A Region Strongly Committed to the Ocean
Following its visit to key Ocean stakeholders in Marseille in May 2026, UNU Paris travelled to Brest, one of the three regional hubs of its Ocean & Coasts Programme and the birthplace of the Institute project.
Over the course of this three-day mission, colleagues from the Paris office met with a wide range of academic, institutional, and political stakeholders, laying the groundwork for concrete cooperation at multiple levels.
Guided by Senior Fellow Denis Bailly and led by the Director of the Paris Office, Sabine Becker-Thierry, the delegation witnessed firsthand the deep connection and engagement of the Brest region in marine affairs, driven by leading institutions and a vibrant network of research and higher education entities.
Throughout the discussions, a strong convergence emerged between the region's priorities—research, innovation, education, and internationalisation—and the objectives of the future Institute.
Strengthening Academic Partnerships
Discussions with academic partners—including the University of Western Brittany (UBO), the European Institute for Marine Studies (IUEM), the Advisory Committee on the Protection of the Sea (ACOPS), and the Marine Universities Network (RUM)—confirmed a shared commitment to deepening cooperation in education, research, and capacity-building.
Participants also explored opportunities for innovative educational initiatives, new frameworks for international cooperation, and stronger integration within existing university networks at the national, European, and global levels.
Regional and Institutional Interest
Meetings with representatives of the City of Brest and Brest Métropole (8 communities centred around the city of Brest) further highlighted the strategic importance of the project for the region. Brest Métropole emphasised its close alignment with local priorities in the areas of the maritime economy, innovation, and international attractiveness.
A first exchange with the Campus mondial de la mer (World Maritime Campus) also opened promising avenues for collaboration at the interface of research, innovation, and economic development, offering a complementary perspective to the future Institute.
In addition, discussions with Pôle Mer, the regional maritime competitiveness cluster, reaffirmed the economic attractiveness of Brittany while fostering stronger connections with its Mediterranean counterpart—one of UNU Paris' three regional clusters—as well as with a broader network of maritime industry stakeholders.
Parliamentary Support
The visit also provided an opportunity to reaffirm the project's political support, building on several important milestones achieved over the past eighteen months.
In January 2025, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the French National Assembly published a draft resolution outlining the framework for establishing the future Ocean & Coasts Institute in France. This was followed by its unanimous adoption by the National Assembly on 2 April 2025, and by the publication of a parliamentary "flash report" in January 2026 following afact-finding mission. The project has also received the support of the Government of French Polynesia, championed by its President, H.E. Moetai Brotherson.
In Brest, this political backing was reaffirmed during discussions with the local Member of Parliament Pierre-Yves Cadelan. The exchanges highlighted the importance of developing the Institute within a truly international framework while reinforcing its strong roots in Brest.
The mission marks another milestone in the gradual development of the future UNU Ocean & Coasts Institute. It strengthens the project's regional foundations in Brittany—alongside its Mediterranean and Polynesian clusters—underlining its international ambition.
For information about the UNU Ocean & Coasts Programme, see here.
