The Bezos Earth Fund is committing more than $25 million to ocean conservation projects across five Pacific nations. As stated in the official announcement, the latest funding will support conservation efforts in the Cook Islands, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Tonga and Vanuatu, as well as plans for marine protected areas in international waters. This covers more than 625,000 square miles of ocean, an area larger than Alaska. Noatbly, the funding is part of a larger $100 million commitment announced by the Bezos Earth Fund in 2023 to support the Pacific-led Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity initiative. With the latest grants, the fund, founded by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, says it has now committed $63.3 million towards that pledge.
Bezos Earth Fund backs five Pacific nations
The new grants will support different ocean conservation projects in five countries mentioned above.
- In the Cook Islands, funding will help advance the country’s Marae Moana ocean management plan, including expanding protections, improving monitoring and supporting local leadership.
- In Kiribati, the funding will support marine spatial planning, identifying important ocean habitats, strengthening existing protected areas and improving monitoring and enforcement.
- Papua New Guinea will use the support to work towards its first large offshore marine protected area and strengthen community stewardship of coastal waters.
- In Tonga, the funding will help establish new protected areas and improve monitoring and enforcement. Tonga has set a goal of protecting 30% of its ocean.
- In Vanuatu, the funding will support the implementation of its national marine spatial plan, including offshore conservation areas and community-led marine management.
Bezos Earth Fund also aims to support international waters
Notably, the latest donation by Jeff Bezos owned organization is not limited to waters controlled by individual countries. A separate grant to Rare will support Pacific governments in developing some of the world’s first proposals for marine protected areas on the high seas.The UN High Seas Treaty entered into force in January 2026, creating a legal pathway for countries to establish marine protected areas in international waters. The Bezos Earth Fund said Pacific governments will work with regional experts to identify important high-seas areas and develop proposals for their protection.
How the new $25 million links to Bezos’ 2023 pledge
The latest funding goes back to a commitment made by the Bezos Earth Fund at COP28 in 2023. At the time, the fund announced plans to provide up to $100 million to help Pacific Island leaders design and implement their Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity conservation plan.The initiative aims to sustainably manage 100% of the Blue Pacific Continent and protect at least 30% of the region by 2030. The 2023 announcement said the plan would protect more than 1 billion hectares of ocean and support the restoration of coral reefs, mangroves and other coastal ecosystems.The latest announcement marks the second round of funding under that $100 million commitment. The Earth Fund announced seven grants worth $37.5 million in 2025. With the new grants, its total funding under the Pacific commitment has reached $63.3 million.More Pacific countries are now involvedThe Bezos Earth Fund said work from its earlier grants is already underway. Earlier this year, French Polynesia created a network of fully protected marine areas covering nearly 625,000 square miles of ocean.In Niue, where 40% of national waters are already protected, Earth Fund funding is supporting monitoring, enforcement and long-term financing.With the latest round, 17 of the Pacific’s 22 countries and territories are now working on efforts to protect or sustainably manage their waters, according to the Bezos Earth Fund.
