His Royal Highness Prince Khaled bin Sultan
Founder
His Royal Highness Prince Khaled bin Sultan
Founder
His Royal Highness Prince Khaled bin Sultan of Saudi Arabia founded the Living Oceans Foundation in the year 2000.
Prince Khaled is an avid scuba diver and has always had a love for the oceans. As a young boy in Riyadh, he spent time wandering the desert and was surprised to find the fossilized remains of sea creatures. It was then that he realized that much of the flat, endless desert of Arabia was in fact an ancient sea bed.
“This discovery led to a fascination with the unique geological evolution of my country—once an ocean floor, it transformed into a land filled with forest and wildlife, and then into the desert we know it as today,” said Prince Khaled.
His passion to contribute to ocean conservation and research only matured after he became a certified scuba diver in the late 1990s. Saudi Arabia has access to some of the most beautiful coral reefs in the world along its border with the Red Sea, and the Prince was able to experience what has been called “nature’s richest realm” firsthand. The colors of the corals and the vibrant fish life were in stark contrast to what he had observed growing up in the desert.
As he traveled the seas and explored reefs around the world, Prince Khaled witnessed the rapid deterioration of the planet’s coral reefs in the short time he had been diving. It affected him on a personal level, and he turned to experts to understand why this was happening.
Upon learning that numerous human impacts, such as unsustainable fishing and terrestrial pollution were contributing to the decline in coral reef health, His Royal Highness was inspired to do whatever he could to contribute to ocean conservation. He established the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation as a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation and preservation of our precious living oceans for the sake of generations to come.
Since then, Prince Khaled has received many awards and accolades in recognition of his contributions to ocean conservation, including the prestigious Perseus Award in 2012.
I now have a passion for preserving and protecting the fragile balance of the seas – not only for my children, but also for future generations throughout the world. I have been fortunate to be able to support scientists in their efforts to preserve marine environments, search for new medicines, map global weather changes, and discover the symbiotic interaction of reef organisms, knowing that healthy reefs are a crucial measure of the vitality of the earth itself. But what we have done so far is just the beginning. There is much more that must be accomplished to guarantee the integrity of our oceans. That is why I look forward to a partnership with peoples throughout the world, working to benefit the oceans – and our future.
Prince Khaled bin Sultan
Her Royal Highness Princess Hala bint Khaled bin Sultan
PRESIDENT
Her Royal Highness Princess Hala bint Khaled bin Sultan
PRESIDENT
Prince Khaled bin Sultan continues to oversee the work of the foundation that bears his name as the Chairman of the Board of Directors. However, in the past few years his daughter, Her Royal Highness Princess Hala bint Khaled bin Sultan, has taken on a leadership role in the Foundation, continuing his family’s legacy in ocean conservation.
Princess Hala shares a deep love of the ocean with her father. She grew up diving with him and exploring the reefs of the Red Sea, and they formed a deep bond over their mutual love of ocean exploration and conservation. So, when the time came to expand the foundation’s board, Prince Khaled knew just who he wanted to help lead the foundation into the future.
HRH Princess Hala first joined the Living Oceans Foundation as a member of the Board of Directors in 2016. Since then, she has seen the foundation through many of our proudest achievements, including the launch of our Coral Reef Education Portal and the completion of the Global Reef Expedition. In 2023, Her Royal Highness became the President of the Khaled bin Sultan Oceans Foundation, and now serves on the Foundation’s Finance and Investment Committee. She works closely with her father to ensure the foundation continues its grand and noble mission for many years to come.
My father, Prince Khaled bin Sultan, instilled in me a great love and respect of the oceans, but also a deep sense of responsibility to protect the coral reefs and conserve these fragile ecosystems so that we can continue to explore and enjoy them for generations to come. It is his passion and legacy that I carry with me today.