Waves of Change

What Waves of Change does

Waves of Change is a French non-profit association (Association loi 1901) founded in 2019 and headquartered in Biarritz, France, that operates a multi-stakeholder collaboration platform connecting coastal cities, startups, investors, corporations, NGOs, academia, and public-sector bodies to address coastal sustainability challenges. Its core 'product' is an annual international Forum in Biarritz that convenes up to 200 curated participants across 7 verticals (Coastal Adaptation, Water Management, Waste Management & Circularity, Sustainable Mobility, Energy Transition, Sustainable Tourism & Local Communities, Biodiversity & Public Health) and 2 horizontals (Talent, Funding), supported by year-round thematic 'Wave' work groups, each structurally required to include at least one startup, one corporate, one investor, one NGO/public-sector entity, and one academic member. Surrounding the Forum are the Tideline Startup Label (4-level certification, 75 startups in 2025/26), the 8-month Waves Talent Program, the Coastal Cities Impact Facility (targeting €500MM of investment into coastal projects by 2035), and operational projects such as Common Waves/Euskal Itsas Parkea on the Basque Coast. The 2026 edition introduced a dedicated sustainable AI theme and a new Tideline Coastal Innovation Award with Ecolab and Bpifrance.

Revenue is generated primarily through coalition membership fees (individual, organizational, and coastal-city tiers on annual billing with non-public pricing), tax-deductible donations via HelloAsso, and project-specific support from foundations such as the AXA Foundation for Human Progress and Indarra. The organization is volunteer-driven, with disclosed headcount of 1–10 and a broad named contributor base of 50+ strategists, scientists, finance leads, and regional ambassadors spanning Europe, North America, South America, Africa, and Asia. Go-to-market is event-driven (annual Forum plus ecosystem mornings/nights and the UN Ocean Conference) combined with a community-led coalition membership model, supported by LinkedIn, newsletter, and earned-media channels and amplified through partnerships with VivaTech (Friend Event), ChangeNow, EuroQuity/Bpifrance, EDHEC Climate Institute, Impact Hub Taipei, Surfrider Foundation Europe, and Ocean & Climate Platform.

Name

Waves of Change

Legal name

Association Waves of Change

Website

https://wavesofchange.earth

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Waves of Change is a French non-profit association, founded in 2019 in Biarritz, that convenes coastal cities, startups, investors, corporates, NGOs, and academia through an annual Forum, thematic work groups, and a startup label to drive coastal sustainability and blue-economy projects worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ocean Conservation / Blue Economy Coalition

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312)

akta.pro primary industry

Climate Change Mitigation & Adaptation (BPAGAGAF)

Keywords

• Ocean conservation
• Blue economy coalition
• Impact entrepreneurship
• Coastal restoration programs
• Sustainability convening

Headquarters

HQ city

Biarritz

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Coalition Membership Fees: Individual and organization memberships providing access to annual events including the international Forum in Biarritz, network access, business development opportunities, and expert facilitation. Organization membership offers CSR strategy support at various pricing levels.
2. Donations: Tax-deductible donations from supporters, particularly in France where membership and donations are tax-deductible.
3. Coastal City Membership: Specific membership tier for coastal cities providing access to action-driven coalition and concrete project delivery.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Waves of Change is a non-profit association (Association loi 1901) founded in 2019 in Biarritz, France, that convenes impact-driven entrepreneurs, investors, corporations, and public-sector actors to accelerate solutions for ocean conservation and the blue economy. It delivers an annual international Forum, themed Work Groups ("Waves"), the Tideline startup acceleration program, a Coalition membership community, the Common Waves collaborative project, and the Coastal Cities Impact Facility for coastal restoration financing.

Product overview

Waves of Change is a non-profit platform and facility connecting coastal cities, innovators, startups, research centers, corporations, non-profits, foundations, investors, and communities to solve coastal sustainability challenges together. The organization operates a core annual Forum product (held in Biarritz, FR) combined with thematic work groups called 'Waves' addressing 7 verticals (Coastal Adaptation, Water Management, Waste Management & Circularity, Sustainable Mobility, Energy Transition, Sustainable Tourism & Local Communities, Biodiversity & Public Health) plus 2 horizontals (Talent, Funding). Supporting products include the Tideline Startup Program/Label (4-level certification for startups), Waves Talent Program (8-month immersive learning), Coalition Membership (individual, organizational, and coastal city tiers), Common Waves/Euskal Itsas Parkea (local Basque Coast project), and the Coastal Cities Impact Facility (targeting €500mn investment by 2035). The 2026 edition introduced the Tideline Coastal Innovation Award and added sustainable AI components to the startup program in partnership with EuroQuity Bpifrance and Ecolab.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• International Ocean Forum Annual flagship international forum convening entrepreneurs, investors, corporations, scientists, and public-sector actors around ocean conservation and the blue economy, held in Biarritz with sessions such as the 2025 edition.
• Work Groups (Waves) Themed collaborative work groups that bring together coalition members to co-develop actionable proposals and solutions for specific ocean and blue economy challenges.

Quantifiable outcome

• 214 registered participants, 19 countries, 41 collaborative Wave sessions, 180+ productive connections (2021 Forum)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

22 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Impact Hub TaipeiflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Intercoastal cooperation MoU signed during 2026 AI, Ocean & Coastal Territories Forum. Promising collaboration for Taiwanese, Asian and European startups and coastal cities through Tideline Startup Program.
• EDHEC Climate InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 January 2026Partnership to strengthen ties between climate science and action for coastal territories. EDHEC will contribute academic and scientific expertise on climate risk assessment, particularly physical climate risks affecting coastal territories and infrastructure. Involved in Waves of Change flagship forum. Contributes to Coastal Cities Impact Facility targeting €500MM by 2035.
• Ecolab - Greentech InnovationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 January 2026Partnership with French Government's Ecolab on AI, Ocean and Coastal Territories Forum. Ecolab presented Tideline Coastal Innovation Awards including AI for Ocean Protection and AI for Coastal Resilience categories.
• WWF GermanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint initiative with Microsoft and Accenture on Ghost Net AI project - AI-powered detection and recovery of ghost nets and abandoned fishing gear, winner of AI for Ocean Protection award.
• MicrosoftcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership through Ghost Net AI initiative with WWF and Accenture for AI-powered detection and recovery of ghost nets.
• AccenturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership through Ghost Net AI initiative with WWF and Microsoft for AI-powered detection and recovery of ghost nets.
• UNESCOflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAP and UNESCO partnership for AI-Assisted Disaster Risk Management System in Solomon Islands, winner of AI for Coastal Resilience award.
• SAPflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerEdison project: SAP and UNESCO partnership for AI-Assisted Disaster Risk Management System in Solomon Islands, winner of AI for Coastal Resilience award.
• Hub France IAcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerStrategic partner in AI for Ocean Forum collaboration alongside Ecolab, DGAMPA, and Ville de Biarritz.
• DGAMPA - Affairs maritimes, pêche et aquaculturecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerFrench government maritime affairs partner in AI for Ocean Forum collaboration.
• Ville de BiarritzcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost city partner for annual Forum since 2019. Active participant in Sister Cities Program with Santa-Cruz CA and coastal adaptation initiatives.
• VivatechflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerWaves of Change Forum is a Friend Event of Vivatech, the leading European Tech Conference.
• BluenovecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborator on Ocean 2050 Bright Mirror prospective workshop and new matrix for high impact narratives and projects.
• Ocean & Climate PlatformcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-host of Coastal Adaptation Wave and Sea'ties project. Network of 90+ organizations advocating ocean-climate issues.
• Credit Agricole - Startup VillagecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Waves of Breizh 2022 initiative with Bluenove for collective intelligence around ocean preservation projects.
• Oceanas CommoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitial collaboration on Common Waves/Euskal Itsas Parkea project for Basque Marine Space co-construction.
• EDFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate participant in Smart Renewables Wave and energy transition initiatives.
• Surfrider Foundation EuropecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNGO partner collaborating on World Ocean Day celebrations and ocean conservation initiatives.
• OgyrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOcean plastic recovery initiative selected for Tideline Startup Program. Partnership to collect 450kg of plastic waste to compensate participant plastic consumption.
• ChangeNowflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerHistorical ally and partner at ChangeNow Summit. Co-hosting workshops on coastal resilience and flood management.
• Nouvelle Aquitaine RegioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional government partner in Forum hosting and coastal sustainability initiatives.
• La French Tech Pays BasquecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal tech ecosystem partner supporting startup participation in Forum.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Sea'ties: Initiative under the Ocean & Climate Platform focused on coastal cities and adaptation. Directly comparable because it is purpose-built to drive coastal-city climate action and is already co-delivered with Waves of Change.
• ChangeNow: Global summit and ecosystem for solutions for the planet. Highly comparable because it convenes the same startups, corporates, and investors around sustainability and is both a partner and co-host of workshops with Waves of Change, representing a larger-scale version of the same convening model.
• Fondation de la Mer: French foundation mobilizing public and private actors around ocean preservation. Comparable because it convenes French and international ocean stakeholders through events, partnerships, and project co-funding, and is a co-host partner of Waves of Change's France India Ocean Summit.
• Ocean & Climate Platform: A network of 90+ organizations advocating on ocean-climate issues. Directly comparable to Waves of Change because it operates the same multi-stakeholder advocacy coalition model and is already a co-host partner on Waves of Change's Coastal Adaptation Wave and Sea'ties project.
• Surfrider Foundation Europe: European ocean conservation NGO focused on coastal water quality, plastic pollution, and coastal protection. Directly comparable as a non-profit coastal advocacy organization with overlapping mission; also a current partner of Waves of Change on World Ocean Day and Euroceans youth initiatives.

Emerging players

• Impact Hub Network: Global network of impact-focused entrepreneur communities. Comparable as a community-led coalition model with local hubs and program-based engagement; recently formalized intercoastal cooperation with Waves of Change via Impact Hub Taipei MoU.
• Bluenove: Collective intelligence and mass stakeholder engagement platform. Comparable because it enables the kind of multi-stakeholder facilitation work Waves of Change runs in its Waves and is a current collaboration partner (Ocean 2050 Bright Mirror, Waves of Breizh).

Broad incumbents

• Oceana: Largest international ocean-focused advocacy organization. Comparable as a broader incumbent in the ocean conservation space with global policy advocacy, scientific research, and field campaigns; competes for philanthropic and policy attention with Waves of Change.
• World Economic Forum Ocean Action Agenda: WEF's ocean-focused multi-stakeholder platform convening governments, corporations, and NGOs. Comparable as a high-prestige ocean convening layer with significantly larger corporate access and resources than Waves of Change.
• UN Global Compact Ocean Stewardship Coalition: UN-led multi-stakeholder coalition engaging businesses on ocean sustainability. Comparable as a much larger, institutionally-backed ocean coalition operating at the global policy level; directly relevant to Waves of Change's SDG #17 partnerships framing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wavesofchangecoalition
• Facebookfacebook.com/WavesofChangeCoalition

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

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 Waves of Change