The Ocean Race Summit Kiel: Ocean experts, sailors, & policymakers to advance smart ocean solutions
by The Ocean Race 8 Aug 23:36 AEST
7 August 2025
Rosalin Kuiper, skipper of Team Holcim - PRB, Catherine Chabot, Kate Matthes, Toste Tanhua, Boris Herrmann, skipper of Team Malizia, Dr. Ulf Kämpfer, Richard Brisius and Isabella Lövin at the Ocean Race Summit © Vincent Curutchet / The Ocean Race Europe
Yesterday, the city of Kiel hosted The Ocean Race Summit Kiel, bringing together leading voices from science, policy, sailing, and industry under the theme "Connecting Europe for a Smart Ocean." The event served as a prelude to The Ocean Race Europe, which sets sail from the German city on 10 August.
Held at the ZBW - Leibniz Information Center for Economics, the Summit featured high-level speakers and interactive sessions focused on tackling ocean health challenges and scaling innovative, cross-sector solutions. The Summit also marked the launch of a new sustainability and impact initiative, the Racing for the Ocean Challenge, developed in collaboration with the IMOCA class and designed to engage race teams and the broader community in advancing ocean protection and awareness across Europe.
The event showcased Germany's growing leadership in marine conservation, highlighting issues ranging from plastic pollution and nature-based climate solutions to unexploded ordnance recovery in the Baltic and North Seas.
Delivering opening remarks, Jochen Flasbarth, State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, emphasized the importance of uniting science, sport, and policy to restore ocean health: "Healthy seas and oceans are of fundamental importance for people, for biodiversity, and for regulating the climate. Events like The Ocean Race Summit Kiel shine the spotlight on ocean protection in other social contexts and ensure it reaches a broader public," Flasbarth said.
He outlined Germany's ongoing efforts to address marine issues through international agreements on plastic pollution, investments in nature-based solutions, and a €100 million programme to recover wartime munitions threatening coastal ecosystems.
"There is no time to lose and there is no room for excuse," said Tobias Goldschmidt, Minister for Energy Transition, Climate Protection, Environment and Nature of Schleswig-Holstein.
Dr. Ulf Kämpfer, Lord Mayor of Kiel, said: "We are very proud to be the host city for the start of The Ocean Race Europe 2025, which includes great sailing, responsibility, fun and great people from all over the world, so it is great to have you here."
"Ocean Health is climate health and climate health is human health", said Prof. Dr. Katja Matthes, Director of GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel and Professor for Atmospheric Physics.
At the Kiel Summit, Boris Herrmann, Skipper of Team Malizia and Climate Ambassador, praised The Ocean Race's comprehensive Summits programme, highlighting its vital role in advancing climate action both during and beyond race events.
Rosalin Kuiper, Skipper of Team Holcim-PRB, stressed: "For us, sailors, the ocean is our playground; we sometimes spend more time at sea than at home. We are ambassadors for the ocean, we are role models and we try to engage and inspire people in every port we go to."
At the event, inspiring remarks were also shared by Isabella Lövin, Member of the European Parliament, and Catherine Chabaud, renowned sailor and former MEP, both of whom brought valuable perspectives on environmental and maritime issues.
A key panel discussion focused on the power of participatory science, highlighting how sailing teams collect crucial data from remote parts of the ocean, aiding research and policymaking.
Speakers also reflected on the connection between ocean literacy and action. Nature's Baton, a symbol of global environmental advocacy, was ceremoniously passed, reaffirming the Summit's message of collective responsibility.
Looking ahead: Racing for the Ocean
With The Ocean Race Europe starting on 10 August, the momentum from the Kiel Summit will carry forward across seven iconic cities, as sailors and stakeholders continue to champion ocean health and climate resilience under the banner Racing for the Ocean.
Among other initiatives, each team in The Ocean Race Europe will be carrying scientific instruments, collecting critical data from the sea to aid scientific understanding of the changes taking place in the ocean.
Making Waves: a call to 'Give the Baltic a Break'
Ahead of the Summit, a high-level roundtable panel issued a call for urgent action to restore the Baltic Sea. The event on Thursday morning, Making Waves - the Baltic Edition, was the third in a series of roundtables focused on coastal health. Building on previous gatherings in Alicante (November 2024) and during the UN Ocean Conference in Nice (June 2025), the aim is to bring the winning mentality of offshore sailing to the urgent race to restore our oceans.
From the roundtable, Isabella Lövin, Member of the European Parliament and former Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden, noted the scale of the challenge we face: "The Baltic Sea is suffering from decades of neglect. It's one of the most polluted seas in the world: shallow, nearly enclosed, and surrounded by nine countries with complex governance. Dead zones the size of Denmark lie on the seafloor, where nothing survives. We are in a crisis, but also in a moment of opportunity. We must act across borders, across sectors, and with a sense of shared urgency."
As an immediate step, the panel urged governments to "give the Baltic a break" by reducing fishing pressure to allow critical species to recover, thus restoring ecological balance and improving water quality.