PHILIPSBURG:--- Tadzio Bervoets, Technical Officer at the Caribbean Biodiversity Fund (CBF), was among the featured speakers at the joint side event Scaling Blue Carbon Investments: Enabling Financing for Seagrass and Coastal Ecosystems, held on June 12 during the Third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in Nice, France. The event brought together high-level representatives, scientists, and financial experts to discuss how blue carbon investments can serve as critical tools for climate action, biodiversity conservation, and coastal resilience.
Hosted by the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), Notre Grande Bleu (NGB), and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), with the support of partners including the United Nations Office for Sustainable Development (UNOSD), the Caribbean Biodiversity Fund, the Mediterranean Posidonia Network, and the Agence Française de Développement (AfD), the event spotlighted emerging mechanisms and frameworks that bridge science, policy, and finance. Government representatives from Kenya, Indonesia, and France joined a broad coalition of regional and international stakeholders, with welcome remarks delivered by ministers from France and Kenya. Other panelists included Mr. Park Chun Kyoo, Head of UNOSD; Ms. Florence Merle, Deputy Director for European and International Relations at the French Biodiversity Agency (OFB); and Ahmed Ghedira, President of SEE.
Mr. Bervoets contributed to the finance-focused panel moderated by GGGI, presenting the work of the CBF in establishing a regional financial infrastructure that enables long-term investment in blue carbon ecosystems—such as mangroves and seagrasses—through its Conservation Finance Program. He highlighted the Caribbean Sustainable Finance Architecture, which includes an Endowment Fund valued at over US$85 million, a network of National Conservation Trust Funds (NCTFs), and sinking funds that are collectively designed to provide sustainable financing for biodiversity and climate adaptation initiatives across more than a dozen Caribbean countries and territories.
In his remarks, Bervoets emphasized the urgent need to move beyond project-based funding cycles toward system-based financial solutions that empower governments and local actors to implement integrated climate and biodiversity strategies. He presented the BluEFin project—funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and executed by the CBF—as a key institutional initiative focused on scaling sustainable blue economy finance across the region.
“Blue carbon ecosystems are among the most effective natural solutions for climate mitigation and adaptation, yet they remain severely underfunded and underrepresented in global climate finance mechanisms,” said Bervoets. “Through BluEFin and other institutional initiatives, the CBF is working to shift this imbalance by strengthening enabling environments, supporting national policy integration, and catalyzing public and private capital to invest in long-term coastal resilience.”
The side event showcased global best practices, including seagrass policy-finance roadmaps, Article 6-aligned carbon markets, and blended finance instruments that can accelerate investment in nature-positive solutions. Discussions underscored that policy coherence, scientific data, and financial innovation must go hand in hand to unlock the full potential of blue carbon ecosystems.
The Caribbean Biodiversity Fund’s participation affirmed the region’s leadership in creating viable, replicable models for financing nature-based solutions, offering lessons not only for island states but for coastal nations globally navigating the intersection of climate, biodiversity, and development priorities.
