A version of Ocean’s Eleven has been playing out on the world stage for the past 2 years… The target? Deep-sea minerals. In 2021, Pacific Islands nation Nauru partnered with The Metals Company to submit a formal request to the Unite Nationa for a commercial licence to mine the ocean floor. If you need a snorkel to stick with us, now’s a good time… That request triggered a 2-year period for members of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) to decide on rules for deep-sea mining, which runs out this month. Gasp… Marine biologists are adamantly against ocean mining, with one saying it would be a move taken “without really understanding what we’re doing”. ISA members are convening in Jamaica for the next 3 weeks to try to agree on international regulations. That’s how the movie ends, right?