Who Will Save Ocean Research? Europe Wants to Replace the U.S.

The European Union wants to address a massive gap in ocean research that has emerged as a result of decisions made by the Donald Trump administration: funding for research, science, and certain environmental programs has been cut. This is significant because knowledge of the processes occurring in the oceans—particularly the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation—plays a crucial role in climate change, especially in the Northern Hemisphere; among other things, it helps retain heat in Europe.

In light of this situation, the European Union has taken steps to strengthen ocean research.

The EU’s Response to the Research Crisis in the U.S.

National Science Foundation (National Science Foundation)—a U.S. government agency that funds science—has announced the dismantling of its own ocean observation network, to which it had previously allocated $368 million, as well as the removal of underwater research infrastructure from certain locations.

In order to continue ocean research, the European Union has decided to allocate funds for this purpose. Understanding the phenomena occurring in the oceans is crucial, among other things, for weather forecasting in Europe.

At the UN Ocean Summit, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the European Union is committing 1 billion euros to ocean conservation, scientific research, and sustainable fisheries.

Every year, we see just how unpredictable and extreme the weather in Europe can be. Droughts, torrential rains, and floods are slowly becoming the norm in Europe. Unfortunately, this situation—exacerbated by successive crises, such as the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and the conflict in the Middle East—is having tangible social, economic, and financial consequences.

Europe Comes to the Rescue of Ocean Research

Research to date has shown that climate change continues to disrupt ocean current patterns, destabilize water temperatures, and reduce fish stocks. The results of studies to date indicate that global warming poses new threats to ocean systems, particularly to the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, which helps maintain warmth in Europe.

At a time when every country in the world is grappling with the effects of global warming, the United States has decided to withdraw its support for ocean research, which is crucial to understanding the phenomena occurring around the world. This is one of the reasons why the European Union led the political process and negotiations on the High Seas Treaty—the United Nations Agreement on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction. It entered into force on January 17, 2026, and established a legally binding mechanism for creating a network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), which is a significant step toward achieving the global goal of protecting 30 percent of the oceans by 2030 and supporting ocean research.

On June 10, the European Commission also adopted two strategies for the European Union’s islands and coastal communities, aimed at ensuring a coordinated approach to the development of these areas, unlocking their long-term potential, and improving their resilience, competitiveness, and quality of life.

In early June 2026, the European Commission launched the OceanEye program. Its goal is to help the European Union become a global leader in ocean research by investing in key ocean observation technologies and collecting data on ocean processes.

These initiatives place sustainable ocean development at the center of the European Union’s economic and industrial agenda.

Will OceanEye solve the problem?

Launched in early June of this year by the European Commission, the OceanEye program is part of the EU Ocean Pact, which aims to improve the state of the oceans, strengthen maritime economic interests and security, and help the European Union become a global leader in ocean intelligence by investing in key observation technologies and collecting the resulting data.

The OceanEye initiative has set ambitious goals. It aims to ensure that by 2035, the European Union will:

• become a leading provider of ocean information;
• will capture 35 percent of the ocean observation technology market;
• will account for 35 percent of the global ocean observation system.

As the European Commission points out, the very first year of the EU Ocean Pact has already yielded tangible results in promoting a sustainable blue economy. Will further actions contribute to achieving the intended goals? We will cover this in future issues of our newspaper.

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In writing the article, I used:

https://www.politico.eu/article/europe-pours-money-into-ocean-research-donald-trump-guts-science-funding

https://oceans-and-fisheries.ec.europa.eu/news/one-year-european-ocean-pact-leading-global-ocean-protection-and-boosting-blue-economy-2026-06-05_en

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_26_1318

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/it/ac_25_1475