…

Integrating Cryosphere Science into Nature-Based Climate Strategies to Enhance Ocean Resilience

Format:Panel
Themes:Forest to Sea, Ocean Solutions & Innovations
Lead Organization: Ocean Policy Research Institute, Sasakawa Peace Foundation (OPRI-SPF), Japan

Accelerating loss of ice, glaciers, snow, and permafrost is raising seas, disrupting circulation, deepening acidification, and fueling extremes. In our session we are trying to traces these ocean impacts and converts evidence into COP30 policy pathways—adaptation and the GGA, Article 6, and Loss & Damage—braiding insights from the Arctic, Himalaya, and South America to spark…

Brazilian Stories: From the Forest to the Sea

Format:Panel
Themes:Blue Resilience & Adaptation, Forest to Sea
Lead Organization: The Pulitzer Center

The interconnection between the Amazon Basin and the ocean is not always clear or widely reported, but many researchers, journalists and local communities are starting to join the dots. Join us for a discussion moderated by The Pulitzer Center's ocean editor and fellow reporters who have covered mangroves and pollution in Brazil, academics who are…

Research for Sustainable Ocean-Based Carbon Dioxide Removal

Format:Roundtable
Themes:Ocean Solutions & Innovations, Ocean, Carbon & Climate
Lead Organization: GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel

To limit global warming, greenhouse-gas emissions need to be reduced drastically. To balance hard-to-abate emissions, a range of marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) approaches are envisaged. They can also contribute to Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) – most specifically as part of the Blue NDC Challenge – and other goals addressed at COP30. The event discusses…

Charting the Course: Collaborating for Marine Biodiversity and Ocean Health

Format:Panel
Themes:Ocean Life & Biodiversity, Ocean Solutions & Innovations
Lead Organization: Sustainable Shipping Initiative (SSI)

What will it take to turn ambition into action for ocean health? This COP30 panel brings together leaders from shipping, government, finance, science, and conservation to explore the ideas, investments, and partnerships driving change. Our panel will share how collaboration, innovation, and accountability can protect marine biodiversity and steer global shipping toward a sustainable, resilient…

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