Rodrigo Soares on Unsplash
Connecting Ocean Dots in 2023
Ted Janulis, Investable Oceans
The oceans are vast and touch many disciplines. One of our 2023 goals at Investable Oceans is to help connect dots between different areas of expertise and practice. There’s huge blue gains to be had when we collectively reach beyond our ocean “day jobs” and look for ways to collaborate with those operating in adjacent spaces.🌊 🌊 🌊
Here are 5 pairs of dots for a start:
1 Ocean & Climate:
Big progress here in 2022, COP 27 events being a great example. Clearer now for many that you can’t fix one without the other, especially since the climate scourge of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions also fuel two existential ocean threats: warming and acidification.
2 Biodiversity & Ocean/Climate:
We now have a third ball to juggle, adding biodiversity to the ocean/climate nexus. Like ocean and climate, all three are intertwined, so acting on all in concert allows for more integrated, powerful solutions. Encouraging news: targets like COP 15’s “30 x30” goal provide a sturdy linkage since they address protecting both land and sea.
3 Land & Sea, continued:
While we build ocean dedicated funds and investment programs, we should draw attention to the continuum of land and sea based opportunities. One example: aquaculture as a sea based form of sustainable agriculture. Private equity and venture firms are already investing in “ocean themes” like food security, decarbonization and new materials - let’s help them put more blue capital to work.
4 Donor Funding & Market Based Investing:
Both of these capital sources are critical, but particularly powerful when combined since many of the ocean’s challenges and opportunities reside in the space in between, variously described as blended finance, impact, concessionary or catalytic. Organizations like Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA) are working at this interface, creating the ocean capital markets of tomorrow.
5 Corporations & Entrepreneurs:
A growing list of corporations have been supporting and encouraging blue economy startups, from energy to consumer goods to transportation. These connections are forged through perseverance, creativity and often a bit of luck. Widening and strengthening the paths for collaboration between these two ecosystems will accelerate the uptake of ocean/climate solutions into the global economy
Those are a few example of connecting ocean dots. We know there are many other dots to be joined, and would love to hear your thoughts on the topic!
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