At the 2025 UN Ocean Conference in Nice, France, the governments of the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu announced plans to create the Melanesian Ocean Reserve—the world’s first Indigenous-led, multinational marine protected area. When fully established, it will safeguard at least 6 million square kilometers of ocean and islands, spanning the national waters of the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Papua New Guinea, and linking to New Caledonia’s protected zone. Grounded in millennia-old stewardship, the reserve aims to preserve the ancestral waters and cultural heritage of hundreds of Indigenous communities while allowing only sustainable economic activities aligned with Indigenous values—setting a powerful precedent for globally inclusive ocean conservation.
