Release of the 2024-2025 Roadmap to Oceans and Climate Action (ROCA) Report

November 14, 2025: The Global Ocean Forum (GOF) is pleased to announce the release of the 2024-2025 edition of the Roadmap to Oceans and Climate Action report (ROCA Report), Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action.

The 2024-2025 ROCA Report is a collaborative, multi-organizational effort, involving 70 authors from 4 organizations, and serves as a crucial resource for party negotiators and non-Party stakeholder representatives attending UNFCCC COP30. The report comprehensively takes stock of progress in implementing the ocean and climate agenda at the COP, across other global policy platforms and processes, and through regional and national initiatives. The report identifies gaps in information and policy that require attention and provides recommendations for future action at a critical time for the ocean-climate nexus.

“COP30 brings a new era for climate progress, where we must shift from promises to action. The ocean is at the heart of this shift, and the report is an important tool for raising and driving forward ambition on ocean-climate action,” said the lead author of the report, Peter Ricketts, Acadia University and GOF.

Impacts of human-induced climate change have accelerated as global average temperatures continue to rise. Exceeding a global average temperature increase of 1.5ºC above pre-industrial levels in the near term will severely limit climate resilience development. There is growing public awareness and international recognition of the ocean as a critical life-support system for the planet, a fundamental regulator of the climate, and a central pillar of climate ambition. The report explores this pivotal role of the ocean in climate change.

“ROCA functions as a valuable transboundary document that helps scientists understand the state of the climate as it affects ocean policy, people and positive ocean action,” said report co-author Lisa Levin, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego.

“At COP30, civil society is championing ocean-based climate solutions through the Blue Package, to move from global ambition towards concrete implementation. The ROCA report reflects the diversity of stakeholders and initiatives committed to advancing the ocean-climate-biodiversity nexus,” said report co-author Loreley Picourt, Ocean & Climate Platform.

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Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: 2024-2025 (high-res version)
Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: 2024-2025 (low-res version)

Contact: Miriam Balgos (mbalgos@globaloceanforum.com), Global Ocean Forum

About: The Global Ocean Forum is an international, independent, non-profit organization whose mission is to promote good governance of the ocean, healthy marine ecosystems, and sustainable development. To learn more about the Global Ocean Forum, please visit https://globaloceanforum.com/

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Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: Reports of the Roadmap to Oceans and Climate Action (ROCA) Initiative

These reports comprise an annual series of assessments of ocean and climate science, policy, and action organized by the Roadmap to Ocean and Climate Action (ROCA) Initiative. Following the organization of the Strategic Action Roadmap to Oceans and Climate Action: 2016-2021, these progress reports address the following issues which must be addressed at all levels of policy as an inter-related “package” of issues, including, inter alia: recognizing the central role of oceans in climate; using ocean-based mitigation approaches (such as Blue Carbon, reducing air emissions from ships, renewable energy; carbon capture and storage); deploying a wide variety of adaptation measures, especially based on ecosystem approaches; fostering the low carbon Blue Economy; addressing the issues of human displacement; and providing adequate provision of financial flows and of capacity development.

Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: 2022-2023 (high-res version)
Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: 2022-2023 (low-res version)

Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: 2020-2021

Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: 2019

Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: 2018

Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: 2016-2017