Welcome to the Tenth Annual World Oceans Week

Presented by the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative.

Featuring our three ambassador species - Krill, Giant Squid, and Great White Sharks, the tenth anniversary of our World Oceans Week convenes legends, scientists, divers, and ocean lovers of all stripes.

The Pelagic Passport

For those brave enough to challenge the open ocean of frontline conservation alongside us, we are offering a special pelagic passport ticket option.

The passport includes:

• Access to all World Oceans Week public events, June 1st through June 5th
• Special invitations for private events — including a Sunday night welcome and a behind the Scenes Tour of World Oceans Week Exhibits
• Bonus lecture on World Oceans Day, June 8th!
• World Oceans Week Swag Bag
• Reserved seating at all WOW events
• A portion will be tax deductible and supports the week of programming and educational outreach, including our Blue Generation initiative, advancing opportunities for early career ocean researchers and conservationists.
  

Tickets for each session are available as a standalone package. The 6:30 PM programs on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evening include a closing reception from 8:00 - 9:00 pm.

🌊 SCHEDULE

🌎  MONDAY

6:00 pm - Forging Ocean Legends

• Hosted by explorer Josh Bernstein, kick-off our 10th anniversary Oceans Week with multi-generational ocean legends: Indigenous ocean advocate Xiye Bastida, the grandchildren of Jacques Cousteau, and the great Sylvia Earle. Live at the Asia Society, right across from the Clubhouse on Park Avenue.

• We’ll close the evening with a special Calypso Party at Club Headquarters, named in honor of Cousteau’s iconic research vessel. Featuring footage shot aboard the RV Calypso, live calypso music of Trinidad & Tobago - with Hillard Green on bass guitar, David Achee on percussion, and Lyndon Achee on Steel Pans - plus calypso lemonade cocktails, and a first look at our Oceans Week installation exhibits.

🦐 TUESDAY

5:00 pm - Krill Power

• The first of our annual ambassador hours, featuring Ashlan Cousteau, Journalist, Ocean Restorationist and Entrepreneur, Dr. Kim Bernard, of Krillseeker Lab, and Dr. Johnny Briggs, director of Pew Bertarelli Ocean Legacy. This panel will discuss the crucial role these tiny crustaceans serve in our complex ocean ecosystems, as well as the challenges facing krill populations today.

6:30 pm – Tales from the Red Sea

• In partnership with Red Sea Global, and anchored by the work of 2026 EC50 laureate Raquel S. Peixoto, this program will dive into the unique ecosystem of the Red Sea. With it's high resilience to extreme temperatures, exceptionally high salinity, and high levels of endemic species, the Red Sea faces distinct environmental problems - but it also may present a number of potential solutions that can be applied to other ecosystems worldwide in the battle against coral bleaching. Featuring Dr. Edward Oldmeadow, and with special remarks from Her Deepness Sylvia Earle.

🦈 WEDNESDAY

5:00 pm - Coral Comeback

• Coral resilience is on the rise, thanks to the work of explorers like Ulrike Pfreundt & Aaron Hartmann.

6:30 pm – Great White Shark Night

• A species who needs no introduction, featuring JAWS legend Wendy Benchley, plus shark scientists Jasmin Graham and Greg Skomal.

🤿 THURSDAY

5:00 pm - Smart Seas

• Large language model artificial intelligence systems are shaping the modern world – hear from Chris Verlinden, Senior Scientist and Chief Technology Officer at Applied Ocean Sciences, Paul Woods, Chief Innovation Officer at Global Fishing Watch, Liz Suter, from the Institute for Ocean Conservation Science, and more A.I. and marine experts on how artificial intelligence is already impacting ocean restoration and conservation.

6:30 pm - Don Walsh Chronicles

• Our annual program in honor of the first to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, ocean pioneer and Rolex legend Don Walsh. This year’s edition dives into the fascinating and unexpected intersections of art and marine science. Featuring underwater storytelling from Richard Vevers, Founder of The Ocean Agency who was featured in the Netflix documentary Chasing Coral, Brad Fox, author of The Bathysphere Book, Hans Walters, shark expert and researcher with the New York Aquarium, and moderated by Susan Casey, author of The Underworld: Journeys to the Depths of the Ocean.

🦑  FRIDAY

5:00 pm – A Life Illuminated

• Our squid ambassador session features a screening and convo on the new film about marine biologist Edie Widder, first to film a live giant squid in U.S. waters.

7:00 pm - Roots & Tides Party

• Enter the mangrove to close the week with a party like none other. Featuring foods, fashion, and music inspired by the biodiverse waterways connecting sea to shore.