138th Edition
Hi everyone!
This girl needed a break after the NYC OceanTech Summit, so it was time to take a week off of Seaking Blue (and LinkedIn). But we’re back!
To all those who attended our summit, thank you so much for taking time out of your schedule to spend the afternoon with us. My least favorite part of hosting the summit is that I don’t have the time to talk to each person that attends, but if you are in NYC, don’t hesitate to reach out to get coffee sometime!
Alright, let’s get back to it.
News
The Switzer Foundation-supported “Engaging Communities, Advancing Healthy and Resilient West Coast Ocean Futures” initiative aims to strengthen community participation in regional ocean governance by embedding a California representative within the West Coast Ocean Science Action Agenda to elevate local priorities and inform science-based decision-making for coastal resilience and ocean health.
Swiss researcher Roman Lehner is pioneering new methods to fabricate, detect, and monitor micro- and nanoplastics, generating critical data on one of the ocean’s most pervasive yet least visible pollution challenges.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has published their report on the State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2026.
Advances in hydrokinetic turbine technology and global current mapping are revealing both significant energy potential in systems like the Gulf Stream and Agulhas Current and key engineering challenges around efficiency, cost, and environmental impact that must be overcome before ocean current energy can become a viable large-scale power source.
Positioning ocean innovation as a defining driver of the next phase of the blue economy, this Economist Impact article argues that advances across marine energy, climate resilience, ocean data systems, and sustainable infrastructure are converging to transform how societies use and manage ocean resources, while also highlighting the governance and investment challenges that will shape whether these technologies scale responsibly.
Opportunities
The Offshore Wind Innovation Hub in New York has opened their 2026 call for innovators for their Innovator Program. Applications are open until July 27th.
UC San Diego’s StartBlue Accelerator has opened applications for their immersive fall program.
The newest iteration of UCSC’s Blue Pioneer’s program has been announced, this year taking place as a two week immersion acceleration in Zanzibar. Check here for more details.
Canada’s first blue economy accelerator Blue Action Canada has opened applications for their 2026 cohort.
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
The 11th Our Ocean Conference is taking place in Mombasa and Kilifi Counties, Kenya, on 16-18 June 2026.
If you happen to be at this conference, Ocean Visions is hosting an event entitled “Addressing Climate Tipping Point Risks and Strengthening Ocean Resilience” on June 17th.
Fair Carbon is hosting a webinar on the topic of “Integrated Mangrove Aquaculture and blue carbon projects: A good match?” on June 17th at 9AM ET.
On June 17th, Braid Theory is hosting a “Port of LA Harbor Tour and Coastal Resilience Scorecard Workshop”.
SeaAhead’s Pilot Showcase, focused on coastal resilience and coastal asset protection, will be hosted in Boston June 24th-25th.
The Blue Institute’s BX6 Blue Excelerator Demo Day will be hosted virtually on June 25th at 10AM ET.
The 7th World Conference for Marine Biodiversity will be taking place in Belgium 17-20 November 2026. You can register here.
Learning
In this chapter of the United Nations’ Third World Ocean Assessment, it is argued that achieving healthy and sustainable ocean futures requires embedding equity, justice, human rights, Indigenous and local knowledge, and inclusive governance into ocean decision-making, recognizing that the benefits and burdens of ocean use are distributed unevenly across communities and generations.
Examining the landmark Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement, this Ocean Nexus blog post argues that achieving procedural justice in high seas governance will depend not only on who participates in decision-making, but also on whether historically marginalized states, Indigenous peoples, and knowledge systems have meaningful influence over the processes that shape ocean conservation and resource use.
You can catch the recording of last month’s Ocean Nexus webinar, entitled “Advancing Equity Through Indigenous Governance: Fisheries in Alaska”, here.