The Earthshot Prize
Bonds for Ocean Conservation
A 2025 Earthshot Prize Finalist in the Revive our Oceans category, pioneered by the Debt for Nature Coalition
The Earthshot Prize:
Founded by HRH Prince William in 2020, The Earthshot Prize recognizes solutions from different geographies, sectors, and stages in their life cycle, and is dedicated to solving our planet’s greatest challenges. The Prize in 2025 marks the halfway point in the Earthshot decade, as the mission gathers pace in this next critical juncture.
Challenge:
Some of the richest marine ecosystems in the world are found in countries which are least financially able to protect them, and who are the most vulnerable to climate change. Many of these nations are burdened by national debt, leaving them unable to invest in conservation.
Solution:
A game-changing solution is emerging in the form of Bonds for Ocean Conservation, led by the newly formed Debt for Nature Coalition. Blue Bonds are a financial mechanism that allows countries to refinance expensive debt on better terms, with part of the savings redirected toward long-term marine conservation.
Bonds for Ocean Conservation:
Ecuador’s Galápagos debt conversion, supported by Pew Bertarelli Ocean Legacy and other partners saved the government more than $1 billion and unlocked more than $450 million for marine conservation. As a result, Ecuador made new commitments to improve the sustainability of its fisheries and create the 6-million-hectare Hermandad Marine Reserve, which is home to sea turtles, dolphins, and sharks, and other endangered marine life. Marine protected areas like this generate a ripple effect of healthy biodiversity, which supports fishing stocks, that provide livelihoods and vital food sources across the world.
Galápagos Islands Case Study
A trailblazing story of just what this solution can achieve is found in the Galápagos Islands, where one debt conversion unlocked over $450 million for ocean conservation. This investment increased government protections for the 6-million-hectare Hermandad Marine Reserve, which is home to sea turtles, dolphins, and sharks, and other endangered marine life.
Bonds for Ocean Conservation
Watch Susana Cárdenas, Board Director and Co-Chair of Galapágos Life Fund, discuss how Bonds for Ocean Conservation transforms ocean protection on a global scale by enabling countries to refinance debt and instead invest billions into saving our seas. She is an ecologist and natural resource economist working as full-time professor, researcher and Co-Director of the Institute of Applied Ecology at Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Ecuador.
Video Credit: The Earthshot Prize
Leadership, Progress, and Future
of Nature, Resilience, and People
“The Galápagos debt conversion exemplifies how financial innovation can drive conservation. Ecuador not only secured significant savings but also created a lasting funding stream to protect one of the world’s most biodiverse marine ecosystems. By collaborating across organizations and sharing our collective expertise, the Coalition is setting a high bar for quality and ambition in future deals.”
— Tom Dillon, Senior VP of Environment and Cross-Cutting Initiative at The Pew Charitable Trusts
“The world’s biodiversity and climate crises are compounded by the global debt crisis. The ‘Nature Bonds’ debt conversion model is a proven, scalable solution which uniquely addresses all three. We are exceedingly proud of the innovative debt conversion work we have supported in six different sovereign nations, and yet recognize that our planet needs more and faster. The radical collaboration, scalability and transparency made possible through the Debt for Nature Coalition are exactly the type of ambition required in this moment for our planet and for future generations.”
— Jennifer Morris, CEO of The Nature Conservancy
“No single institution can solve the interconnected crises of nature loss, livelihood insecurity and sovereign debt stress on their own. The Debt for Nature Coalition is built on the belief that collaboration can unlock solutions greater than the sum of their parts—transforming fragility into resilience, crisis into opportunity and debt burdens into engines for nature conservation. Through collective action, we’re helping to solve the planet’s greatest challenges by supporting a new economic architecture for a thriving, sustainable future.”
— Adam Tomášek, Executive Director of the Debt for Nature Coalition