IUCN and France renew their commitment for ocean conservation – launching 'Nice-Abu Dhabi Roadmap' at UN oceans conference

The signing, held at La Baleine at the Palais des Expositions de Nice and convened in strategic partnership by the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD) and the Republic of France, featured the official announcement of the Nice – Abu Dhabi Declaration, bridging outcomes from UNOC3 with the upcoming IUCN World Conservation Congress (Abu Dhabi, October 2025), the UN Climate Change Conference in (Belem, Brazil, November 2025) and the UN Water Conference (UAE, December 2026). 

Since 2005, ocean conservation and the sustainable use of marine resources have been at the heart of the France-IUCN Partnership. Building on this foundation, the new declaration outlines a shared vision to deepen collaboration through the One Ocean Partnership, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals, the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and the Paris Agreement, and to sustain the momentum of ocean action beyond UNOC3.

"After UNOC3, we are accountable to the commitments made in Nice. The Ocean Relay has affirmed that the ocean agenda is continuous, and it needs to be carried forward through sustained commitment, credible, science-based action, and collaborative partnerships across sectors” said Dr Grethel Aguilar, IUCN Director General. “With only five years to achieve the 30x30 target, partnerships like the one that underscores this Manifesto are vital to keep ambition high and step-up actions to protect oceans. IUCN and France have been allies for decades, and we are pleased to continue working together to advance the mandates forged here and translate them into coordinated, equitable pathways to transformative change, as we look towards the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi, and beyond.” 

“After the One Ocean Summit in 2022, and as co-host of the third United Nations Ocean Conference this week in Nice, France remains strongly committed to protecting the ocean as a crucial climate regulator and reservoir of invaluable biodiversity,” HE Barbara Pompili, France Ambassador for the Environment, said. “IUCN is a long-standing partner and a key ally in preserving ocean resources. Through this Nice – Abu Dhabi Declaration, we reaffirm together our shared ambition to safeguard the ocean.”

The agreement, signed by Dr Aguilar and HE Barbara Pompili, sees France and IUCN reaffirm their shared ambition to scale up transformative ocean action by 2030, focusing on seven priority areas.

These are:

• Achieving the 30x30 target to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030.

• Supporting effective ocean governance, notably through a High Ambition Coalition for Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ).

• Advancing ocean science and knowledge, including through the IUCN Red List and related tools.

• Launching a global coalition for the protection of marine species.

• Promoting an ambitious international treaty on plastic pollution.

• Advocating for cryosphere protection in the face of climate change impacts.

• Scaling up ocean finance, including through the development of a global One Ocean Finance Facility.

The declaration emphasises the need for stronger political and scientific collaboration, rooted in sound data, to preserve the ocean as a shared common good. It highlights the ocean’s vital role as a climate regulator, a biodiversity reservoir, and a global economic engine, while stressing the increasing threats posed by pollution, overfishing, and climate change.