Ocean Monday? ❌ Well… no, nothing to do with the ocean!

Blue Monday is considered the most depressing day of the year.

And yet, at Pure Ocean, we’re starting the week with great news: the High Seas Treaty has officially entered into force! 🎉

So what does this change? 👇

✅ International waters are now protected.
After more than 20 years of negotiations, 83 countries have ratified this essential agreement.

‼️ A legal gap has finally been filled: more than 60% of the ocean had little to no protection.

The high seas—over half of the ocean—had until now escaped any global protection framework. With the treaty’s entry into force, these international waters finally have shared rules to preserve their biodiversity.

⚖️ Clear rules for human activities.
Any activity likely to impact the high seas (extraction, aquaculture, etc.) will now be subject to an environmental impact assessment. This is mandatory for the 83 countries that have ratified the treaty.

🌱 Fair sharing of benefits from marine genetic resources.

The treaty establishes rules governing access to marine genetic resources and ensures that the benefits derived from their use are shared fairly among all countries.

🐋 Towards new marine protected areas.

Until now, less than 1% of the high seas benefited from official protection. With this treaty, the creation of vast marine protected areas in the high seas becomes possible—for the first time ever.

🔜 And this is only the beginning: a first global ocean conference will be held in New York by the end of 2026 to define the first concrete measures.

💫 On this Blue Monday, we choose hope.
It may not be Blue Monday for our mood…

But for the ocean, it’s clearly a day to celebrate! 💙