The ocean, which regulates climate and supports vital ecosystem services, is crucial to our Earth system and livelihoods. Yet, it is threatened by anthropogenic pressures and climate change. A healthy ocean that supports a sustainable ocean economy requires adequate financing vehicles that generate, invest, align, and account for financial capital to achieve sustained ocean health and governance. However, the current finance gap is large; we identify key barriers to financing a sustainable ocean economy and suggest how to mitigate them, to incentivize the kind of public and private investments needed for topnotch science and management in support of a sustainable ocean economy.

A revised guide to supporting coastal wetland programs and projects using climate finance and other financial mechanisms Coastal "blue" carbon A revised guide to supporting coastal wetland programs and projects using climate finance and other financial mechanisms This revised report has been written by D. Herr and, in alphabetic order, T. Agardy, D. Benzaken, F. Hicks, J. Howard, E. Landis, A. Soles and T. Vegh, with prior contributions from E. Pidgeon, M. Silvius and E. Trines.The designation of geographical entities in this book, and the presentation of the material, do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of IUCN, Conservation International and Wetlands International concerning the legal status of any country, territory, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of IUCN, Conservation International, Wetlands International, The Nature Conservancy, Forest Trends or the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions.Copyright: © 2015 International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, Conservation International, Wetlands International, The Nature Conservancy, Forest Trends and the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions.Reproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is authorized without prior written permission from the copyright holder provided the source is fully acknowledged.Reproduction of this publication for resale or other commercial purposes is prohibited without prior written permission of the copyright holder.

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The Blue Economy is a catch all term that is used to describe a wide variety of development approaches and priorities in the ocean and coastal areas. A number of distinct, and sometimes conflicting discourses have emerged in relation to the Blue Economy, which are distinguished by the degree to which they prioritize different development objectives. This paper explores the range of Blue Economy interpretations, governance strategies and implementation approaches that exist across Commonwealth countries. Key Blue Economy policy statements and governance instruments are analysed in order to ascertain the way the Blue Economy is being institutionalized at a national level, with reference to the Sustainable Development Goals and the Commonwealth Blue Charter. High-level Blue Economy objectives appear to prioritize economic and environmental objectives, with limited engagement with equity objectives including food security and gender equality. Blue Economy objectives are primarily being institutionalized through a diverse array of strategies, plans and policies with limited information on mechanisms for implementation. Finally, there are signs that the Blue Economy may be facilitating a greater degree of integration across sectoral management, with the emergence of range of boundary-crossing arrangements in a number of the countries examined. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Nurturing resilient marine ecosystems’.