Our Third Year in Review

This year marked a major step forward for collaboration in the Kelp Forest Alliance. We’ve grown to include members in every country with kelp forests, and beyond. These partnerships are now producing exciting new ways to deliver on the Kelp Forest Challenge.

After a busy year of seaweed conferences across California, British Columbia, the French Riviera, Norway, and the French Atlantic, we’ve heard strong, shared commitment to kelp from ministers to community organizers. We’ve also clarified the scale of investment needed: $14B to protect and restore 4M hectares of kelp forests by 2040.

Next year, we’ll keep building regional alliances to assess local kelp conditions and co-create action plans that reflect local priorities. As the Alliance grows, we welcome diverse ways of thinking and caring for kelp—from big business to local artists—because everyone can help the kelp.

Aaron Eger

Board Of Directors Program Director FounderKelp Forest Alliance

Adriana Vergés

Board Of DirectorsKelp Forest Alliance

Peter Steinberg

Board Of DirectorsKelp Forest Alliance

Tristin McHugh

Community AdvisorKelp Forest Alliance

Angelo Villagomez

Indigenous Partnerships AdvisorKelp Forest Alliance

1. Second Kelp Forest Summit

How Many Seaweed Lovers Does it take to Meet the Challenge?

Bringing together 188 participants from 23 countries, the International Temperate Reef and Seaweed Symposia provided a rare opportunity for collaboration across the global kelp community. Together, scientists and practitioners workshopped key challenges and identified shared solutions to strengthen local kelp conservation programs around the world.

2. A Voice for Global Kelp Conservation

A global effort of 118 authors from 31 regions has created the most comprehensive review of kelp forest conservation ever produced. Capturing every major kelp region, this landmark benchmark showcases the depth of international collaboration and sets a new foundation for global action.

3. Indigenous Working Group

Seventeen participants from six countries came together for our first Indigenous Working Group meeting — a narrative-driven gathering grounded in shared experience and mutual learning. This event marked the start of building lasting trust and partnerships to ensure Indigenous knowledge and leadership are central to future kelp conservation work.

4. Fundraising Target

To meet the Kelp Forest Challenge, we’re defining the scale of investment needed to achieve both protection and restoration targets by 2040. This ambitious but achievable goal will rely on collaborative science and partnerships — ensuring every dollar raised helps safeguard and regenerate the world’s kelp forests.

5. Australian Emerging Leader in Science

We were honoured that our Program Director, Dr. Aaron Eger, received the 2025 Eureka Prize for Emerging Leader in Science — a recognition open to all scientists nationwide within eight years of their PhD. Standing alongside finalists in quantum physics, health, and microbiology, this award celebrates the growing impact of kelp science and leadership in marine conservation.

6. Environmental Site Selection App

Our new Environmental Site Selection App draws on data from over 400,000 kelp occurrence points to explore the conditions where kelp thrives. Freely available to the public, it’s a powerful new tool for managers, restoration practitioners, and scientists to identify and prioritize the best sites for kelp conservation and recovery.

7. UN Ocean Conference

At the UN Ocean Conference, we met with ministers and representatives from six countries to advance kelp conservation on the global stage. These discussions laid the groundwork for our inclusion in the UN Climate Champions’ Marine Breakthrough Initiative — a major step toward integrating kelp forests into global climate and biodiversity goals.

Key Media

The world’s kelp needs help — less than 2% is highly protected Mongabay

Finding a Sense of Place in the Ocean Nautilus

We Know Enough to Save our Planet TedX

10 Billion Invest for Our World's Kelp Forests PhysNews

Marine Protected Areas Show Promise for Kelp Recovery EoS News

Global Champion of Marine Conservation Australian Museum

We are now starting to see ocean conservation and kelp forests elevated to the same status as other key societal issues

A Unified Community

745 People

383 Organisations

31 Countries

12 Talks and Presentations

4 Scientific Papers

260 Workshop Participants

1 Web Tool

3 Masters Students and 1 PhD

5 National and International Conferences

4 National Governments Engaged

410 Citations

7,000 Web Users

Awarded the Emerging Leader in Science for Australia

While we have many global conservation agendas, we continually need to make sure that kelp forests are included in 30x30, Nature Positive, Blue Carbon methodologies, and Environmental Accounting programmes. Recognition is growing but kelp forests are still largely absent. We have much of the science and knowledge needed to incorporate kelp forests into these programmes, we just need our kelp champions.

In 2026, we anticipate these champions to come from many different backgrounds with some exciting announcements about company social responsibility, education programes, and dazzling art and media projects showcasing kelp forests. Governments still need to play a leading role and we hope to make COP31 a meeting of kelp forests and celebrate our progress while onboarding new governments and communities.

Science will always guide our policy and practice advice. Stay tuned as we complete exciting new research on mapping kelp forests, understanding the benefits of restored kelp, and identifying ways to enable Indigenous leadership in kelp conservation.

A Global Showcase of Kelp Forests

The world will gather once again to make commitments for climate action and biodiversity loss. We will lead a coalition of NGOs, governments, communities, and scientists to ensure that kelp forests are front and centre in that conservation.

Mapping our Kelp Forests

Where in the world are our kelp forests? We somehow still lack accurate national or global maps of most kelp forest ecosystems. We will bring together leading researchers and create high resolution models of kelp forests all around the world.

Local Kelp Alliances

How does each country meet the Kelp Forest Challenge? We will work with our partners to convene regional working groups to understand the current status of kelp conservation and co-develop inclusive action plans to achieve agreed upon goals.

Benefits of Restored Kelp Forests

We know that kelp forests provide countless ecosystem services to society, but do restored kelp forests provide the same level of benefit? We are working with a team spread across 6 countries to provide the first assessment of the benefits of large scale restoration projects.