Azores Archipelago Hope Spot
The Azores Archipelago has reached 30% marine protection!
In October 2024, the Autonomous Region of the Azores passed legislation to safeguard 30% of the sea surrounding the Azores archipelago, covering 287,000 square kilometers. Half of the marine protection network area is fully protected, where no extraction of natural resources will take place. The other half is highly protected.
On February 11, 2025, the Azores secured €10 million in funding to implement the North Atlantic’s largest network of marine protected areas, marking a crucial step forward in global ocean conservation. The funding and technical support, established through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Regional Government of the Azores, Oceano Azul Foundation, and Waitt Institute, will support the network’s protection of vital marine ecosystems and natural resources in the Azores. An additional organization, the Blue Nature Alliance, will also provide technical and financial support, reinforcing the long-term success of the network. This funding will be allocated to subjects including the management strategy and implementation of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), their financing, enforcement, monitoring, and the restructuring of the fishing sector.
Read more about the historic designation here !
To understand the level of protection across the region, including the areas encompassed by the Azores Archipelago Hope Spot, visit this interactive map by Protected Seas.
Dr. Sylvia Earle, Founder of Mission Blue, says, “The Azores Archipelago is a magnet for life. It really is a magical place.” She continues, “Launching the Azores as Hope Spot is so logical – just ask the whales. They know how special this place is. This used to be a place where whales were killed and now people are making a living by respecting the whales and having people come out and visit them as fellow citizens of the planet.”
Zoom in and out on the map for a closer look at the Hope Spot! Explore an interactive map of the protected areas of the Azores region here .
In 2019, the Regional Government of the Azores announced the Blue Azores program, in partnership with the Oceano Azul Foundation and the Waitt Institute that will lead to the declaration of 15% of the Azorean Economic Exclusive Zone (EEZ) as new no-take marine reserves.
The Azores Archipelago Hope Spot, Narrated by Dr. Sylvia Earle
Life Beneath the Waves
Perhaps what makes the Azores Archipelago such a precious gem of the sea is its rare and richly valuable ecological and biological qualities. Found at the edge of the oligotrophic North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre, these islands are an area of enhanced productivity.
(c) Nuno Sá
The Azores contains a key portion of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge – the most prominent ocean floor feature in the Atlantic Ocean. Here, the ocean is divided into eastern and western deep basins and hosts hydrothermal vent ecosystems. Seamounts in the Azores may act as essential “stepping stones” allowing the faunas from Madeira and Canaries, Africa and the Mediterranean Sea to reach the center of the North Atlantic.
(c) Nuno Sá
Due to its remote nature, marine biodiversity in the Azores has not yet been fully inventoried, but scientists do know that the region is home to several species of cetaceans, nesting seabirds, sea turtles, hundreds of species of fish and algae and a few thousand invertebrates.
(c) Nuno Sá
Christopher Pham, Azores Hope Spot Champion, adds, “The inclusion of the Azores as a Hope Spot is a significant step in our mission to promote the protection of this unique place.” Pham works as a research associate at the Okeanos research center of the University of the Azores specializing in deep-sea ecosystems and plastic pollution.
(c) Nuno Sá
The Azorean people are highly dependent upon a healthy marine environment and value the need for preserving it.
(c) Nuno Sá
Apart from fish quotas, to regulate the fisheries, the Regional Government of the Azores has implemented technical measures over the years including fishing gear and license regulations. Perhaps the most impactful example of their dedication to conservation is the closure of a traditional fishing ground, the Condor Seamount. The decision to close Condor seamount to fisheries arose from a collaborative, bottom-up process involving scientists, local fishermen, tourist operators and the Regional Government of the Azores.
(c) Nuno Sá
José Manuel Bolieiro, President of the Regional Government of the Azores, says, “The Azores are, in the life of the Azoreans, more sea than land. To the size of each island, we add the greatness of our sea. For the world, the reconstruction of the human relationship with nature is now one of the main priorities of the international community and this is one of the great challenges facing the world in this century and a struggle that no one should be indifferent to.”
The ground-up approach to protecting the Azores has not only worked to preserve the archipelago’s fragile marine life, but has set an example on the global stage of the actions necessary to invest in the ocean, the life within and the sustainable future of those on land who depend on them.
About OMA – Observatório do Mar dos Açores
The Sea Observatory of the Azores (OMA) is a technical, scientific and cultural non-profit association, established in 2002 by 23 marine biologists (www.oma.pt). Its objectives are the dissemination of scientific and technological culture and the promotion of activities of interpretation and environmental education, within the scope of Marine Sciences, contributing directly for the implementation of SDG 14. It is part of the Regional Networks of Science Centres of the Azores since 2012. Since this date, it has involved around 71.000 people in the awareness activities promoted, from all age groups, a number that has been growing every year, registering more than 17,000 participants in 2019 alone. The OMA works with the Azorean society, promoting the inclusion of information and knowledge in the global society, creating conditions for learning scientific and technological content in an interactive, playful and motivating way. It aims to observe the state of the Azores Sea and promote environmentally sustainable practices that safeguard resources, biodiversity and the natural functioning of marine ecosystems. The Oma has a young, motivated and dynamic team, made up of technicians specialized in the different areas of activity of the institution, and also welcomes, in a floating way, several interns and volunteer collaborators.
The Research Institute on Marine Sciences – Okeanos, was founded in 2015 as a research centre of the University of the Azores with the mission to “conduct leading deep-sea and open-ocean research and education to advance the understanding of marine systems in a changing planet and promote the sustainable blue economy and management of marine ecosystems, for the benefit of the society and the environment”. The centre develops both fundamental and applied research with several partnerships from around the world, and promotes strong links with governmental and private organizations, and the society as a whole. The goal of Okeanos is to seek excellence in the study of aquatic ecosystems and disseminate knowledge to support policies for sustainable development. This mission is achieved through scientific research, education, knowledge and technology transfer to industry, as well as through science communication, establishing collaborative networks at the regional, national and international levels.
Focused on the conservation and sustainable use of the Azores Sea, based on the best scientific knowledge, and with the participation of the community, the Blue Azores Program aims to contribute to the protection, promotion and enhancement of the archipelago's marine natural capital, creating new avenues for the sustainable economic development of the region. It thus promotes the conservation of the ocean, the enhancement of nature and the activities that depend on it, and the promotion of a sustainable blue economy. It was born from a partnership between the Regional Government of the Azores, the Oceano Azul Foundation and the Waitt Institute, and in collaboration with the University of the Azores.
