In every coastal community, there comes a moment when the sea begins to feel different from how it should be.

Fishers notice it first: fewer fish in the nets, seasons arriving out of step and balance, waters that once felt abundant becoming barren, habitats that once supported life now devoid of it. For island nations like Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean and Ireland on the Atlantic, these changes are not abstractions in a policy paper. They are daily reminders that Europe must turn its promises for the ocean into real change at sea.

As one island nation passes the Presidency of the Council of the EU to another, Europe has an opportunity to show something too often missing from politics: ambition with empathy, continuity with foresight, and commitment with action.

Over the past six months, Cyprus helped bring islands, coastal communities and sustainable fisheries more firmly into Europe’s conversation about the future of the sea. Ireland, with its vibrant coastal communities and deep maritime identity, is well placed to carry that momentum forward as debate around the EU Ocean Act gathers pace.

For my family, the ocean has always been a place of discovery and hope. The place where my grandfather revealed a hidden world of life and beauty, and where my father saw the first signs of its decline. In my own lifetime, I have seen abundance disappear from waters that once teemed with life.  The Ocean is a living system that feeds people, supports livelihoods and protects coastlines. When marine ecosystems decline, coastal communities are among the first to feel the consequence

The proposed EU Ocean Act comes at a time when Europe must confront a simple but uncomfortable truth: pledges are plentiful, delivery far less so.

Europe has no shortage of commitments, from restoring nature and rebuilding fish stocks to supporting sustainable fisheries and protecting 30% of its seas by 2030. Yet, too often, there is still a gap between commitments made in Brussels and the reality in the water.

We see it when marine protected areas exist on paper while destructive activities continue within them. Fish populations remain overfished despite the knowledge that their populations are falling. Coastal communities are asked to adapt to climate change and ecological decline while having too little influence over decisions that affect their future. Is Europe prepared to implement what it has already agreed and turn ambition into visible recovery?

Recent discussions at the Ocean Act conference in Wexford, hosted by the Irish EU Presidency, showed that this is no longer an abstract idea. The Ocean Act is now clearly at the centre of a real political conversation about how Europe governs the sea, and whether it can turn promises on paper into healthier ecosystems, more abundant marine life and stronger coastal communities.

Ocean Act: Recovery in the water 

Ultimately, that is the standard by which the Ocean Act should be judged: whether it delivers real, measurable recovery in the water. Some of that recovery will be visible — healthier habitats, more abundant fish populations, thriving coastal waters. But some of the most important gains will be less visible: restored nursery grounds, healthier food webs, stronger ecosystem resilience, carbon-rich habitats protected, and marine life given the space and time to recover. The Ocean Act must help make marine protected areas genuinely protected, restore damaged habitats rather than simply manage their decline, and ensure that ocean governance supports the living systems on which every maritime sector ultimately depends.

It must also recognise the value of small-scale, low-impact fishers. Across Europe, these communities have cared for coastal waters for generations. Many of them can point to specific places where they have watched change unfold in their own lifetimes. They have a direct stake in healthy fish stocks, thriving marine ecosystems and resilient local economies. Giving them greater priority in coastal waters is not only a good environmental policy, but also a good social and economic policy.  Ocean protection and livelihoods do not have to be in conflict.

Oceana has highlighted the benefits of exclusive coastal zones; these are preferential access areas where low-impact fishers are prioritised, and more harmful large-vessel activity is restricted. Ireland’s efforts to limit damaging activity by larger vessels in its coastal waters point in the right direction. Cyprus, too, is showing how this debate can move from principle to practice. The government is exploring ways to reserve territorial waters for small-scale fishers, and Oceana’s analysis suggests this approach could bring substantial benefits to marine life and fishing communities while imposing only minimal costs on industrial operators. 

A shared responsibility 

The transition from the Cypriot Presidency to the Irish Presidency should therefore be seen not as the end of one chapter, but as the continuation of a shared responsibility. If Europe is serious about ocean leadership, it must maintain momentum beyond institutional handovers and ensure that the Ocean Act translates political attention into practical action.

Europe often speaks of global leadership at sea. Leadership begins at home. It is measured by what happens in European waters. The Ocean Act is an opportunity for Europe to show that leadership starts with effective protection, restored ecosystems, fairer access for low-impact fishers and funding that matches the scale of the challenge. In a world where science, cooperation and multilateralism are under pressure, this is also a leadership test: whether the EU can act collectively, follow the evidence and protect the marine life, habitats and coastal communities on which so much depends.

The ocean has sustained Europe’s islands for generations. Now Europe must show that it is ready to sustain the ocean.

*Alexandra Cousteau is co-founder of Oceans 2050 and Senior Advisor to Oceana, continuing her family's legacy of ocean advocacy with a focus on restoration and abundance.