In a major step toward ocean regeneration, Innovaciones Alumbra has announced a new voluntary UN ocean commitment to launch the Center for Applied Aquaculture Innovation (CAAI) in La Paz, Baja California Sur.
The announcement was made at the 2025 UN Ocean Conference, fuelling global momentum for ocean solutions that benefit communities, ecosystems and economies.
“Our oceans and their resources are significantly degraded,” said Christy Walton, founder of Innovaciones Alumbra.
“We must move beyond efforts to do no further harm and take huge strides toward generative and regenerative outcomes.
Our hope is that this centre will accelerate the sector toward business models that restore ocean health and promote biodiversity while producing food and economic opportunities.”
The CAAI will focus on scientific and technological innovation in warm-water aquaculture, with a focus on finfish, shellfish and algae. From species validation to hands-on training for small businesses, the centre aims to boost food security and sustainable blue economies.
“Regenerative aquaculture stands at the leading edge of innovation, restoring ecosystems and feeding communities,” said Vidar Helgesen, executive secretary of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission.
Led by Dr Ernesto Rodriguez Leal, the CAAI will become a hub for applied science and community-driven solutions. “We are building a space and a global alliance,” he said, “to solve problems that can benefit us today and in the future.”
Mexican officials praised the initiative. “It strengthens our national priorities while advancing our international commitments,” said Norma Munguia, general director for global affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico.
Senator Ivideliza Reyes, president of the Fishing and Aquaculture Commission called CAAI ‘a blueprint for inclusive growth’, advocating stronger legislative support for ocean governance and regenerative aquaculture.
Located in the biodiverse Gulf of California, the centre signals Mexico’s rising leadership in sustainable aquaculture and ocean innovation.
