Blue Economics aims to quantify the real cost of destructive fishing and develop new ways of directing capital at scale towards ocean protection and restoration. The unit supports the delivery of Blue Marine’s domestic and international projects and pushes forward systemic change through thought leadership on innovative finance.
In 2025, we worked with the governments of Namibia, Barbados, and the Dutch Caribbean, hosting workshops for civil servants on natural capital accounting and sustainable finance. The sessions led to the development of the first natural capital accounts for Barbados, supporting the island in its marine spatial planning process.
Following a workshop in the Caribbean attended by governments from nine different islands, we conducted an in-depth analysis of the potential of a regional cruise fee across our project countries. The work is being used to help develop a sustainable finance plan for Curaçao and its neighbouring islands, to support the designation and implementation of their 30×30 commitments.
In the UK, the work of Blue Economics focused on exposing the provision of harmful fuel subsidies within the fisheries sector. We co-authored the ‘Four Horsemen of the UK Fisheries Apocalypse’ to highlight the way that existing policies are facilitating the degradation of the UK’s marine environment and coastal communities.
In the Solent, we continue to support the development of some of the world’s first marine biodiversity credits through publications, methodology developments and community engagement.
