Global Scans · Life Below Water · Weekly Summary

In September 2015, 193 world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development. If these Goals are completed, it would mean an end to extreme poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030.
Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.

• [New] The One Ocean Partnership, which launched at COP 30, aims to mobilize $20 billion for coastal resilience, blue-carbon ecosystems, and ocean protection; create 20 million blue jobs worldwide; and restore 20 million hectares of marine ecosystems by 2030. Countercurrents
• [New] Microplastics could be impacting the oceans' ability to absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) which is critical for regulating Earth's temperature. The Times Of India
• [New] Water-walking robots might collect a million tons of ocean plastic by 2040. International Defense Security & Technology
• [New] Polymetallic nodules on the ocean floor could supply cobalt, nickel, and rare earths without cutting into terrestrial ecosystems, while critics echo calls for a global deep-sea mining ban until ecological impacts are clearer. Intelligent Living
• [New] Asia-Pacific is expected to be the fastest-growing region, with countries like China and India contributing significantly to the demand for marine lubricants. ReAnIn
• [New] Iceland has become the first country to classify the potential collapse of a major ocean current as an existential risk. Ocean Rising
• [New] Iceland has become the first nation to treat ocean current collapse as a national security threat. Ocean Rising
• [New] Each additional fraction of a degree increases the risk of more severe heatwaves, flooding, drought, sea-level rise and economic losses. Atlantic Renewables
• [New] A new climate report has raised alarm over the impact of rising sea levels, warning that 1.5 million Australians living in coastal areas will be at risk by 2050. Caliber.az
• [New] Ethiopia confronts the risk of renewed interstate warfare with Eritrea regarding Red Sea port access and border disputes. Foreign Affairs Forum
• [New] The U.S. capture of Venezuela's president, shifting Red Sea security dynamics, and rising Iran-related uncertainty are reshaping risk perceptions, even without major supply disruptions. oilprice.com
• [New] Recent developments in Yemen have raised Red Sea risk without producing a new attack at sea. oilprice.com
• [New] Red Sea risk does not stop at Yemen's coastline. oilprice.com
• [New] Iran's UAV and missile programs threaten U.S. and allied personnel in the Middle East and destabilize commercial shipping in the Red Sea. NCRI
• [New] Red Sea security risks pushed many carriers to reroute via the Cape of Good Hope, adding around 10-20 days to typical Asia-Europe sailings depending on service and port pair. TRADLINX Blogs
• [New] In 2026, strategic heterogeneity creates security risks in the Asia-Pacific region, driven by two areas of great geo-economic value: the China Sea and Southeast Asia. SpecialEurasia
• [New] India remains aware of the impact of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and of rising maritime risks in the Indo-Pacific, the South China Sea, and the Red Sea. OBSERVER RESEARCH FOUNDATION ( ORF )
• [New] Tibet, known as the 'Third Pole of the Earth,' supports national water management, sustains transboundary rivers such as the Mekong and Salween, and enables China to project influence in Central Asia. SpecialEurasia
• [New] Luck emphasized that the Chinese navy's focus will remain on the western Pacific and adjacent Indian Ocean areas, while Taiwan, a U.S. security partner supplied with advanced weapons, will continue to consume a significant portion of its resources. Newsweek
• [New] Over 3 billion people rely on the oceans for their livelihoods, and further showed the sustainability of the oceans to be under serious threat due to plastic and marine pollution, among other factors (ocean warming, eutrophication, acidification, and fishery collapse). PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] Nearly 10% of marine species are at risk of extinction, and at least 40% are feeling the impacts of climate change. Earth Island Journal
• [New] By 2030, a third of the ocean is genuinely off-limits to destruction. Ocean Rising
• [New] The World Trade Organization's Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies entered into force, prohibiting subsidies for illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing activities, which have long undermined sustainable fisheries management and threatened marine ecosystems. Project Syndicate

Last updated: 11 January 2026