April 30, 2026 · The Global Guardians of the Sea, a youth-led coalition, honored Earth Day by formally submitting a petition to “Establish Marine Reservations for Future Generations Throughout the High SeasGlobal EssentialsBBNJ / High Seas TreatyThe UN agreement on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction, adopted in 2023 and in force since January 2026 — the first legal machinery for creating protected areas on the high seas.Read more in the Glossary →” with 171 signatories from the Philippines as of this writing. The petition was filed on April 22 simultaneously at the Philippine Mission to the United Nations in New York and the Department of Foreign Affairs, Republic of the Philippines in Manila.
This movement calls on the Philippine government to establish the South China Sea—referred to by the group as the Asia High Seas—as a Marine Protected AreaLocal Climate & EcologyMarine Protected AreaOcean zones where fishing and extraction are restricted so ecosystems can recover. The Philippines has over 1,800 MPAs — most small, many unenforced.Read more in the Glossary → (MPA) between the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan, and China. This is proposed under the BiodiversityGlobal EssentialsBiodiversityThe variety of life in an ecosystem — species, genes, and habitats. The Philippines is one of only 17 megadiverse countries, and one of the most threatened.Read more in the Glossary → Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Treaty. (Read: Filipino environmentalists petition South China Sea to be protected under BBNJ Treaty)
The Global Guardians of the Sea coalition unites students, legal experts, marine scientists, and coastal community advocates under the counsel of Atty. Antonio Oposa, Jr., renowned environmental lawyer and the architect of the landmark Oposa v. Factoran case establishing intergenerational equity.
By establishing this area as an internationally recognized MPA, it safeguards the area against threats of overfishing, illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, plastic pollutionLocal Climate & EcologyPlastic PollutionThe Philippines is routinely ranked among the top sources of ocean plastic — a ranking made in sachets, driven by poverty economics rather than carelessness.Read more in the Glossary →, climate change, and potential deep-sea mining.
This is crucial not just for marine ecosystems, but also for the livelihoods of over 100 million people across Southeast Asia, as the South China Sea is home to the CoralLocal Climate & EcologyCoral Reefs & BleachingThe Philippines sits at the apex of the Coral Triangle, the global center of marine biodiversity. Warming seas trigger bleaching — a running climate indicator.Read more in the Glossary → Triangle, home to 76% of all known coral species. It also hosts migration routes for endangered marine megafauna, including whales, dolphins, sea turtles, and sharks.
Read the full petition and support the movement here.
