Repêchons les océans - Fondation de la Mer

Enriched family-office · Found: 2026-03-11 08:12

Les objectifs du programme sont de former un réseau de professionnels de la pêche, de protéger la vie marine en enlevant les déchets marins qui endommagent les ...

Source: https://www.fondationdelamer.org/nos-programmes/repechons-les-oceans/

Funding Details

Funder

Fondation de la Mer / Fondation Ecoalf

Funding Goal

To build a national network of fishing professionals in France who collect marine debris caught in their nets, enabling sorting, recycling, and upcycling of marine waste into new materials — supporting circular economy and reducing plastic pollution in the oceans.

Funding Amount

No grant amounts specified; program is an operational initiative funded and run by Fondation de la Mer and Fondation Ecoalf. Corporate and institutional partnerships are invited.

How to Apply

Contact via the «Devenir partenaire» (Become a partner) page on the Fondation de la Mer website. No formal application call or grant procedure is described — program expansion is driven by port recruitment and corporate sponsorship.

Target Region

France (Mediterranean and Atlantic coasts); part of a broader European network including Spain, Greece, and Italy

Contact

Contact form: https://www.fondationdelamer.org/contact/ | Partner page: https://www.fondationdelamer.org/agir/devenir-partenaire-de-la-fondation/

Last Checked

2026-03-11 16:40

Application Checklist

Eligibility

• Eligibility: Participation is primarily for fishing port authorities and fishing professionals in France
• Eligibility: Corporate and institutional partners can support the program financially or operationally

Project Scope

• Scope: Program focuses on collection and recycling of marine debris via fishing nets — activities must relate to this value chain
• Scope: Geographic focus is French ports (Mediterranean and Atlantic); international extension not mentioned for new participants

Required Documents

• Documents: No formal application documents described; partnership inquiries via contact form on foundation website

Constraints

• Scope: Waste characterization data must be submitted to CEDRE and the Ministry of Ecological Transition
• Constraints: This is an operational program run by the foundation — it does not provide grants to external NGOs
• Constraints: Program is part of the international «Upcycling The Ocean» framework; alignment with Ecoalf's upcycling standards required

Summary

«Repêchons les océans» (Fishing Back the Oceans) is an operational partnership program run by Fondation de la Mer in collaboration with Fondation Ecoalf. Active in France since 2022, it is part of the international «Upcycling The Ocean» initiative launched in Spain in 2015. The program mobilizes fishing professionals at French ports to collect marine debris caught in their nets and deposit it in dedicated containers on the docks, rather than discarding it back at sea. The collected waste is then transported to local waste treatment facilities, sorted, characterized, and channeled into recycling streams. Hard plastics are stored for recycling; materials with sufficient quality are upcycled into products such as PET yarn used by the sustainable fashion brand ECOALF. Debris characterization data is submitted to CEDRE and the French Ministry of Ecological Transition for public awareness purposes. As of 2025, 12 French ports are participating, encompassing approximately 300 vessels and 645 fishermen. The program has removed over 1,900 tonnes of marine waste since 2015 across European ports in France, Spain, Greece, and Italy. Year 2024 was focused on developing the recycling network by identifying partners to create products from recycled marine materials. This is primarily an operational initiative — the foundation runs the program and recruits fishing ports and corporate partners. It is not a grant program that external NGOs can apply to for funding. Participation or partnership opportunities exist via the foundation's partner page.

Historical Context

Program launched in Spain in 2015 by Fondation Ecoalf under the «Upcycling The Ocean» initiative. Expanded to France in 2022 with first ports joining. As of 2025: 12 French ports, 300 boats, 645 fishermen, 1,900+ tonnes removed across Europe since 2015. 2025 annual report (Bilan 2025) available on the website.

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