Online meeting: How Blue Bonds finance long-term conservation at UNESCO World Heritage marine sites

On 19 January (12-1pm, Brasilia time, Brazil / 4-5pm, Paris time, France / 7-8pm, Victoria time, Seychelles), experts and managers from Seychelles and Belize marine World Heritage sites will share first-hand insight on how blue bonds provide a sustainable pathway toward financing marine protected area conservation for the long term.

Register Now

Programme (1 hour)
- Introduction UNESCO (5min)
- Presentation by Beverly Wade (Belize) (10min)
- Presentation by Marie-May Jeremie and Frauke Fleischer-Dogley (Seychelles) (15min)
- Presentation by Melissa Garvey (The Nature Conservancy) (10min)
- Moderated Questions and Answers (15min)
- Closing word UNESCO (5min)

Research shows that a majority of the world’s 18,000 marine protected areas (MPAs) – which collectively protect about 8% of the ocean - fall short of their conservation goals due to a lack of adequate finance. 

Surveys conducted by UNESCO among the 50 World Heritage marine sites consistently identify funding as one of the most urgent needs to sustainably protect their biodiversity and ecosystems and to secure the science that is necessary for sound decision making. 

While financing lacks, conservation challenges are mounting.  Climate change causes rapid changes to ocean biodiversity and ecosystems globally. Paired with the responsibility to conserve places of Outstanding Universal Value for future generations, UNESCO World Heritage sites increasingly look at alternative solutions to finance ocean conservation for the long term. Blue bonds for nature conservation are a novel approach that offers one such solution.

The online meeting will feature experts and managers from Belize and Seychelles who have successfully established Blue Bonds in recent years which now provide core finance for the conservation of their UNESCO World Heritage sites

Ms. Beverley Wade (Belize Ministry of Blue Economy and Civil Aviation) and Ms. Marie-May Jeremie (Seychelles Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust) will offer on-the-ground insights into the successes and barriers of using Blue Bonds for financing conservation work in and around Barrier Reef Reserve System (Belize) and Aldabra Atoll (Seychelles) UNESCO World Heritage sites. Ms. Melissa Garvey (The Nature Conservancy) will unpack the Blue Bonds mechanisms and the enabling conditions that make Blue Bonds successful. 

Due to their status as the world’s flagship marine protected areas, UNESCO World Heritage marine sites are uniquely positioned to drive change and innovation, help set global standards in conservation excellence, and serve as beacons of hope in a changing ocean. Several times per year, the UNESCO World Heritage Marine Programme provides an exclusive online platform where managers from the 50 World Heritage marine sites connect and share solutions in tackling key conservation challenges. The online meetings are made possible with the support of the French Biodiversity Agency and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.

Featured Marine World Heritage Site Managers and Experts

Beverley Wade, Director - Blue Bonds and Finance Permanence, Office of the Prime Minister, Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System (Belize)

Beverly Wade is the Director of the Blue Bond and Finance Permanence Unit, Office of the Prime Minister. Beverly has over twenty (20) years of experience with Blue Economy, Fisheries Management and Development, Marine Conservation and Protected Areas Management, Coral Reef Management, Sustainable Development, Integrated Coastal Management and Development and Public Policy and Institutional Development, Sustainable Financing, and Carbon Markets.

Marie-May Jeremie, CEO - The Seychelles Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT) (Seychelles)

Marie-May Jeremie is the Chief Executive Officer of the Seychelles Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeyCCAT). Marie-May holds a Masters of Environment Degree from the University of Melbourne and an undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences from Edith Cowan University. Ms Jeremie is a highly skilled Senior Executive with strong interest and experience in Biodiversity Conservation, Ocean Governance, science-to-policy advocacy and establishment and management of protected areas in the Seychelles.

Melissa Garvey, Global Director of Ocean Protection - The Nature Conservancy

Melissa Garvey began working for The Nature Conservancy (TNC) in 2006 and became the Global Director of Ocean Protection in 2019. In this role, she leads TNC’s global teams responsible for durable large scale ocean protection, management effectiveness and restoration of critical marine ecosystems. Her work includes the Blue Bonds for Ocean Conservation strategy, whose goal is to protect more than 4 million square kilometres of ocean and refinance sovereign debt to leverage US$1.6B to support ocean conservation.

Frauke Fleischer-Dogley, CEO - Seychelles Island Foundation

Frauke Fleischer-Dogley is a trained conservation biologist who has led the Seychelles Island Foundation (SIF) as CEO since 2007. Improving the management effectiveness of Seychelles' World Heritage Sites is her mission, inluding Aldabra Atoll. She believes in science-based management decisions, innovation, and the need to rigorously review established practices to advance conservation management.