Mapping the Ocean Impact Innovation Landscape Towards Equitable Ocean Futures

The burgeoning ocean impact innovation ecosystem includes entrepreneur-supporting organizations such as venture capital funds, incubators, and accelerators. The ecosystem represents a potentially transformative opportunity to accelerate sustainable and equitable ocean solutions and has already garnered increasing recognition for its capacity to mobilize private capital for ocean health. Backed by the 1000 Ocean Startups (1000OS) coalition hosted by the World Economic Forum, the ecosystem is increasingly interested in investing in innovation toward an equitable ocean future. However, little is known about the current innovation landscape and which solutions have been prioritized for investment. To support emerging future directions, we analyze investments made by 1000OS. By reviewing a database of recently backed startups, we synthesize data related to the sectors, primary impact areas, and operational geographies of these innovators through an equity lens. We consider thus far in the ecosystem: solutions by whom and for what end? Our findings reveal that 1000OS has primarily supported innovations towards sustainably managed ocean resources, a clean ocean, and a 1.5°C world, and investments in ocean innovation have also gone primarily to countries comparatively less vulnerable to climate change. We discuss the social equity implications of this investment pattern at the local, regional, and global scales. Finally, we explore both perceived barriers and potential opportunities that capitalize on the ecosystem’s capacity to foster an equitable ocean future through impact investments.