UN Ocean Decade Opens Call for Decade Actions No. 10/2025 Focused on Science-Policy-Society Integration

As the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021–2030), known as the Ocean Decade, moves into its second half, UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) has officially opened Call for Decade Actions No. 10/2025, inviting global initiatives that strengthen the science-policy-society nexus for sustainable ocean management and community well-being.

In line with its vision, the science we need the ocean we want, the Ocean Decade offers a global framework to coordinate governments, scientists, industry, civil society and coastal communities to co-design and deliver transformative solutions in 10 Ocean Decade Challenges. Decade Actions are still at the core of this mission, converting ocean science into practiceable policies that increase marine ecosystem protection, climate resilience, and the well-being of communities.

The introduction of this tenth Call is amidst a period of international momentum of ocean governance and marine and maritime concerns enjoy increased political and social priority across the world. One significant landmark in this process has been the 2025 UN Ocean Conference in Nice, France, where the Ocean Decade is a key player in making science the heart of world ocean action; investing in actions such as enhanced ocean mapping and new funding and capacity building programmes.

This wave augers well with the future adoption of the BBNJ Agreement (Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction), an historic international treaty that is going to be adopted into force in January 2026, having taken almost 20 years of deliberations. The agreement will spans the entire ocean and half of the Earth surface, meaning that it will cover areas beyond the national jurisdiction, which will be very beneficial in terms of data on the ocean and research and knowledge created during the Ocean Decade Actions.

In the future, the 2027 Ocean Decade Conference in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is being already prepared as a flagship event that is likely to help global action on the ocean go faster and create the long-term legacy of the Decade. Prior to the conference, the Ocean Decade will progressively keep science, policy and society together and engage more underrepresented regions and communities.

Based on the priorities of the Barcelona Statement, the new Call for Decade Actions No. 10/2025 aims to identify initiatives that would respond to urgent ocean problems and strengthen the collaboration between science, policymakers, and society. The Call is based on the success of the Call in 2016 that received close to 200 submissions by institutions in 53 countries and works towards improving coordination between endorsed Ocean Decade Programmes.

Submissions to the Call will be open between 15 October 2025 to  31 January 2026 and will be based on three key elements, namely Expressions of Interest to new Decade Programmes, project proposals under existing endorsed Programmes, and financial or in-kind contributions to Ocean Decade implementation.

In 2017, the UN General Assembly declared the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, which is organized by Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO. It has an overall mission to restore the deterioration of the health of the oceans; this is achieved through the development of science and the establishment of partnerships to provide sustainable and science-based solutions in line with the 2030 Agenda of Sustainable development.

As the maritime world and policymakers, researchers, and coastal actors grow progressively more interdependent, the recent Call for Decade Actions is another essential move towards a more resilient, productive, and sustainably managed global ocean.

Source: UNESCO – UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development