1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites
Live TV
Latest audioLatest videos
In focus
Israel-Hamas warUkraineExtreme weather
Nature and EnvironmentGlobal issues

UN high seas treaty: How to better protect our oceans

February 24, 2023

UN member states have agreed on an historic treaty that would better protect the world's high seas, the portions of the ocean that don't fall under the jurisdiction of any state.

https://p.dw.com/p/4Nvzm
A school of fish swimming by a coral reef
Image: Reinhard Dirscherl/picture alliance

The historic treaty, agreed to on March 4, 2022 will protect and preserve vast areas of the world's oceans. While the high seas make up nearly 60% of the world's oceans, they have long drawn far less attention than coastal waters.

Skip next section Reports & Analysis

Reports & Analysis

A school of yellow-backed fusilier fish glides past a healthy coral reef off the Maldives, as the sun shines through the water above

UN to start ratifying historic deal to protect high seas

A new UN treaty contains landmark tools for the conservation and management of the world's international waters.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 20, 2023
Corals in shallow Water, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia

Coral reefs: Why are they so important?

Things don't look great for coral reefs. But why does it matter if they're being bleached or cooked in warming seas?
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 28, 2023
The fluke of a sperm whale sticks out of the sea as it dives in the sea.

High seas treaty is 'a big deal': Oceanographer

Researcher Robert Blasiak outlines the UN high seas protection treaty and explains why it's taken so long to negotiate.
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 5, 202303:33 min
Firefighters in france during a heat wave

How does climate change affect El Nino and La Nina cycles?

A shift in ocean winds could push global temperatures even higher in 2023 and wreak havoc on weather across the world.
Nature and EnvironmentJanuary 27, 2023
A coral jeweler in Tunisia

Hunt for 'red gold' corals pushes ecosystems to the brink

A coral-smuggling business that has emerged around the Mediterranean is harming wildlife.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 28, 2023
DW Sendung Euromaxx 28.01.2023 JR CHUO, Scherenschnitte

Saving coral reefs with scissor art

The ornate paper cutting art by JR CHUO is inspired by coral reefs and the threats to them.
ArtsJanuary 28, 202304:56 min