Major new project to transform corporate accountability across ocean industries

The project will create the first corporate‑focused reporting and accountability toolkit designed specifically for ocean‑related sectors. It will bring clarity, consistency, and practical guidance to companies operating in complex maritime environments

It will be led by Professor Jan Bebbington from the Pentland Centre for Sustainability in Business, along with Mahmoud Gad in the Department of Accounting and Finance at Lancaster University Management School; John Virdin (the Director of the Ocean Policy Program at the Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Duke University) and Jean-Baptiste Jouffray (from the Stockholm Resilience Centre, University of Stockholm). The United Nations Global Compact Ocean Stewardship Coalition is an impact partner for the project.

The project will focus on three core areas. Firstly, worker protection which will reduce and prevent harm to workers by focusing on health and safety, labour conditions, equality, diversity and overall wellbeing. Secondly, community impact – making sure communities affected by ocean industries have access to their traditional resources (such as fishing grounds and navigation routes for example), are informed about corporate activities and engage in benefit-sharing schemes. Thirdly, strengthening due diligence making sure human rights are to the fore and that risks of forced labour are mitigated. 

This project responds to the need for coherent, practical standards that help companies track and improve safety and social performance across the ocean economy, tailored to the realities of the sectors they operate in. It will focus on seven major ocean industries - from container shipping and cruise tourism to marine equipment and construction, offshore wind, port operations, seafood, and shipbuilding and repair - examining how each currently reports on these issues.

By establishing a clear reporting baseline across these sectors, the project will then work with companies and the organisations that influence them - including stock exchanges, owners, insurers, ESG rating agencies and UN Global Compact networks - to co‑define expectations and develop usable guidance. The aim is to create the conditions for meaningful, system‑wide change.

Nancy Hey, Director of Evidence and Insight at Lloyd’s Register Foundation said: “Evidence is the strongest tool we have to improve maritime safety. By generating clear, credible insight, we can help industry make smarter decisions that protect people and strengthen the ocean economy.” 

Professor Bebbington said: “While state-based regulation is critical to ensuring the maritime system of multiple and overlapping industrial sectors is safe, corporate-led action is equally important. Corporations have the responsibility to protect those working in ocean industries, ensure that communities who interact with them are treated fairly, and meet due diligence requirements across their value and supply chains.”

“Ultimately, this work aims to build a comprehensive picture of what companies know, understand, and can deliver to ensure safe, fair, and responsible ocean‑industry operations and create the enabling conditions for lasting change.”