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ClientEarth advocates for a shift from 'paper commitments' to legal action to address the ocean crisis. The briefing prioritises the enforcement of existing frameworks, such as the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), to protect marine biodiversity and combat climate change. It specifically calls for the elimination of harmful fisheries subsidies, the banning of bottom trawling in marine protected areas (MPAs), and the ratification of the BBNJ Agreement to protect the high seas. The document also highlights the need for a 'Protection Principle' that makes ocean conservation the default norm and outlines specific legal priorities for the EU, Mediterranean, China, and the UK.

The document details South Carolina's high susceptibility to sea level rise, hurricanes, and droughts, noting that 101 weather disasters with losses over $1 billion occurred between 1980 and April 2025. It highlights the critical role of federal support from NOAA, FEMA, and USDA in maintaining coastal resilience, providing disaster aid, and supporting military installations. The briefing warns that proposed FY 2026 budget cuts—including the elimination of the Sea Grant program and significant reductions in coastal research and FEMA funding—would severely hinder the state's ability to manage climate risks and protect its economy and national security infrastructure.

The report details how climate change drives biodiversity loss through mechanisms like ocean acidification and species range shifts, while biodiversity loss weakens the planet's carbon sinks. It critically assesses 'false solutions'—including monoculture tree plantations, carbon offsetting, and geoengineering—arguing that these policies often cause further ecological damage and land grabbing. The document calls for a systemic shift toward agroecology, energy sufficiency, and the protection of Indigenous Peoples' land rights to address the polycrisis holistically.

The document analyzes how climate change accelerates biodiversity loss and how the loss of ecosystems further destabilizes the climate. It critiques 'false solutions' such as monoculture tree plantations, carbon offsets, and geoengineering, arguing they often cause more harm than good. The report calls for a systemic shift toward agroecology, community-led energy transitions, and the protection of Indigenous rights.

The report provides a comprehensive climate risk profile for Belize, detailing observed and projected climatic changes, their impacts on biodiversity and livelihoods, and vulnerability rankings for specific marine and terrestrial communities. It recommends a suite of nature-based solutions (NbS) and gender-responsive strategies to enhance climate resilience in protected areas.

Blue carbon ecosystems, including mangroves, seagrass meadows, and salt marshes, are critical natural climate solutions that sequester over 50% of global ocean carbon despite covering only 0.5% of the sea floor. These habitats support 3 billion people through food security and protection from extreme weather, yet they face severe degradation, with 67% of mangroves already lost or degraded. Protecting these ecosystems could prevent 304 Tg of carbon dioxide emissions annually, while restoration could sequester an additional 841 Tg, totaling approximately 3% of annual global GHG emissions. However, as of 2023, only 61 of 151 countries with these habitats included their conservation in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

The Regional Tuna Programme (RTP) addresses two primary climate threats in the Pacific: the loss of coral reef fish as a protein source and the eastward shift of tuna biomass away from national exclusive economic zones (EEZs). The programme will deploy 333 anchored Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) to help coastal communities catch tuna, improve the distribution of industrial tuna bycatch to urban areas, and develop an Advanced Warning System (AWS) to provide high-resolution forecasts of tuna redistribution. This AWS is intended to serve as an economic planning tool to help tuna-dependent nations negotiate the retention of fishing license revenues. The project targets 790,000 direct beneficiaries and 2.5 million indirect beneficiaries across 14 participating countries.

The Council on Strategic Risks asserts that NOAA provides indispensable data and infrastructure for US military operations, particularly in the Arctic and for naval navigation. The agency's science diplomacy strengthens ties in the Indo-Pacific and Caribbean, while its domestic services protect lives and livelihoods from extreme weather and support the US seafood industry. The document highlights that recent layoffs of approximately 880 staff members across six offices risk undermining these security and economic contributions.

The report provides a comprehensive climate risk profile for Fiji, detailing observed and projected climatic changes, specific hazards such as tropical cyclones and sea-level rise, and their impacts on target communities and ecosystems. It emphasizes the disproportionate vulnerability of women and marginalized groups and recommends specific nature-based solutions (NbS) and gender-responsive measures to enhance climate resilience across six districts: Kubulau, Dawasamu, Nakorotubu, Namalata, Bua, and Bureta.

The document outlines the critical role of oceans in absorbing heat and carbon, the resulting environmental and socioeconomic crises, and offers strategic advice for journalists to improve the depth and justice-orientation of ocean reporting.

The document outlines the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of ocean warming and acidification, while offering strategic advice for journalists to move beyond reactive coverage toward sustained, justice-oriented reporting on marine ecosystems.

Analysis of the CARIACO station (1996–2013) reveals a significant increase in sea surface temperature, a decrease in pH, and a decline in chlorophyll a and phytoplankton abundance, alongside a reduction in upwelling intensity linked to lower wind speeds.

The report analyzes marine geoengineering, dividing it into marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) and marine solar radiation modification (SRM). It argues that these speculative technologies pose irreversible risks to ocean ecosystems and human rights, while facing significant monitoring and verification challenges. The authors contend that proposed deployment zones span every ocean basin, making the impacts inherently transboundary and potentially violating international law, including the CBD moratorium and UNCLOS.

The briefing details the systemic failures in decommissioning offshore oil and gas sites, highlighting how abandoned wells leak methane and toxins, threaten marine biodiversity and coastal livelihoods, and how corporations use legal and financial loopholes to shift cleanup costs to the public.

The report argues that offshore oil and gas activities pose severe threats to the global commons, specifically the oceans and atmosphere. It details how seismic surveys harm marine life, production leads to catastrophic blowouts and underreported methane emissions, transportation increases the risk of spills and invasive species, and improper decommissioning leaves a legacy of leaking 'orphan' wells. The document emphasizes that these risks are magnified by climate change and that existing legal frameworks, including UNCLOS and the polluter pays principle, should be leveraged to phase out offshore fossil fuel extraction.

The document details the risks of offshore oil and gas exploration, focusing on the ecological damage caused by seismic surveys and exploratory drilling, the resulting threats to coastal livelihoods and Indigenous rights, and the broader implications for global climate regulation.

The document outlines a legal framework for challenging offshore oil and gas expansion, focusing on rights to information and participation, duties to prevent environmental and human rights harm, and the responsibility of polluters to pay for decommissioning and remediation.

The document argues that offshore oil and gas production poses severe risks, including underreported greenhouse gas emissions from flaring and methane leaks, the high potential for devastating well blowouts—especially in deep waters—and chronic marine pollution from produced water. It highlights the failure of current cleanup technologies and the long-term socio-economic damage to coastal communities, concluding that halting offshore expansion is essential to meeting the 1.5°C global warming limit.

The report details how climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of extreme weather in Oregon, leading to significant economic losses and infrastructure needs. Key risks include intense heatwaves, devastating wildfires, disrupted water supplies for agriculture, and coastal flooding. The document provides specific cost estimates for adaptations, such as school air conditioning and coastal protection, while outlining the broader systemic risks to public health, fisheries, and the state's $5.7 billion agricultural industry.

The document examines how the climate crisis and overfishing mutually exacerbate marine ecosystem degradation and how these factors disrupt global fisheries trade. It highlights that tropical developing regions are projected to suffer the most severe reductions in fish catches, while the Global North is better positioned to capture new economic opportunities. The author argues for a transition toward low-emission technologies, the removal of harmful subsidies, and the adoption of value-added processing and digital traceability to support developing countries in maintaining food security and economic stability.