1987–1992

The Brundtland Commission (also known as the World Commission on Environment and Development) noted in the 1987 Brundtland Report that the ocean sector lacked a strong voice compared to other sectors.^[3]

At the first World Ocean Day in 1992, the objectives were to move the ocean from the sidelines to the centre of the intergovernmental and NGO discussions and policy and to strengthen the voice of ocean and coastal constituencies worldwide.

2002–2008

Globally coordinated efforts began with The Ocean Project and the World Ocean Network collaborating, and events numbered in the dozens. During this time, www.WorldOceanDay.org launched,^[4] to help promote the opportunity to raise the profile of the ocean and provide opportunities for getting involved and making a difference for our blue planet. The website provides event organisers with ways to help in their communities, and generates global involvement through the dissemination of educational and actionable resources, ideas, and tools, always free for everyone to use to celebrate World Ocean Day in whatever way they choose. In 2004, The Ocean Project and World Ocean Network launched the "Help Make a Difference for our Ocean Planet!" with both online and in person opportunities to sign a petition to the United Nations to officially recognise 8 June as World Ocean Day.^[5] In December 2008, the UN General Assembly passed a Declaration to officially recognise the Day.^[6][7]

Overview

The United Nations selected the following annual themes for the Day:

• 2009: "Our Oceans, Our Responsibilities"
• 2010: "Our Oceans: Opportunities and Challenges"
• 2011: "Our Oceans: greening our future"
• 2012: "UNCLOS @ 30" — United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
• 2013: "Oceans & People"
• 2014: "Ocean Sustainability: Together let's ensure oceans can sustain us into the future"
• 2015: "Healthy Oceans, Healthy Planet"
• 2016: "Healthy Oceans, Healthy Planet ⁠— Voyaging to a Sustainable Planet: Arrival of the Hōkūle‘a"
• 2017: "Our Oceans, Our Future"
• 2018: "Clean our Ocean!"
• 2019: "Gender and Oceans"
• 2020: "Innovation for a Sustainable Ocean"
• 2021: "The Ocean: Life & Livelihoods"
• 2022: "Revitalization: Collective Action for the Ocean"
• 2023: "Planet Ocean: Tides are Changing"

2008

The Ocean Project and World Ocean Network launched an annual theme for the first time: "Helping our climate / helping our ocean" with a special focus on coral reefs, to help support the International Year of the Reef.

2009–2010

Continued and more heavily emphasised on climate with conservation action theme of "one ocean, one climate, one future" because comprehensive polling work showed that the public not making the connections between climate change and ocean health.

2010

The Ocean Project and World Ocean Network recorded over 300 events for WOD 2010, a 26% increase over 2009. Participation in the United States increased by 32% (with participation in 37 states, as compared to 25 states the previous year). Forty-five countries participated in World Oceans Day 2010, including Bangladesh, Belgium, French Polynesia, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Malta, Malaysia, Venezuela, and Portugal.

2011–2012

Based on growing requests from around the world for a two-year focus, The Ocean Project and World Ocean Network launched "Youth: the Next Wave for Change" encouraging all participating organizations to more effectively engage young people in their communities and countries for education and action.

2013

The "Make a Promise" global campaign focused again on supporting organizations to use World Oceans Day events as opportunities to ask people in their communities or target audiences to take action for our shared ocean.

2014

Through the global World Ocean Day network, stepped up involvement on the major issues facing the ocean, and launched "Together We Have the Power to Protect the Ocean!" with action guides on renewable energy/climate change, sustainable seafood/fisheries, plastics action. Events registered on the World Ocean Day website numbered in the hundreds. The United Nations together with partners launched the annual amateur World Oceans Day Oceanic Photo Competition.^[8][9]

2015–2019

In solidarity with the annual UN themes, The Ocean Project launched a five-year Conservation Action Focus on plastic pollution prevention and helping with solutions for a healthy world ocean. The World Ocean Day Youth Advisory Council launched in 2016, and current cohort includes 25 diverse young leaders (ages 15–23) from 22 countries. Annual Reports since 2016 can be viewed here.

2020

The UN theme for World Oceans Day was "Innovation for a sustainable ocean".^[10] Conservation Action Focus on protecting 30% of our lands and ocean by 2030 ("30x30"), joining with the Campaign for Nature and the growing global movement to petition world leaders to commit their countries to 30x30. The Ocean Project and National Geographic coordinated a first-ever 24-hour Youth-a-thon for the ocean, with 24 co-hosts from 24 major time zones discussing and demonstrating ways to learn more about and help protect our shared blue planet. The World Ocean Day 2020 Annual Report can be viewed here.

2021

The theme for World Oceans Day in 2021 was'The Ocean: Life & Livelihoods'.^[11] The aim of this year's campaign was to "shed light on the wonder of the ocean and how it is our life-source, supporting humanity and every other organism on Earth".^[12] The conservation action focus for World Ocean Day 2021 focused for a second year on protecting 30% of our lands and ocean by 2030 ("30x30"), joining with the Campaign for Nature and the growing global movement to petition world leaders to commit their countries to 30x30. There were more than 1,000 events from 150 countries registered on the website and the World Ocean Day 2021 Annual Report can be viewed here.

2022

The theme for World Oceans Day in 2022 is Revitalization: Collective Action for the Ocean. The campaign was promoted on social media.^[13] Its purpose was to raise awareness and action against the consequences of human activity on the ocean’s health, as 95% of the ocean’s surface has become more acidic since the late 1980s. The acidification of the oceans is dangerous to the marine ecosystem and affects more than three billion people, who depend on the oceans for income and diet.^[14]

World Oceans Day 2022 celebration

On 8 June 2022, millions of people in multiple different countries across the whole world celebrated World Oceans Day 2022 despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pre-2022 (1992–2021)

2022 and beyond