World Ocean Council

What World Ocean Council does

The World Ocean Council (WOC) is a Barcelona-headquartered, international non-profit alliance founded in 2009 that serves as the cross-sectoral convening body for ocean business leadership. It connects companies across shipping, energy, aquaculture, fisheries, tourism, technology, data, and finance — alongside investors, start-ups, and research institutions — to advance what it terms Corporate Ocean Responsibility. WOC's product surface is organized into two layers: a programmatic layer (GREEN MARINE MED for Mediterranean maritime environmental performance, MEDSEAPLAN for cross-border marine spatial planning, mCDR for marine carbon dioxide removal, and SO-SI for sustainable ocean business collaboration) and an event layer (the Tomorrow.Blue Economy World Congress in Barcelona, which houses the Sustainable Ocean Summit and the Global Blue Finance Summit / BlueFIN).

The operating model is a membership alliance generating recurring revenue from membership dues, supplemented by co-organized flagship events held in partnership with the Port of Barcelona, Barcelona City Council, Smart City Expo World Congress, and OCEANOVATION. Distribution runs through direct membership engagement (digital forms via HubSpot) and event-based marketing, with named institutional members including Maersk, DEME Group, Cruise Lines International Association, Marine Stewardship Council, PONANT, NIOZ, AltaSea, ABES, and AGWA Partners. The organization operates with 1–10 employees and reports no revenue, funding rounds, parent company, or subsidiaries in the source data — WOC is functionally a small coordination hub whose strategic leverage comes from its ecosystem rather than its internal scale.

Name

World Ocean Council

Legal name

World Ocean Council

Website

https://oceancouncil.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The World Ocean Council is a Barcelona-based international alliance connecting ocean business leaders across shipping, energy, aquaculture, fisheries, tourism, technology, data, and finance to advance Corporate Ocean Responsibility through membership, thematic programs, and flagship events.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ocean Industry Membership Alliance

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Marine & Freshwater Conservation (BPAGAGAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Oceans, Coastal & Marine Resource Management (BPADALAI), Coastal & Marine Resources Administration (Oceans, Fisheries, Shorelines) (BPAIAMAI)

Keywords

• Ocean sustainability alliance
• Blue economy membership
• Corporate ocean responsibility
• Maritime sustainability programs
• Blue finance convening

Headquarters

HQ city

Barcelona

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: The organization generates revenue through membership fees, where companies across ocean-related sectors pay to join the alliance and gain access to global networking, programming, events, and initiatives for advancing ocean sustainability.

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The World Ocean Council is an international membership alliance that connects ocean business leaders across sectors — shipping, energy, aquaculture, fisheries, tourism, technology, data, and finance — to advance Corporate Ocean Responsibility. It delivers value through thematic programs (GREEN MARINE MED, MEDSEAPLAN, mCDR, SO-SI), flagship convening events such as the Sustainable Ocean Summit and the Tomorrow.Blue Economy World Congress in Barcelona, and a global member network that links ocean business with science, research, and policy communities.

Product overview

World Ocean Council is an international alliance and membership organization (not a software product company) that connects ocean business leaders across sectors including shipping, energy, aquaculture, fisheries, tourism, technology, data, and finance. The organization delivers value through its portfolio of thematic programs (GREEN MARINE MED, MEDSEAPLAN, mCDR, SO-SI) addressing critical ocean challenges, and organizes major events including the Tomorrow.Blue Economy World Congress with Sustainable Ocean Summit and Global Blue Finance Summit tracks. Membership provides access to a global network, industry initiatives, and ocean sustainability leadership opportunities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• GREEN MARINE MED Program

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Newday ImpactcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 November 2025Partnership announced during the Sustainable Ocean Summit in Barcelona focused on promoting ocean sustainability through impact investing, philanthropy, and collaborative initiatives involving various sectors of the blue economy.
• Port of BarcelonaflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the Tomorrow.Blue Economy World Congress, providing high-level programming including the Sustainable Ocean Summit and Global Blue Finance Summit. Partnership creates a high-impact platform for sustainable ocean innovation, finance, and collaboration.
• Barcelona City CouncilflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the Tomorrow.Blue Economy World Congress alongside WOC, Port of Barcelona, Smart City Expo World Congress and OCEANOVATION, focusing on city-port partnerships and sustainable ocean innovation.
• Smart City Expo World CongressflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the Tomorrow.Blue Economy World Congress, bringing together sustainable urban development expertise alongside ocean business leadership.
• OCEANOVATIONflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the Tomorrow.Blue Economy World Congress, collaborating on delivering high-impact programming for sustainable ocean innovation and blue economy development.
• ABES (Blue Economy Summit Africa)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMember organization representing African blue economy interests within the WOC network, promoting ocean sustainability across the African continent.
• AGWA PartnersminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorStrategic advisory member providing expertise in blue economy development and ocean business consulting services.
• AltaSeaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMember organization focused on accelerating the blue economy through ocean innovation and sustainable business development.
• DEME GroupminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMajor maritime and offshore energy company member providing expertise in offshore wind, marine engineering, and environmental solutions.
• MaerskminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGlobal shipping and logistics company member contributing to WOC's shipping sector representation and ocean sustainability initiatives.
• Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInternational non-profit organization member focused on sustainable fisheries and responsible ocean sourcing practices.
• Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLeading cruise industry trade association member representing cruise line operators and promoting sustainable cruise tourism.
• NIOZ (Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorScientific research institute member providing marine science expertise and research collaboration opportunities for ocean business initiatives.
• PONANTminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFrench luxury expedition cruise company member, specifically featured under the SO-SI programme for sustainable expedition cruising.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• World Wildlife Fund: One of the world's largest environmental NGOs with substantive marine and ocean programs and corporate engagement. Comparable mission area but vastly larger scope, membership model, and operating budget than WOC's ocean-business alliance focus.
• Pew Charitable Trusts - Ocean Programs: Major US foundation operating major ocean conservation initiatives including fisheries reform and marine protected areas. Comparable as a well-funded ocean sustainability convener with corporate and policy engagement, though operating from a foundation rather than membership-alliance structure.
• The Nature Conservancy: Global environmental non-profit with significant ocean and coastal conservation programs and corporate partnerships. Comparable as a large ocean-adjacent conservation NGO, but broader in scope and far larger in scale than WOC.

Direct peers

• Ceres: US-based sustainability nonprofit mobilizing leading businesses, investors, and policymakers around climate and water. Comparable structure as a cross-sector business alliance driving sustainability outcomes, with ocean/water as one of several thematic verticals.
• Oceana: International ocean advocacy organization campaigning on fisheries, pollution, and climate policy. Comparable as a mission-aligned ocean NGO, but Oceana's operating model is policy-campaign-driven rather than the cross-sector business alliance model WOC runs.
• The Ocean Foundation: US-based ocean-focused community foundation supporting marine conservation and ocean policy initiatives. Comparable as a specialized ocean non-profit with a broad cross-sector donor and partner ecosystem, though smaller in operating scale than WOC's global convening ambition.
• BSR (Business for Social Responsibility): Global business sustainability network and consultancy convening member companies across industries. Closely comparable on business model — a cross-sector, membership-based alliance helping large corporations collaborate on sustainability — though BSR's thematic scope is far broader than oceans.
• Marine Stewardship Council: International non-profit running the world's leading sustainable seafood certification program, working with businesses across the seafood value chain. Structurally comparable as an ocean-focused NGO that convenes business stakeholders around sustainability standards; WOC lists MSC as a member.
• Ocean Conservancy: Long-standing international ocean conservation non-profit working with businesses, governments, and scientists on ocean health. Comparable mission and stakeholder model, though with a larger staff and broader consumer-advocacy orientation than WOC's business-alliance focus.
• Sustainable Ocean Alliance: Global ocean-focused alliance and accelerator mobilizing entrepreneurs and startups around ocean health. Comparable as a cross-sector ocean membership/convener, though more startup- and youth-oriented than WOC's corporate-heavy membership base.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/world-ocean-council

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about World Ocean Council