#48: Stewart Sarkozy-Banoczy (World Ocean Council) – Getting Proven Solutions Past the Pilot Stage

<p>Learn more about <a href="https://www.feddegobbi.com/walkandtalk" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"><i><em>The</em></i> <i><em>Ocean Age Walk &amp; Talk</em></i></a>, Barcelona, 1st Nov 2026<br /><br />Too many proven ocean solutions never make it past the pilot stage. Stewart Sarkozy-Banoczy wants to fix that by replicating what already works: getting tested solutions into many ports, cities, and projects at once, with the funding to match.</p><p><b><strong>Stewart’s bio:</strong></b><br /><br />Stewart Sarkozy-Banoczy works at the intersection of ocean leadership, innovation, investment and storytelling, with 15+ years advancing resilience and “precovery” across public and private sectors. As CEO and Managing Director of the World Ocean Council, he brings leaders together to drive practical, regenerative solutions for a resilient blue economy. He is also Co-Founder of Okhtapus and O Lab, connecting innovators, enablers and funders “from reef to roof,” and founder of Precovery Labs, where creativity and visual storytelling help turn ideas into impact. Stewart is a mentor, educator, and advisor, as well as a sailor, swimmer and professional photographer.</p><p><b><strong>Timestamps:</strong></b></p><p>00:00:00 - Introduction<br />00:01:08 - “Turdles”<br />00:04:15 - Wastewater as the forgotten piece of the blue economy<br />00:08:05 - What decentralised wastewater treatment looks like<br />00:15:40 - Precovery and the disaster, rebuild, repeat treadmill<br />00:21:15 - Blue Mind and why access to water should not be a privilege<br />00:30:15 - Why so many proven ocean solutions stall at the pilot stage<br />00:40:25 - The three hearts of Okhtapus: innovators, enablers, and funders<br />00:43:25 - How a port finds and buys a solution<br />00:51:10 - Why Okhtapus is not an accelerator, and how it makes money<br />01:01:20 - The World Ocean Council’s new strategy<br />01:05:50 - Tomorrow Blue Economy and the Walk &amp; Talk event in Barcelona</p><p><b><strong>Useful Links &amp; Resources:</strong></b></p><p>Stewart Sarkozy-Banoczy on <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarkozybanoczy/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">LinkedIn</a><br />World Ocean Council: <a href="https://worldoceancouncil.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Website</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/world-ocean-council" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">LinkedIn</a>, and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/worldoceancouncil/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Instag