Back to the list

UNOC 3 - Presse Release

News

Nice, June 11, 2025 – UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3)

At the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in Nice, the Monk Seal Alliance and the Greek Natural Environment and Climate Change Agency (NECCA) gathered a coalition of public, private, and civil society actors for the event “Seals, Shores, and Sustainability: Protecting Monk Seals in a Changing World – In Protected Areas and Beyond.” The event took place under the high patronage of H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco.

Once a symbol of Mediterranean decline, the monk seal is now experiencing a fragile but hopeful recovery. The IUCN Red List currently classifies the species as “vulnerable,” with a growing population estimated at around 1,000 individuals across the Mediterranean and Atlantic regions.

A Renewed Collective Commitment

“This progress is the result of remarkable collective work that I wish to acknowledge today,” said Prince Albert II.

He underscored the need for coordinated efforts to manage critical habitats, strengthen marine protected areas (MPAs), engage communities and scientists, and involve policy-makers and economic sectors such as fisheries and tourism.

The Sovereign Prince announced a major new commitment by the Monk Seal Alliance: at least €3 million in funding for 2025–2027, adding to the €4 million already invested between 2020 and 2024, in support of projects across monk seal habitats.

 

Field Projects in Action

Highlights included:

  • Seal Greece, launched by the Monk Seal Alliance and the Greek Natural Environment and Climate Change Agency (NECCA) in Our Ocean 2024, aims to build a sustainable coexistence between humans and monk seals.
  • Efforts to strengthen the management of marine protected areas.
  • Enhanced cross-border and inter-institutional cooperation, involving local authorities and regional conventions such as Barcelona, Bonn, and the IUCN network.

 

Panel Sessions & Expert Contributions

Panel 1 – Turning the Tide: Strengthening Marine Ecosystem and Species Protection in a Changing Mediterranean
Moderator: Rachel Clausing, Head of Initiatives, Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation
Panelists:

  • Vera Alexandropoulou, Vice-President, Thalassa Foundation / Monk Seal Alliance
  • Maria Papadopoulou, Chair, Board of Directors, NECCA
  • Guillaume Sainteny, President, Plan Bleu
  • Charlina Vitcheva, Director-General, DG Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, European Commission

Panel 2 – “Seal Greece”: A Bold Alliance for Habitat Protection and Coexistence
Moderator: Rachel Clausing
Panelists:

  • Auriane Pertuisot, MSA Coordinator, Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation
  • Laurent Sourbès, Head of Ionian Sea Marine Unit, NECCA
  • Panos Dendrinos, President, MOm
  • Madeleine Theochari, Founder, EPOPS

 

Closing Reflections: Key Messages from the Event

As the event concluded, several key messages emerged:

  • Seal Greece represents a strong example of what public–private partnerships can deliver: rapid, strategic action aligned with long-term conservation goals — grounded in national frameworks such as Greece’s Monk Seal National Action Plan.
  • The initiative stands out for leveraging existing structures, rather than reinventing them — helping to close gaps in protection, especially beyond the boundaries of current MPAs, in areas that remain ecologically vital but administratively unrecognized.
  • The urgency of building monitoring systems was widely echoed. Conservation cannot succeed without baseline data and the ability to measure threats and impacts — including those of tourism on monk seal populations.
  • Enforcement capacity remains a major weakness. Effective MPAs require high-level political commitment and interministerial coordination, as local authorities alone cannot shoulder enforcement.
  • The event reaffirmed the need for multi-level collaboration — local, national, and transnational — to reflect the ecological reality that species like monk seals do not respect political borders.
  • Stakeholder engagement from the earliest stages is essential. Beyond economic considerations, the value of marine protection is also social, cultural, and historical. MPAs must be understood and owned by the communities around them.
  • Lastly, panelists highlighted the replicable nature of this model — Seal Greece may be a blueprint for future efforts, in other countries and regions, to protect endangered marine species through scalable, cooperative, and adaptive frameworks.

"In a world of increasing ecological and governance complexity, these models of public-private cooperation are not just valuable — they may be essential," one panelist concluded.

 

An Alliance in Action

The Monk Seal Alliance is driving marine conservation forward in the Mediterranean region. Partners include the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, Thalassa Foundation, Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, and the Segré Foundation,

“The sustainable protection of the monk seal is a shared goal — one that demonstrates our collective ability to preserve biodiversity in a changing world,” concluded H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco.


Press Contacts:

Nadège Massé, nmasse@fpa2.org

Monk Seal Alliance
www.monksealalliance.org

www.sealgreece.org