On Friday 5 June 2026, Greenpeace Luxembourg issued a call for the Luxembourg Government to turn its commitments to ocean protection into concrete action ahead of World Oceans Day on Monday 8 June 2026.
The environmental organisation said 2026 would be a decisive year for the future of deep-sea ecosystems and the implementation of the Global Ocean Treaty. Greenpeace Luxembourg will organise several awareness-raising activities throughout June 2026, including a screening of the film Seagnal at Ciné Utopia in Luxembourg-Limpertsberg on Thursday 11 June 2026. The aim is to inform the public about issues related to ocean protection.
According to the organisation, Luxembourg supported a moratorium on deep-sea mining, ratified the High Seas Treaty and joined the Ocean Pioneers coalition led by France in 2025. While welcoming these developments, the organisation expressed concern over Luxembourg's absence from key discussions of the International Seabed Authority (ISA).
The next ISA negotiations will take place at the end of July 2026, giving Luxembourg time to ensure its participation or representation. In less than six months, the first Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Global Ocean Treaty will also be expected to establish the foundations for the creation of the first marine protected areas on the high seas.
Greenpeace noted that it is urging Luxembourg to provide both financial and political support for the development of management plans for these future protected areas, which it says are essential to achieving the international target of protecting 30% of the world's oceans by 2030.
"The Luxembourg government has taken important positions in favour of ocean protection. It must now defend these positions where decisions are made. Supporting a moratorium or ratifying a treaty is not enough. The country must be present at negotiations and contribute to implementation," said Altynaï Bidaubayle, Campaigner at Greenpeace Luxembourg.
Greenpeace recalled that it has campaigned for ocean protection for many years, adding that it recently conducted a scientific expedition in the Arctic Ocean to document deep-sea ecosystems. It took place from Friday 8 May and will last until Tuesday 9 June 2026.
