NICE, FRANCE (JUNE 11, 2025) – At the 2025 UN Ocean Conference in Nice, a bold new global commitment was launched to center coastal women as leaders in marine conservation and sustainable livelihoods. The Women Ocean Guardians commitment was signed by leading governments including Costa Rica, Grenada, and the UK as well as a roster of international partners – all pledging to further gender equity in oceans work.

“For me, as an Indigenous marine woman, this global commitment to women-led initiatives is profoundly transformative,” said Wildres Jennifer Rodríguez Wood. “It's critical that the Women Ocean Guardians initiative expands globally because women in coastal and marine areas everywhere face universal challenges, including violations of basic rights, lack of access to healthcare, and unequal pay. This network empowers us to raise our voices, share our experiences, and contribute our vital knowledge to our communities and the world, ensuring we are recognized as agents of change.”

The commitment outlines concrete steps to ensure women are not only at the table, but co-leading in ocean governance. It calls for inclusive national policies, gender-responsive marine finance, and programs that elevate women as architects of ocean solutions.

“This is what transformation looks like – governments, communities, and funders coming together to back women on the frontlines of conservation,” said Pamela Castillo, Marine 30x30 Director at WCS. “There is no path to achieving the Global Biodiversity Framework and SDG 14 without the vision, the knowledge, and leadership of the women who have long been guardians of the sea.”

3 governments and 20 organizations (listed here) signed onto the Women Ocean Guardians commitment, pledging to:

• Embed gender equity in national ocean and biodiversity plans
• Elevate women into decision-making roles across marine governance bodies
• Fund women-led conservation and climate-resilient livelihoods
• Build leadership, technical, and financial capacity among coastal women
• Track progress with transparent, equity-focused data and accountability systems

In a show of global support, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) announced the approval of a new $3.8M Women Ocean Guardians project. The GEF investment will be implemented through the CI-GEF Agency and delivered via the WCS 30x30 Ocean Accelerator – a WCS-led platform advancing area-based conservation and equity in ocean governance.

“The GEF, as a committed advocate for the vital leadership of women as stewards of a healthy planet for healthy people, and a dedicated supporter of the Women Ocean Guardians initiative since its inception, is proud to have followed through with our pledge to mobilize this important investment within a year,” said Dr. Fred Boltz, Head of Programming at the GEF.

The GEF’s commitment marks a pivotal moment for international efforts to recognize, resource, and scale women-led solutions to climate resilience and biodiversity loss in the ocean.

This global initiative builds on a growing regional movement. Since 2024, women leaders from 11 countries across Latin America and the Caribbean have rallied around the Women Ocean Guardians platform, pushing for structural reforms that will deliver more just and resilient ocean outcomes.

“Women’s voices on conservation and sustainable economic activities must be made visible if we want to achieve the 30x30 goal,” said Cindy Quesada, Minister of Women’s Affairs for Costa Rica. “With lived experience etched into their bodies and skin, they feel the effects of climate change more than anyone – and it is they who, at the local level, are adapting and protecting resources for future generations.”

Ministers and agency leaders echoed a shared belief: the future of our ocean depends on the leadership of women who have long safeguarded marine ecosystems, often without recognition or resources.

"I'm proud to publicly endorse the Call to Action and to join the UN Voluntary Commitment on women's leadership in ocean governance and Sustainable Blue Economies. These actions are more than policy alignment,” said UK Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Minister for Water and Flooding, Emma Hardy MP. “They are a reflection and a commitment to partnership grounded in equity, humility, and shared purpose." 

The global commitment was launched at a packed UNOC3 event co-hosted by WCS and Conservation International supported by the Costa Rica, United Kingdom, Global Gateway, and other partners.

“It’s time for women ocean guardians to be recognized as leaders capable of transforming the future trajectory of our ocean planet,” said Elena Finkbeiner, Director of Coastal Community Fisheries at Conservation International. “Their value and their voices have been made invisible for far too long, representing a missed opportunity for achieving our global conservation and sustainable development goals. Now is the time to come together and generate the momentum needed to dismantle the old paradigm.”

WCS acknowledges the generous support of the Thomas L. Kempner, Jr. Foundation for the Women Ocean Guardians initiative. This contribution, along with the valuable co-financing provided by key partners including the Oak Foundation, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Caribbean Biodiversity Fund (CBF), the Mesoamerican Reef Fund (MarFund), Fundecooperación, and Movilizatorio, has been essential in advancing the initiative’s mission to elevate women’s leadership in ocean conservation and governance.

Women Ocean Guardians is a public-private initiative that elevates women frontliners, de-siloing conservation and sustainable use, to participate in meaningful decision-making, transforming ocean governance for more resilient and sustainable outcomes. View the full commitment here. Sign on as a government, institution, or organization here.