Open ocean swell under a low sky
Toward BBNJ COP1

Indigenous Ocean

Peoples Beyond National Jurisdiction

Indigenous Ocean is a collective of Indigenous Oceanic Peoples: leaders, scholars, scientists, voyagers, and community leaders whose relationships with the ocean continue today. Our connections with each other and with the ocean existed before the boundaries that created the high seas, and they will continue beyond the high seas issue. The BBNJ Agreement is why we are coming together now. Through PBNJ, Peoples Beyond National Jurisdiction, we are seeking recognition of Indigenous Oceanic territories and a seat at the table as rights holders under the BBNJ Agreement.

The geography did not begin with BBNJ

Waters now defined under UN law as the high seas overlap with Indigenous Oceanic territories, relationships, responsibilities, knowledge, and governance that long predate that legal designation.

Indigenous Oceanic Peoples bring navigation, governance, and relationships with the ocean developed over generations. High seas governance that recognizes them will be better informed and more durable.

A school of fish beneath breaking surf, seen from below
The scale of what is being decided

The BBNJ Agreement will shape governance across nearly two-thirds of the ocean.

The treaty entered into force in January 2026. Its first Conference of the Parties is expected in January 2027. Decisions about how the treaty works, who takes part, and who holds authority are being made now. Indigenous Peoples have little direct engagement, recognition, legal standing, or formal role in those decisions today. We are seeking a seat at that table as rights holders.

INDIGENOUS OCEANPEOPLES BEYOND NATIONAL JURISDICTIONPBNJ

Our work

Three workstreams move together. Research gives Indigenous priorities the evidence they need, legal and policy work identifies where influence can be exercised, and the collective carries both into the rooms where decisions are made.

Research + Evidence

Rigorous research and plain-language materials for Indigenous communities and policymakers, timed to the moments when decisions are made.

What evidence is most needed, and for whom?

Law + Policy

Identifying where Indigenous participation and authority can be secured within BBNJ institutions and processes, and what it will take to get there.

What should we be working toward, and what is possible?

Coalition Building

Bringing people together through trusted relationships to build shared understanding, coordination, and collective strength.

What would make this collective useful and credible to you?

An ocean lens

From land, the Pacific is divided into continents and countries. From the ocean, it is one body of water that connects Oceania with Southeast Alaska and the Pacific coasts of Asia and the Americas. Indigenous Oceanic Peoples are defined by their relationships with the ocean, wherever they live.

Our work begins in the Pacific, where voyaging, navigation, and ocean governance have continued without interruption, and where many Indigenous Oceanic Peoples live today. The collective is open to Indigenous peoples of every ocean.

Where the Pacific reaches: Oceania · Southeast Alaska · Asia · the Americas

Between now and COP1

A stronger, more coordinated foundation for Indigenous influence as BBNJ implementation takes shape.

Strategic collective action

Now

Build together.

COP1, January 2027

Show up with greater clarity and collective strength.

Beyond COP1

Sustain engagement as BBNJ governance evolves.

Shape what comes next

We are building this collective carefully, through relationships. If you are an Indigenous leader, practitioner, researcher, or voyager whose work is tied to the ocean, in national waters or beyond, we would like to hear from you.

Contact aloha@indigenousocean.com
Convened by Nia Tero · Big Ocean · Earth Law Center · Blue Ocean Law