A blog by HSA Strategy Advisor and EU Regional Coordinator Nathalie Rey
In the impressive venue of the iconic Grand Palais on Paris’s most famous street Le Champs Elysée, a small team of us from the High Seas Alliance attended the three day ChangeNOW conference from 31 March-1 April 2026. Hailed as “the world’s largest event of solutions for the planet”, the conference was certainly buzzing with inspiring events, stands and speakers on issues ranging from education, fashion, circular economy, tech and AI, health, art and culture, climate, cities to of course ocean and water. And the list of topics goes on!
Entering into the soaring and awe-inspiring glass world of the venue it certainly felt a million miles away from where most of High Seas Alliance team and its members were focusing on the critical and at times difficult PrepCom3 negotiations in New York to agree the Treaty’s key institutions and set-up ahead of its first Conference of Parties that will take place in January 2027.
HSA receives invitations to a lot of conferences, and we are mindful of our valued resources, impact and time. But when we received an invitation to speak on an ocean panel on the opening day of ChangeNow–a conference that is highlighting the key solutions for the planet–we felt it important to make sure the High Seas Treaty, and the opportunity it offers for protection, is given a voice during the meeting. It is important to step outside of our ocean echo-chambers and engage with new audiences. Hearing and learning from what others are doing, how the challenges they are encountering and how they are navigating them, gives essential food for thought for our own journey to ensuring effective protection of half the planet that makes up the High Seas.
The panel- Protecting the Ocean from the coast to the High Seas– brought together different voices and perspectives, and underlined clearly how important the ocean is for our lives. There is still a lot more work that needs to be done to protect it, both near to shore, but also far out at sea.
Rebecca- HSA’s Director- hot off the plane from New York, gave an update on where things are at with the High Seas Treaty, and how important it will be for us all to row together in ensuring this newest addition to international law is turned from a piece of paper to change in the water.
The panel also underlined starkly the importance of bridging the financing gap to support protecting at least 30% of the ocean by 2030. It has been estimated that US$15.8 billion is needed per year to deliver 30×30 on the ocean, but we are currently only spending US$1.2 billion, resulting in a gap of US$14.6 billion annually. When you consider the size of the global ocean and you put it into perspective of the size of the global economy at over US$120 trillion per year, this is small-fry compared to the sheer size of the ocean and the incredible services it provides us!
The focus on finance and the role of investors and the private sector was another key reason we felt it was important to attend the conference. It brings together a large number of finance players that are keen to see how their efforts can have an impact. With the new High Seas Treaty up and running, financing effective implementation is going to be key to its success. As President Whipps from Palau recently stressed: “Finance cannot be an afterthought”
While there is no agreed global estimate yet on what is needed for effective High Seas Treaty implementation, it is expected that financing needed to support developing countries’s efforts will likely be in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually, if not in the low billions. That is barely what is going to all of ocean conservation combined, so clearly a significant financing gap remains for High Seas protection.
High Seas Alliance supported by ChangeNOW teamed up with the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA) to organise an Action Group in the sidelines of the conference focusing on High Seas Treaty finance. Bringing together almost 20 people we tapped into these experts’ brains from the world of private and public finance, insurance, philanthropy and civil society to try to identify some viable pathways and opportunities on how the Treaty can build a robust financing arm.
Funding will need to come from multiple sources, with costs shared among countries, multilateral and environmental funds, the private sector, and philanthropy. Businesses- from finance and insurance to ocean-dependent industries- have a critical role to play in closing this gap.
While there is growing buzz around “innovative financing mechanisms” for High Seas protection, it’s worth asking what is truly innovative about ensuring that the industries relying most on the ocean contribute to its protection. Perhaps the real innovation lies not in the act of payment itself, but in shifting from a system that treats the ocean as a free resource to embedding its real value within business and financial systems- something that should be a given, seeing this is how our economies currently function.
A real question now isn’t whether companies should pay for their use of the ocean—it’s why they haven’t had to until now?!
The Action Group resulted in a fruitful discussion, but obviously this is not an issue that could be solved in 1.5 hours. However, there was agreement to continue working together and we look forward to working closely with our colleagues at ORRAA to explore feasible finance solutions as we move towards the High Seas Treaty’s first Conference of the Parties and beyond.
On the sidelines of ChangeNOW, at the beautiful vintage Automobile Club de France, SWEN Capital Partners and a group of European investors maximised the opportunity of having so many investors and change makers in one place, by organising a private luncheon event “Capital at the Tipping Point: From Sea to Soils to Systems” to discuss investing in climate action, soils and ocean. Rebecca opened the event with an inspiring lightning talk on the High Seas Treaty, introducing many of the 30 attendees to the issue for the first time, the success of the Treaty’s entry into force and the challenge ahead to turn it into equitable protection with adequate financing.
Beyond the organized meetings and panels, ChangeNOW was a great venue to meet new people, to hear inspiring personal stories and the great work that is happening by a bunch of committed people on so many different issues. Even though the headline at the moment feels doom and gloom, it is great to hear about the innovation and commitment, including the work of so many young people that are activated and ready to take on the world for good!
We were also very proud to have our one and only Rebecca Hubbard recognized as one of 26 women leaders in the Women for Change initiative. While Rebecca is the face of this recognition, it also reflects the collective strength of the High Seas Alliance, which has been shaped and driven by many inspiring women leaders over the years. A truly well-deserved acknowledgment!
In French there is a famous saying- “plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose”- the more things change the more they stay the same. Following the political momentum that has surrounded the High Seas Treaty, I feel confident this is not the script the Treaty will follow. In the coming months as we hurtle towards the first Conference of Parties, I hope the optimism and energy that made the Grand Palais buzz during ChangeNOW will be replicated in January in New York!