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© 2025 Island Innovation. All rights reserved.

    News

    Curated stories and analysis from islands and sustainability leaders worldwide.

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    Showing 9 of 237 news items in Ocean & Biodiversity
    Eco-tourism operator in Okinawa bets on corals as carbon absorber
    Ocean & BiodiversityMay 7, 2026

    Eco-tourism operator in Okinawa bets on corals as carbon absorber

    Excerpt and Photo credit from japantimes.co.jp About 10 minutes after departing Naha Port on a clear day, the seascape below a boat reveals a vivid spread of soft corals and schools of tropical fish gliding through the water. Before departure, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the water measured 407.3 parts per million, but at a site where soft corals carpet the seabed, the CO2 level dropped into the 360-ppm range. Marine Tourism Development, an eco-tourism operator based in Naha, has launched a new kind of tour that measures underwater CO2 concentrations in real time while passengers observe the seafloor through a glass-bottomed boat. By “visualizing” otherwise invisible data, the company hopes to encourage visitors to think of climate change mitigation as a personal issue. The initiative — combining sightseeing, environmental conservation and CO2 reduction — is drawing attention as a model of what's known as blue tourism.

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    Storms in the Southern Ocean are producing more rain – and the consequences could be global
    Ocean & BiodiversityDecember 15, 2025

    Storms in the Southern Ocean are producing more rain – and the consequences could be global

    Excerpt from theconversation.com If you ever find yourself on Macquarie Island – a narrow, wind-lashed ridge halfway between Tasmania and Antarctica – the first thing you’ll notice is the wildlife. Elephant seals sprawl across dark beaches. King penguins march up mossy slopes. Albatrosses circle over vast, treeless uplands. But look more closely and the island is changing. Slopes are becoming boggier. Iconic megaherbs such as Pleurophyllum and Stilbocarpa are retreating. For years, scientists suspected the culprit was increasing rainfall. Our new research, published in Weather and Climate Dynamics, confirms this – and shows the story goes far beyond one remote UNESCO World Heritage site.

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    Reef islands closure for nesting birds
    Ocean & BiodiversityDecember 15, 2025

    Reef islands closure for nesting birds

    Excerpt from detsi.qld.gov.au Four islands in the northern Great Barrier Reef Coast Marine Park are now closed to campers and day-trippers as part of an annual push to ensure migratory birds can nest and raise their chicks without being disturbed. Woody Island, Sisters Island and Taylor Cay will remain closed until 1 March 2026, while Eagle Island will be closed until 1 April 2026. The Department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation has asked boaties and campers to respect the annual breeding season closures.

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    Arctic fjord on Svalbard in Norway found to absorb more greenhouse gases than it emits: Study
    Ocean & BiodiversityDecember 15, 2025

    Arctic fjord on Svalbard in Norway found to absorb more greenhouse gases than it emits: Study

    Excerpt from aa.com.tr A new Norwegian study has found that Kongsfjorden, a fjord on the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard, absorbs more greenhouse gases than it releases, NRK news reported on Friday. Researchers from the Norwegian Polar Institute, using new nitrogen and carbon measurement models, discovered that the fjord acts as a natural carbon sink. Their study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, combines years of water sampling with advanced ocean models to estimate the fjord’s “nitrogen and carbon budget.” “Kongsfjorden takes up more carbon and nitrogen than it emits. If this pattern is repeated in other fjords, it’s good news for both the climate and marine ecosystems,” said Pedro Duarte, senior researcher at the Norwegian Polar Institute and lead author of the study. Scientists describe Kongsfjorden, located near the research town of Ny-Alesund, as a “living laboratory” that changes faster than most fjords in the Arctic.

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    EU and Cook Islands renew their sustainable fisheries partnership
    Ocean & BiodiversityDecember 15, 2025

    EU and Cook Islands renew their sustainable fisheries partnership

    Photo credit: Michael / Stock.Adobe.com via Oceans-and-Fisheries.ec.europa.eu Excerpt from oceans-and-fisheries.ec.europa.eu The European Union and the Cook Islands have signed a new protocol to the sustainable fisheries partnership agreement for a duration of 7 years (2025-2032). This renewed protocol will grant the European Union fleet operating in the Pacific Ocean access to some of the richest and healthiest tuna stocks worldwide, for a total of 40 fishing days per year. In return, the EU financial support will continue to foster the sustainable development of the fisheries sector and blue economy in Cook Islands.

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    Rethinking the Indo-Pacific as a single ocean system
    Ocean & BiodiversityDecember 15, 2025

    Rethinking the Indo-Pacific as a single ocean system

    Excerpt from lowyinstitute.org Locals sometimes get so used to the scenery that they forget to marvel at the sights. This isn’t just true for people that live in beautiful holiday spots. The same tendency can hamper analysts focused on international affairs. It’s easy, for example, to see the Indo-Pacific as a scatter of distant landmasses and island chains. Yet an unexpected work trip to France recently offered me a clearer view of the region’s richness and potential. A few weeks ago I was privileged to join the 5th International Session for the Indo-Pacific at the invitation of France’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Institute for Advanced Studies in National Defence. In a week-long program alongside 54 senior military and government officials, academics and policy experts from across the region – from East Africa to the Pacific Islands – I was struck not by our diversity but by how quickly a shared sense of purpose took shape.

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    Voyage Into the Art of Finding One’s Way at Sea
    Ocean & BiodiversityNovember 27, 2025

    Voyage Into the Art of Finding One’s Way at Sea

    Photo credit: Chewy C. Lin via nytimes.com Excerpt from nytimes.com When leaving an atoll of the Marshall Islands, in the Pacific, Alson Kelen prefers to sail after sunset. It’s like navigating with his eyes closed — allowing him to feel the up, down and sideways movement of every swell. “That’s how the Marshallese navigate,” he said. “They navigate with their stomach.” For thousands of years, Marshallese navigators used traditional wave-piloting techniques to travel vast expanses of ocean. Wave piloting is the art of feeling and reading the swells and waves that hit and emanate from the region’s atolls. After a lifetime of studying these and other patterns, navigators pass a test devised by their chiefs to become a ri meto, or person of the sea.

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    Madeira-Tore and Gorringe Bank Marine Reserve: Portugal’s Landmark Ocean Conservation Effort
    Ocean & BiodiversityNovember 27, 2025

    Madeira-Tore and Gorringe Bank Marine Reserve: Portugal’s Landmark Ocean Conservation Effort

    Excerpt from madinfo.pt In 2025, Portugal unveiled a monumental step forward in marine conservation with the creation of the Madeira-Tore and Gorringe Bank Marine Reserve. Covering nearly 200,000 square kilometers, this expansive marine protected area (MPA) ranks as the largest in Europe and significantly advances Portugal’s commitment to safeguard its ocean ecosystems. Situated in the North-East Atlantic, this marine reserve stretches from the Algarve coast near Cape St. Vincent to the Madeira archipelago, encompassing ecologically rich seamounts, deep ocean ridges, and diverse marine habitats. This initiative represents a critical milestone toward Portugal’s ambitious goal of protecting 30% of its marine waters by 2026, well in advance of the global 2030 biodiversity targets.

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    Indonesian islanders plant mangroves, seek justice as seas rise
    Ocean & BiodiversityNovember 27, 2025

    Indonesian islanders plant mangroves, seek justice as seas rise

    Excerpt from context.news PARI ISLAND, Indonesia - Under the scorching midday sun, Asmania and several women from Indonesia's Pari Island walk toward Rengge Beach, a shoreline slowly receding from the rising sea, to plant dozens of young mangrove seedlings. The Women's Group of Pari Island hopes the mangroves, which also absorb planet-heating greenhouse gas emissions, will protect the coastline from worsening tidal floods, rising sea levels and stronger waves. "The sea is not like it used to be. It's hotter, rougher, and it scares us," said Asmania, a mother of three, as she dug with her hands into the sand beneath the shallow sea. Home to just 1,000 residents, Pari Island near the capital Jakarta is at the centre of a globally significant court case over the impact of climate change on its beaches. Asmania, who goes by a single name, and three other residents sued cement giant Holcim in Switzerland in 2023, accusing it of failing to cut emissions as their island faced repeated floods. Cement production contributes about 7% of the world's total carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, according to the Global Cement and Concrete Association. A court in the town of Zug, where Holcim has its headquarters, has not yet ruled on whether to hear the case.

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