Oceans
The ocean is home to 82% of all life on Earth, covers 71% of our planet, and produces 50% of the oxygen we breathe. A true climate regulator, a global economic artery, and the connective fabric of civilisations, it is the invisible guarantor of our survival and global interactions. Today, the ocean faces unprecedented anthropogenic pressures, threatening not only ecological balances but also the very existence of the communities that live by, work on, and depend upon it. Successive reports from IPBES, the IPCC, and the United Nations warn of imminent and irreversible climate change, poised to radically transform our coastal, island, and continental societies. Protecting the ocean means not only safeguarding a vast carbon sink and vibrant ecosystems, but also ensuring the cultural, economic, and social survival of entire populations whose destinies are inextricably linked to the immensity of the sea.
In response to these major challenges, the FMSH has made the ocean a central priority. This cross-disciplinary programme seeks to mobilise knowledge, foster innovation, and unite initiatives to better understand, protect, and promote this shared heritage of humanity.
Our multidisciplinary approach brings together scientists, field practitioners, and public decision-makers around a shared ambition: to develop knowledge and sustainable solutions for the future of our oceans. Through this programme, we support cross-disciplinary research, disseminate scientific resources, and create spaces for dialogue among all stakeholders.
This page serves as the starting point for all our efforts to promote understanding and the preservation of the ocean.
- Our programmes and initiatives supporting research dedicated to ocean-related issues
- The publications and books we publish or distribute on this subject
- Audiovisual collections featuring conferences, documentaries, and interviews
- Events we organise to raise awareness and mobilise support for maritime challenges
Discover how our institution is taking concrete steps to safeguard the future of our oceans — and join a collective effort that is vital to the health of our planet.
By becoming an official stakeholder of the UNOC, the FMSH is actively participating in international discussions on ocean issues.
We are pursuing three complementary lines of action aimed at generating new knowledge and driving concrete changes in policies and behaviours.
- Funding bold interdisciplinary research and building bridges between the humanities, social sciences, and the life, earth, and environmental sciences to foster a comprehensive understanding of ocean systems.
- Building a dynamic knowledge network that brings together researchers, economic stakeholders, public decision-makers, and civil society organisations.
- Disseminating and promoting the knowledge produced, making it accessible to both decision-makers and the general public, to inform and transform our relationship with the oceans.
News
Oceans – Social Worlds, Living Worlds
The FMSH has received official accreditation for the 3rd United Nations Conference on the Oceans.
Oceans: Common Heritage, Shared Challenges
Inspired by the legacy of Fernand Braudel and his seminal work La Méditerranée, our programme is rooted in an intellectual tradition that transcends disciplinary boundaries. As heirs to a vision that intertwines long historical periods, global dynamics, and local realities, we aim to understand the ocean as a total space where historical and social temporalities, economic cycles, cultural transformations, and immediate events intersect.
We are committed to research that examines the ocean as a whole, from its historical depths to its contemporary shores, revealing the complex interactions between natural and human systems, and generating transformative knowledge.
Agenda
The oceans have a history!
Politicising the Waves: The Contribution of Surfers to the Governance of Seas and Oceans
Oceanic Lives: When Animals and Humans Meet
Wildlife within marine protected areas
International Ocean Governance: Challenges Following the 2025 UNOC
Weaving Ghost Nets: An Anthropology of Marine Debris
The Ocean on Edge: Anatomy of Maritime Violence
Discover projects and productions focused on the oceans
ECOHISMA
BEACHACCESS. The “lure of the seaside” under ecological pressure
An Ocean of Knowledge
Charisma
Ocean as a Way of Life
Literary Immersion in the World of the Ocean
