2024 Highlights: Advancing Science and Building Pathways for Progress

The MSC Foundation touched the lives of 135,000 people in 2024, steadily strengthening our partnerships and initiatives in pursuit of our mission 

Focus areas: Environmental Conservation, Community Support, Education, Emergency Relief

In 2024, the MSC Foundation continued to grow its impact, deepening our commitment to ocean conservation, sustainable development and humanitarian aid through 14 programmes, 27 local initiatives and 13 humanitarian operations – reaching around 135,000  people across 5 continents thanks to global and local partners.

Our long-time partnership with Mercy Ships reached new heights, with the MSC Group and MSC Foundation making a significant donation to jump-start the construction of a new hospital ship, the Atlantic Mercy, to double their capacity for life-changing surgical care and medical training by 2029.

Our nursery corals flourished this year, with a 480 % increase in coral fragments. We completed construction phase 1 of our Marine Conservation Centre on Ocean Cay Island, and its inauguration is planned for April 2025.  With 3 new partners - The Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute (BAMSI), the University of The Bahamas and Perry Institute for Marine Science  - and renewed international scientific collaboration resulting from our Experts Workshop in October, the groundwork has been laid for this centre to serve as a hub of cooperation and to make a difference for coral reefs in The Bahamas.

In marine science, our contribution to IUCN-led global research on coral species provided crucial coral conservation data for an update of 892 species for the IUCN Red List on Endangered Species^TM. With 44% of warm-water coral reefs at risk of extinction, we continue to advocate for and support the global conservation community with renewed determination. We also supported IUCN’s social media campaign for the 60^th anniversary of the Red List, launched in October.

We joined forces with Marevio for “Il Mare a Scuola”, a public awareness campaign carried out over 10 days in Italy aboard the Motor Ship Patrizia, stopping in the ports of Naples, Palermo, Livorno, and Genoa. Engaging over 1000 students, dozens of institutional representatives and the media, Marevivo hosted round tables with education and marine conservation professionals and policymakers, thematic sessions for students, and a gallery of interactive experiences focused on marine conservation.

Our new partnership with Mission Blue is driving seagrass restoration in Spain, with 15,500 Posidonia planted around Formentera Island. Together, we also strengthened the Foundation’s onboard public awareness activities with “Ocean Messenger”, a new edutainment activity developed for young guests, complementing the “Scavenger Hunt” for Ocean Cay visitors, designed with our university graduate interns.

We ended the year with innovations to our onboard engagement. With the launch of the MSC Foundation Area on Explora II and the unveiling of the Marine Encounters photo exhibition by Prince Hussain Aga Khan, we celebrated a shared commitment to inspiring a deeper connection and awareness of ocean conservation among our guests. In December, we launched Everyone Loves the Sea, a new anthem for MSC Foundation Day, performed by the Piccolo Coro dell’Antoniano in Genoa aboard MSC World Europa with 1,000 children, families, and cruise guests in attendance.

We marked our 14th year of partnership with UNICEF, celebrating continuous innovation and $14 million in cumulative donations for children's safety and wellbeing before entering our 15^th. We also made a new commitment to medical innovation by partnering with the HUG Foundation and Université de Genève in Switzerland to advance cancer research and personalised patient care.

Our vision for a healthier planet and thriving communities is coming into focus, driving us forward with renewed determination.