114th Edition
Hi everyone!
There are a lot of announcements coming out of COP30, so I’m going to balance those out over the next few newsletters.
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News
A new report by World Resources Institute shows that 92% of coastal and island nations’ 2025 climate plans now include ocean actions, but notes that only 12% target transformative measures, indicating vast untapped potential in the ocean-climate nexus.
Dutch wave-energy startup Weco has raised €600K in seed funding to advance its “turn waves into watts” converter technology and prepare for its open-sea prototype demonstrations.
The UNFCCC’s “Blue Package: Plan to Accelerate Ocean-Based Climate Solutions” presents a global roadmap for scaling ocean and coastal ecosystem strategies, such as blue carbon, marine renewables, and nature-based interventions, by leveraging partnerships, finance, and innovation to advance climate mitigation and adaptation aligned with Sustainable Development Goals.
A five-meter wave-propelled autonomous surface vessel, the AutoNaut “Pioneer,” has been deployed by Plymouth Marine Laboratory in Plymouth Sound as part of the MARCO‑BOLO project, collecting plankton imagery and eDNA samples to demonstrate how uncrewed technology can revolutionize cost-effective marine biodiversity monitoring.
Scientists warn that deep-sea mining could significantly disrupt the marine food web by introducing nutrient-poor waste plumes that may starve zooplankton and threaten larger fisheries and ecosystems.
Flocean has added Xylem Inc. as a strategic investor and extended its Series A funding to USD $22.5 million, positioning the company to commercialize the world’s first subsea desalination plant and scale its lower-cost, lower-energy technology globally.
Opportunities
The COP Special Envoy for Oceans is seeking innovative initiatives that tackle the climate crisis through coastal and marine solutions. Learn more here and apply by November 21st.
Apply to the first Nordic accelerator for the blue economy by December 5th.
The Gulf of Maine Research Institute has opened applications for the BlueTech Boost, which is a 10-week hybrid incubator program. Applications are due on December 12th.
OceanHub Africa has opened applications for the 7th cohort of their accelerator program, which will be reviewed on a rolling basis. The first intake of the year (2026) begins in March.
Applications are open for the Great Lakes Blue Tech Challenge. Apply here.
Applications are open for call for projects issued to the scientific community throughout the European Economic Area (EEA) on the topic of Ocean and Coastal Ecosystems.
Hatch Blue, an aquaculture and alternative seafood investor, is looking for startups to join their accelerator program, in which they will invest $75,000 in each successful applicant.
Apply to Katapult’s Ocean Accelerator program that is designed to guide founders through complex entrepreneurial issues, add structure, and help raise a startup’s next round.
Fair Carbon has launched a Blue Carbon Academy that aims to help with the fine-tuning of the design of a Blue Carbon project.
Join the Blue Growth Community to get access to opportunities, expertise, and connections as an innovator.
Events
All of the COP30 Ocean Pavilion events can be found here.
Here, Carbon to Sea has highlighted the COP30 events focused on ocean-based carbon removal.
TMA BlueTech is hosting a series of events throughout the month of November until November 20th, the details of which can be found here.
The Ocean Nexus is having a webinar on “Communicating Environmental Justice and Social Equity in the Ocean Context” on November 19th.
AltaSea is having an open house in LA for “Blue Robotics - Building the future of Marine Robotics” on November 22nd.
On December 2nd-3rd, the Ocean Frontier Institute will be hosting “CONVERGE CDR Forum: Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal in Canada”. Register here.
Carbon to Sea is hosting a webinar on December 4th on “Understanding Latest Environmental Safety Research for OAE”.
The 7th World Conference for Marine Biodiversity will be taking place in Belgium 17-20 November 2026. You can register here.
Learning
This paper presents a systematic review of marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) monitoring research, revealing major gaps in standardized indicators and verification methods that limit accurate quantification of CO₂ removal and environmental impacts, and offering recommendations to strengthen measurement frameworks essential for scaling credible mCDR deployment.
Plymouth Marine Laboratory’s blog post highlights how emerging research on deep-sea vortex dynamics is uncovering altered plankton distributions and circulation changes in the North Atlantic—signaling new insights into ocean ecosystem shifts under climate stress.
In the latest episode of the SPRingBoard Environmental Law Podcast, they discuss permitting and deployment of mCDR.
Companies doing the work
Ocean State Sensing is a consulting company that specializes in underwater thermal sensing and mapping, ocean engineering services, and project management.