Changing the currents: Turning the tide on ocean and climate crises

Every May, the world turns its gaze to the ocean not just as a vast body of water, but as the very pulse of our planet. Ocean Month is a celebration of marine beauty and biodiversity. It is a reminder that the health of our seas is inseparable from our own. For an archipelagic country of more than 7,000 islands, the Philippines’ seas are not just a backdrop to our geography. They are our identity, and consequently our future.

Our oceans feed us the finest catch and support entire economies. They help regulate the climate by absorbing heat and carbon, buffering us from storms, and shaping our weather. For millions of Filipinos, the ocean is more than livelihood. It is a culture, tradition, and even life itself. So many of our tales begin where the waves meet the shore.

Yet the salty truth is that our oceans face unprecedented threats such as warming waters, rising sea levels, acidification, plastic pollution, overfishing and biodiversity loss. These are not distant, abstract concerns. They are realities already reshaping our coasts, destroying coral reefs, and threatening the livelihoods of coastal communities.

The science is clear: If we do not act decisively today, the ocean’s ability to sustain life will decline. And with it, so will our chances for climate resilience, food security, and sustainable development. Ocean protection is climate action. And climate action must include the ocean.

This Ocean Month, we are called to go beyond awareness and move toward urgent, transformative action. The recently issued Advisory Opinion by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea reinforces this moral and legal imperative. According to the advisory,  greenhouse gas emissions constitute marine pollution. This serves as a powerful wake-up call for all nations, particularly the signatories of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, to intensify cooperation in reducing emissions and protecting our marine ecosystems.

This landmark ruling reinforces the moral and legal basis for climate justice. The Philippines, one of the most at-risk countries in the world, has long advocated for the protection of oceans as part of global climate ambition. Our national adaptation efforts — through the National Adaptation Plan, the Nationally Determined Contribution Implementation Plan, and other key policies — recognize the ocean’s role in absorbing heat and carbon dioxide, mitigating storm surges, and supporting the millions of Filipinos who depend on coastal ecosystems.

But policy alone is not enough. We must connect these policies to action on the ground and under the sea.

We call on local governments to integrate coastal and marine adaptation measures into their Local Climate Change Action Plans. This includes mangrove reforestation, marine protected areas, and early warning systems for coastal hazards. We urge the private sector to support sustainable fisheries, reduce plastic pollution, and invest in blue economy solutions that benefit both business and biodiversity.

We call on communities to protect local marine ecosystems not only as tourist destinations but as natural infrastructure. And we call on Filipinos to rise as saviors for the seas whether by refusing single-use plastics or raising their voice against those who treat our seas as dumping grounds. The ocean needs heroes. Why not start with us?

This coming June, the world will gather for the 2025 United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice, France, co-hosted by France and Costa Rica. Focused on advancing Sustainable Development Goal 14 — conserving and sustainably using our oceans — this global moment must also be a platform to amplify the Philippines’ call for stronger climate action. As one of the most climate-vulnerable archipelagic nations, the Philippines stands at the frontline of the ocean and climate crises. Our voice must be loud and clear: climate justice begins with ocean resilience.

At the Climate Change Commission, we believe in climate action that is inclusive, science-based, and rights-driven. That includes upholding the rights of Indigenous peoples and fisherfolk, who have long safeguarded our marine resources. Their knowledge and leadership must be at the heart of our ocean governance.

As written by the poet Rumi, we are not a drop in the ocean, we are the entire ocean in a drop. Within that truth lies our power and our purpose. We should not allow this month to pass as a mere ceremonial observance. Our blue lifeline calls for us to bear responsibility for its fate.

The tide of change is rising. It is time we rise with it.