Promoting Sustainable Ocean Economies

Annex A. Existing taxonomies, guidelines, and standards relevant to a sustainable ocean economy

Table A A.1. Examples of standards for a sustainable ocean economy

Title	Focus
Global Sustainable Tourism Council (Global Sustainable Tourism Council, n.d.[1])	Standards for sustainable travel and tourism
Marine Stewardship Council (Marine Stewardship Council, n.d.[2])	Label which verifies that the product meets the MSC Fisheries Standard, a set of requirements for sustainability that a fishery must prove it meets
Poseidon Principles (Poseidon Principles, 2024[3])	Provide a framework for integrating climate considerations into lending decisions to promote the decarbonisation of international shipping
Principles for Investment in Sustainable Wild Caught Fisheries (Fishery Solutions Center, 2023[4])	Designed to generate investor confidence that building environmental and social sustainability into fisheries will yield a strong return on investment
High Quality Blue Carbon Principles and Guidance (Ocean Risk Alliance, 2022[5])	A set of principles and guidance designed to align stakeholders around a shared vision for blue carbon projects and credits, and to build market confidence
UNEP-GPA Guiding Principles for post-tsunami rehabilitation and reconstruction (UNEP-GPA, n.d.[6])	Twelve principles for preparing coastal communities to withstand and recover from tsunamis
Chennai High-Level Principles on Sustainable and Resilient Blue/Ocean-based Economy (G20, 2023[7])	A set of principles that can be implemented by G20 members on a voluntary basis to promote “sustainable economic growth, protection, conservation, restoration and sustainable use of the marine environment, social equity, gender equality, and human development”

Table A A.2. Guidance materials on financing a sustainable ocean economy

Publisher	Title	Focus	Audience
Asian Development Bank	Ocean Finance Framework (Asian Development Bank, 2022[8])	Provides guidance on the types of projects that meet ADB criteria for investments under its Action Plan for Healthy Oceans and Sustainable Blue Economies	Supports ADB tracking and reporting and provides transparency and accountability to external partners
Asian Development Bank	Green and Blue Bond Framework (Asian Development Bank, 2021[9])	Provides guidance on eligible projects for blue bond financing and outlines the different steps ADB follows in a blue bond issuance	Internal staff members and external partners
Blue Natural Capital Financing Facility	Blue Natural Capital Positive Impacts Framework (Blue Natural Capital Financing Facility, 2019[10])	Sets out an approach for delivering marine and coastal natural capital projects to ensure positive impact	All stakeholders interested in supporting “blue” natural capital projects
Blue Natural Capital Financing Facility	Blue Bonds: Financing Resilience of Coastal Ecosystems (Blue Natural Capital Financing Facility, 2019[11])	Technical guidance note on issuing blue bonds	Potential blue bond issuers, finance sector participants and other stakeholders
International Capital Markets Association (ICMA)	Bonds to finance the Sustainable Blue Economy (IFC, 2019[12])	Provides guidance on the key components involved in launching a credible blue bond	Potential blue bond issuers, finance sector participants and other stakeholders
International Finance Corporation	Guidelines for Blue Finance (IFC, 2019[12])	Guidelines for financing the ocean/blue economy, including the identification of eligible blue project categories	General audience - all those interested in ocean/blue economy financing
Ocean Risk and Resilience Alliance (ORRAA) and Conservation International	High Quality Blue Carbon Practitioners Guide (ORRAA, n.d.[13])	Practical guidance to support all blue carbon projects to achieve high-quality standards.	Project developers, buyers, investors and funders of blue carbon projects
UNEP Finance Initiative	Sustainable Blue Economy Finance Principles (UNEP Finance Initiative, n.d.[14])	First global guiding framework on financing a sustainable ocean/blue economy	Banks, insurers and investors
UNEP Finance Initiative	Recommended Exclusions for Financing a Sustainable Blue Economy (UNEP Finance Initiative, 2021[15])	Presents an overview of activities to exclude from financing due to their damaging impact on the ocean and high risk	Financial institutions and other stakeholders interested in ocean/blue economy financing
UN Global Compact	Practical Guidance to Issue a Blue Bond (UN Global Compact, 2020[16])	Identifies opportunities for blue bonds to mobilise financing for ocean-related projects. The guidance outlines a number of pillars of best practices, as well as impact measurement benchmarks and frameworks	Potential blue bond issuers, finance sector participants and other stakeholders
UN Global Compact	Sustainable Ocean Principles (UN Global Compact, n.d.[17])	A framework for assessing and disclosing ocean practices. The principles provide a framework for responsible business practices in the ocean	Companies
UN Global Compact	Ocean Investment Protocol (UN Global Compact, 2025[18])	The Ocean Investment Protocol and its recommendations have been developed to provide a clear, united vision on harnessing capital to capture the opportunities within the sustainable ocean economy and redirecting investment away from ocean harm	Financial institutions, ocean industries, governments and development finance institutions (DFIs)
World Economic Forum	Ocean Finance Handbook (World Economic Forum, 2020[19])	Provides an introduction to key ocean/blue economy financing sources and instruments, and guidance on how they are used	General audience
Multiple	Bonds to Finance the Sustainable Blue Economy: A Practitioners Guide (ADB, 2023[20])	Provides guidance on launching a credible “blue bond”	Potential blue bond issuers, finance sector participants and other stakeholders

References

[20] ADB (2023), Bonds to Finance the Sustainable Blue Economy: A practitioner’s guide, Asian Development Bank, https://www.icmagroup.org/assets/documents/Sustainable-finance/Bonds-to-Finance-the-Sustainable-Blue-Economy-a-Practitioners-Guide-September-2023.pdf.

[8] Asian Development Bank (2022), Ocean Finance Framework, https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/777461/adb-ocean-finance-framework.pdf.

[9] Asian Development Bank (2021), Green and Blue Bond Framework, https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/731026/adb-green-blue-bond-framework.pdf.

[11] Blue Natural Capital Financing Facility (2019), Blue Bonds: Financing Resilience of Coastal Ecosystems, https://www.4climate.com/dev/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Blue-Bonds_final.pdf.

[10] Blue Natural Capital Financing Facility (2019), Blue Natural Capital Positive Impacts Framework, https://bluenaturalcapital.org/wp2018/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/BNC-Framework_final.pdf.

[4] Fishery Solutions Center (2023), Principles for Investment in Sustainable Wild-Caught Fisheries, https://fisherysolutionscenter.edf.org/sites/default/files/2023-02/Principles%20for%20Investment%20in%20Sustainable%20Wild-Caught%20Fisheries.pdf.

[7] G20 (2023), Chennai High Level Principles for a Sustainable and Resilient Blue/Ocean-Based Economy, https://g7g20-documents.org/database/document/2023-g20-india-sherpa-track-environment-ministers-ministers-annex-g20-environment-and-climate-ministers-meeting-annex.

[1] Global Sustainable Tourism Council (n.d.), The Global Sustainability Standard in Travel and Tourism, https://www.gstcouncil.org/.

[12] IFC (2019), Guidelines for Blue Finance: Guidance for financing the Blue Economy, building on the Green Bond Principles and the Green Loan Principles, International Finance Corporation, https://www.icmagroup.org/assets/documents/Sustainable-finance/Learning-resources/IFC-Blue-Finance-Guidance-Document_January-2022-270122.pdf.

[2] Marine Stewardship Council (n.d.), What does the blue MSC label mean?, https://www.msc.org/what-we-are-doing/our-approach/what-does-the-blue-msc-label-mean.

[5] Ocean Risk Alliance (2022), High-Quality Blue Carbon Principles and Guidance, https://oceanriskalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/High-Quality-Blue-Carbon-PG_FINAL_11.9.2022.pdf.

[13] ORRAA (n.d.), Developing a Practitioners Guide for High-Quality Blue Carbon Projects, https://oceanriskalliance.org/project/practitioners-guide-for-high-quality-blue-carbon/.

[3] Poseidon Principles (2024), Poseidon Principles: A global framework for responsible ship finance, https://www.poseidonprinciples.org/finance/#home.

[18] UN Global Compact (2025), Ocean Investment Protocol, https://ungc-communications-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/publications/2025%20Invest_Protocol.pdf.

[16] UN Global Compact (2020), Practical Guidance to Issue a Blue Bond, https://unglobalcompact.org/library/5798.

[17] UN Global Compact (n.d.), Sustainable Ocean Principles, https://d306pr3pise04h.cloudfront.net/docs/publications%2FSustainable+Ocean+Principles.pdf.

[15] UNEP Finance Initiative (2021), Recommended Exclusions for Financing a Sustainable Blue Economy, https://www.unepfi.org/publications/turning-the-tide-recommended-exclusions/.

[14] UNEP Finance Initiative (n.d.), Sustainable Blue Economy Finance Principles, https://www.unepfi.org/blue-finance/the-principles/.

[6] UNEP-GPA (n.d.), Guiding Principles for post-tsunami rehabilitation and reconstruction, https://www.gdrc.org/oceans/tsunami_coastal-guidelines.html.

[19] World Economic Forum (2020), The Ocean Finance Handbook, https://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_FOA_The_Ocean_Finance_Handbook_April_2020.pdf.