Ocean literacy and ocean governance have finally come of age, with increasing efforts being embarked upon to increase the accessibility to the marine domain to as many strata of society as possible, broadening awareness about the submerged world beyond that held by conventional actors such as SCUBA divers, fishers and boat owners. The brisk momentum currently in favour of ocean literacy has been spearheaded by the UN declaration of the 2021-2030 decade as one dedicated to the ocean sciences, as well as by high-profile commitments by influential international institutions, including the EU Commission, which has assigned one of its five Horizon Europe Mission Boards to ‘Health Oceans, Seas, Coastal and Inland Waters’.