ACOPS is a knowledge NGO that informs, advises and engages to achieve sustainable seas consistent with international law and sound science. We aspire to connect change makers, decision-takers and the public with scientific, legal and other specialists, as well as assisting those who wish to expand their professional development, in order to reach this goal.
ACOPS has permanent consultative observer status with several intergovernmental bodies including the Arctic Council, the OSPAR Convention, the International Maritime Organization, the International Seabed Authority, the London Convention and Protocol and those under the BBNJ Agreement. We also attend GESAMP Annual Meetings and some of us participate to the working groups.
Established in the UK in 1952, ACOPS is a registered UK charitable company (Charity no. 290776). A new ACOPS Comité Consultatif pour la Protection de la Mer has been established in Brest (France) in September 2024 with a view to bringing francophone researchers into intergovernmental processes and enhance the visibility of francophone scholarship and research. ACOPS UK is a funding Board Member of ACOPS FR. Both entities have the same overall mission and are designed to function in a complementary and mutually reinforcing manner including through sharing WGs. Francophone members are asked to join in priority the francophone entity though they can of course join both if they wish so.