The Natural Current: fragile forces underpinning the global economy

“Scientists are sounding alarm bells, telling us that global sustainability and prosperity are at great risk unless we halt the activities that deplete our ocean.” This was one of the key warnings from the Honourable Jane Lubchenco Ph.D. in her keynote address to the Deutsche Bank x ORRAA Ocean Summit 2026. 

A world-renowned marine biologist, Distinguished Professor at Oregon State University and former Under Secretary of State for Oceans and Atmosphere, Dr Lubchenco pointed out that as much as 35 percent of the carbon emissions reductions needed to meet the Paris Agreement goals by 2050 can come from ocean-based solutions.

“The Ocean is central to our future. It’s central to our economies, it’s central to opportunities, it is central to food security, and it is central to climate solutions,” she said.

What ocean risks mean for investors, families and global markets

The Ocean is absorbing around 90 percent of the excess heat produced by anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, losing oxygen and becoming more acidic, placing growing stress on marine life and the ecosystems that support it.

Warmer and less resilient waters are also contributing to the spread of marine diseases, while overfishing and illegal fishing continue to exhaust stocks and disrupt food chains. The result is a mounting threat to habitats and species, from coral reefs and mangroves to the biodiversity that underpins coastal livelihoods.

“Ocean degradation is starting to weigh on productivity,” said Markus Müller, Chief Investment Officer Sustainability & Global Head of Chief Investment Office, Deutsche Bank Private Bank. “While the ocean economy continues to grow, we are undermining the productivity of an engine that should be self-sustaining.”

Protecting our seas is crucial to tackling the climate crisis and safeguarding economies. For investors and families taking a long-term view, ocean conservation is becoming increasingly relevant to long-term resilience, risk, and the responsible allocation of capital, the audience heard.

How the sustainable blue economy is becoming a strategic priority

Despite the urgency and scale of the challenge, several developments offer grounds for cautious optimism, Lubchenco argued. A new narrative is emerging, helped by fresh perspectives such as the Spilhaus map, which recentres the Ocean as one connected system rather than a series of separate seas. This shift is helping to frame the sustainable blue economy as an environmental priority, as well as an economic and strategic imperative.

There are also signs of greater collective intent to address the challenge, she noted. Coalitions of the willing, including the Ocean Panel and Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship, as well as the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance, show how governments, business leaders, scientists and investors can work across sectors to translate shared concern into coordinated action.

“Markets and societies have always had a close relationship with the Ocean, from fisheries and natural resources to trade routes and migration,” Müller highlighted. “Today, however, that relationship is changing fundamentally. Where the Ocean once created risks for us, we are now creating risks for the Ocean through warming, pollution and overuse.”

He argued: “Protecting the Ocean can unlock future prosperity, resilience and job creation but doing so requires knowledge, innovation and a willingness to build a more resilient relationship between nature, technology and finance.”