A Keele University academic has issued a powerful call for the creation of a United Nations Ocean Agency – a new global body designed to unite fragmented efforts to protect the ocean and address what he calls the “triple planetary crisis” of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.

In a paper published in Ambio, the journal of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Dr Adam Moolna, lecturer in Environment and Sustainability at Keele, argues that the world needs a single, coordinated institution to turn decades of political pledges into tangible action for ocean health.

“Wherever people live, they inhabit part of a river catchment that – almost always – leads to the ocean,” says Dr Moolna. “Ocean sustainability matters to everyone because planetary health depends on the ocean, and a healthy ocean requires a sustainability transformation across society, land and sea.”

His proposal envisions a UN Ocean Agency capable of bringing together the currently fragmented web of international bodies and treaties governing the seas, from biodiversity to seabed mining. The new agency, he suggests, could strengthen science-policy collaboration, harmonise global ocean governance, and steer investment towards achieving the UN’s post-2030 sustainability goals.

Central to Dr Moolna’s paper is the concept of a “Rivers to Seas” approach – a framework linking inland communities to ocean sustainability through the shared flow of water, pollution, and trade. By recognising that every river eventually meets the sea, he argues, humanity can build a stronger sense of collective responsibility for the ocean’s wellbeing.

Citing examples such as Manaus, deep within the Amazon basin, and Minneapolis, connected to the Atlantic by the Mississippi River, Moolna highlights that even communities thousands of kilometres from the coast play a role in shaping ocean health.

Dr Moolna also underscores the power of public engagement in driving environmental change. He points to the global movement against marine plastics – which catalysed the UN plastics treaty process – as evidence of how collective concern can influence international policy.

However, he warns that such momentum must now broaden to address more complex and urgent challenges, including overfishing, chemical and nutrient pollution, and equitable ocean governance.

“We are failing to stop ocean health from declining, and that’s largely because of divided responsibilities and poor coordination,” says Dr Moolna. “A UN Ocean Agency could bring coherence to this landscape and turn political promises into real-world progress.”

Beyond policy reform, Dr Moolna’s research suggests strongly the need for a cultural shift – one that uses storytelling and accessible communication to connect people emotionally to the ocean, paired with rigorous, principle-based policy frameworks to drive systemic change.

“Ocean health is planetary health,” he concludes. “By recognising our shared ‘Rivers to Seas’ connection, we can empower citizens everywhere to demand accountability and accelerate the transformation to a sustainable future. Humanity must rethink its relationship with the ocean – not just to halt the decline in marine environments, but for the wellbeing of inland communities too.”

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