This year saw the DSCC connecting with ocean scientists around the world, making great leaps forward for a moratorium on deep-sea mining, painting vibrant murals to bring seamounts to life, paddling the shores in protest against deep-sea mining, and much more. Here’s a look at what the DSCC and deep-sea community did in 2025.
January: Illuminating the deep
We started the year as we planned to go on: by connecting with deep-sea experts who share our mission of safeguarding the deep sea. In January, we joined the international scientific community at the Deep Sea Biology Symposium, an annual meeting of minds across different deep-sea disciplines to help shine a light on these little-known ecosystems and species.
Scientists spoke with us on camera for a series of educational videos, including the wonders of seamounts and deep-sea mining exploration vs exploitation.
February: Murals to celebrate the magic of seamounts
Together with artist Payo Söchting and Bla! Art Collective, we created a spectacular mural to bring seamounts of the South Pacific Ocean to life at the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO) annual Commission meeting in Santiago, Chile. Measuring an impressive 20 meters long, the mural depicted three seamount areas: Salas y Gomez & Nazca, Emperor, and Louisville.
The aim of this art piece was simple: to motivate governments to protect seamounts and their communities of deep-sea dwellers from bottom trawling. A sense of collaboration hummed in the air as delegates grabbed brushes and joined us in painting a shared vision for thriving South Pacific seamounts.
Image: Felipe MardónezThe mural magic spread across the globe to other key events throughout the year, including at the 3rd UN Ocean Conference, where we created an art piece celebrating Mediterranean seamounts, and at the Lord Howe South Tasman Research Symposium in Sydney, Australia.
March: ISA council condemns TMC’s deep-sea mining plans
During the International Seabed Authority (ISA) Council meeting in March, The Metals Company (TMC) were met with condemnation by the majority of ISA Member States when they announced their plans to bypass international processes and rush the approval of a license to mine the international seabed.
The DSCC’s response was clear: a moratorium on deep-sea mining is urgently needed to safeguard the long-term health of our ocean for the benefit of humankind as a whole.
April: A New Vision for the ISA under a Deep-Sea Mining Moratorium
The DSCC examined opportunities for the ISA under a moratorium or precautionary pause on deep-sea mining in a landmark report authored by leading ocean experts. Amidst growing industry pressure to open the deep sea to exploitation, this report reimagines the ISA as a global steward of deep-sea resilience.
In four reflection papers, the report explores a moratorium-driven future for the ISA of collaborative deep-sea science and scientific and technical capacity that supports environmental protection, enhances understanding of the deep sea, and addresses the inequities in global ocean governance. Importantly, the report sheds light on the questionable projected profits and nonsensical economics of deep-sea mining. Read the full report to learn more: Delivering Benefits to Humankind: Opportunities for the International Seabed Authority under a Deep-Sea Mining Moratorium
May: Deep Day 2025 – Shining a light on deep-sea knowledge
Our annual Deep Day is a chance for DSCC members, scientists, artists, politicians, students and ocean lovers to reflect on how vital the deep sea is to our planet. Deep Day 2025 was no different.
Celebrations took place under the theme of ‘Advancing Deep-Sea Science and Knowledge for Deep-Sea Protection’. The aim was to highlight the role of deep-sea research for conservation and sustainable stewardship, honor the power of knowledge – both scientific understanding and Indigenous wisdom – and promote protection of all facets of the deep sea, including ecological conservation and underwater cultural heritage.
This year’s Deep Day also marked the launch on the DSCC website of the Knowledge Hub, an online treasure trove of the latest deep-sea science and traditional knowledge. In the mood to dive into a world of deep-sea wonders? Visit the Knowledge Hub today.
This month also saw the coming together of scientists, First Nations people, local communities, civil society organizations, and government representatives in Sydney, Australia for the Lord Howe Rise / South Tasman Symposium: A volcanic lost world. The event sought to share and collate knowledge of this substantial, submerged landscape to feed into a high seas marine protection proposal.
June: “The deep sea cannot become the wild west”
“The deep sea cannot become the Wild West.” Those were the words declared by Antonio Guterres in his opening address at the 3rd UN Ocean Conference (UNOC) in Nice, France.
High on the conference agenda was bottom trawling, whose devastating effects were laid bare to a wider audience in David Attenborough’s documentary, Ocean. In an open letter to the United Nations, led by the DSCC and supported by the International Programme on the State of the Ocean (IPSO) and the Marine Conservation Institute, States were urged to act immediately to protect seamounts from this brutal practice.
Calls to safeguard the deep sea were heeded in a landmark ruling that coincided with UNOC. The European Court of Justice upheld the EU’s Deep Sea Fisheries Regulation, rejecting a legal challenge brought by Spain that sought to overturn critical protections for vulnerable marine ecosystems in the Northeast Atlantic.
What’s more, within one month of the conference, Luxembourg, Latvia, Cyprus, Slovenia and the Marshall Islands joined the growing list of nations calling for a moratorium or precautionary pause on deep-sea mining.
July: Paddling the shores to protest deep-sea mining
In July, surfers, divers, environmental groups, and even the President of Palau, Surangel Whipps Jr., took to the shores of Kingston, Jamaica to paddle in protest against deep-sea mining, right at the doorstep of the ISA. Coastal communities across the globe joined the protest in more than 30 paddle-outs across 25 countries and six continents, as part of a global wave of resistance.
Paddlers delivered a simple message: the deep sea is not for plunder.
Image: Activation against DSM at Byron Bay, Australia. Joseph DanielJuly’s ISA Council and Assembly meetings brought about two pieces of positive news: no decision was reached to adopt a mining code and an investigation was initiated into the actions of TMC subsidiaries regarding plans to bypass the ISA and unilaterally mine international waters.
August: Seamounts in Focus at BBNJ PrepCom II
In August, the DSCC and Oceans North co-hosted a side event at the UN during the Preparatory Commission for the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement, focused on advancing implementation of the BBNJ Agreement (PrepCom II). The event highlighted the unique biodiversity of seamounts, their vital role in keeping our ocean healthy, and the cooperation needed to protect them. Speakers from the University of Connecticut, DOSI, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization, and Oceans North shared the latest science and policy tools to safeguard these vulnerable ecosystems.
September: A landmark win for the high seas
September saw a groundbreaking victory for global ocean protection in the form of the BBNJ Agreement, which surpassed the 60 ratifications needed to enter into force. Also known as the High Seas Treaty, the BBNJ Agreement will officially take effect on 17 January 2026. This historic Treaty will provide new tools to safeguard the global ocean and legally binding obligations for States to apply high environmental standards across ocean governance bodies, such as the ISA and regional fisheries management organizations.
Destructive activities such as deep-sea mining and bottom trawling on seamounts and other fragile deep-sea ecosystems directly undermine the Treaty’s vision and objectives. We are committed to ensuring these practices are permanently ended as the world comes together under the Treaty’s global mandate.
October: Motion passed to protect seamounts at IUCN WCC
A determined step towards ocean protection at a global scale was taken at The 2025 International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Conservation Congress (WCC), where an overwhelming majority of the Congress voted in favor of a resolution to transition away from destructive fishing practices on seamounts in international waters by the end of 2026.
Motion 032 was put to Congress by WWF Australia, together with co-proposers the DSCC, Marine Conservation Institute, Blue Marine Foundation, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Environment and Conservation Organisations of New Zealand, and Australian Foundation for Wilderness.
A second win came with the approval of Motion 035, which seeks to protect mesopelagic ecosystem integrity. Together with Motion 032, it opens the door to stronger global governance and delivers on two decades of promises for ocean protection.
Image: DSCCNovember: Global momentum for deep-sea protection surges
With 40 countries now calling for a moratorium on deep-sea mining, momentum for a halt on this deadly and destructive activity is stronger than ever.
Monaco and Panama put the protection of seamounts front and center with their proposal on Conserving Seamount Ecosystems submitted to the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) for consideration at the 15th CMS Conference of the Parties in March 2026.
The proposal highlights seamounts as strategic, high-impact sites for conservation, and stresses the immediate opportunity presented to the CMS to protect migratory species and their habitats from destructive fishing, strengthen connectivity and accelerate the recovery of these animals.
2025 marked another year of fighting to safeguard the deep sea alongside our coalition of members and partners who share our mission. The progress made gives us impetus for the year ahead, as we continue the push for robust action to protect the health of the deep ocean and the immeasurable value it holds for the wellbeing of our planet as a whole.