Pacific-led ocean protection initiative gets big funding boost from Bezos Earth Fund

Goldlined emperors with colorful reef (Tuvalu, June 2025). Photo: Manu San Félix / National Geographic Pristine Seas

There has been a significant new funding boost for the Pacific-led effort to protect our oceans.

The Bezos Earth Fund has announced just over US$37 million in grants to support marine protection efforts across 12 countries and territories.

The fund, owned by Amazon's founder and American billionaire Jeff Bezos, is a philanthropic initiative aimed at protecting nature and tackling climate change.

The spending will advance national and regional plans and projects across Micronesia, Melanesia and Polynesia.

It is part of the Bezos Earth Fund's US$100 million commitment to support the Pacific Islands in safeguarding the ocean.

It also udvances the Pacific leaders 'Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity' (UBPP) initiative to sustainably manage 100 percent of their waters and protect at least 30 percent by 2030.

"The Pacific isn't just a beautiful backdrop, it's a lifeline," the Fund's vice-chair Lauren Sanchez Bezos said.

She said Pacific Island nations and territories are setting the pace and the Fund wants to be part of that.

"We're here to match that ambition and help turn it into protection at scale. We are so proud to be part of one of the boldest ocean protection efforts ever attempted."

President Surangel Whipps Jr said UBPP is a Pacific-made finance and investment program.

"It is our canoe for change. With the Bezos Earth Fund's support, we are showing the world that Pacific people lead with courage and wisdom as guardians of the ocean we all share," Whipps said.

"What makes UBPP powerful is that it supports solutions designed by our communities - solutions that protect our ocean, strengthen food security, and keep traditional knowledge alive."

All projects supported by the grant was co-designed by national governments and local leaders, with regional coordination from the Pacific Community (SPC), Bezos Earth Fund said.

According to the Fund, the work now underway will secure more than 835,000 square miles (2.16 million km²) of ocean through new protections, stronger enforcement, and durable financial mechanisms.

SPC's director-general Dr Stuart Minchin said they are linking marine protections into a single regional system that is rooted in Pacific priorities.

"This isn't about drawing lines on a map. It's about implementation. It's about financial durability. And it's about respecting the communities who have cared for these waters for generations," he said.