16. 10. 2024 Thi Nguyen

How Climate Change threatens polar species: Polar bears, Orcas and Narwhals

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Many polar species depend on sea ice for essential activities like resting, hunting, and avoiding predators but climate change poses a threat.

Polar species have finely tuned their behaviours, and physiological traits to the seasonal advance and retreat of sea ice.

However, as sea temperatures rise and the Arctic (in the Northern Hemisphere) warms at four times the global average rate, sea ice is shrinking and breaking up earlier each year.

This trend presents growing challenges for polar species that rely on ice, highlighting just how important it is to tackle climate change to ensure their survival.

How polar bears are impacted by climate change

Characterised by their large size, dense white fur, and flattened cranium, polar bears are apex predators in the Arctic ecosystem. Their primary prey are ice-dependent seals, particularly ringed and bearded seals.

Seals use the ice as a platform for resting, breeding, and giving birth. Using an ambush technique, polar bears wait at seal breathing holes, catching seals as they come up for air. This saves them energy compared to more active hunting methods.

Ringed and bearded seals in the Arctic, posted by Ocean Generation

Polar bears’ hunting success peaks in the spring and early summer, coinciding with the weaning period of seal pups. This makes it a critical time for the bears to build fat reserves essential for survival through winter.

Climate change delays sea ice formation in autumn, and it’s reducing the time available for hunting seals later in the year. As a result, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for polar bears to build or maintain their fat reserves.

Increased fragmentation of sea ice also forces polar bears to swim longer distances to reach stable ice. In some regions, polar bears have been recorded swimming over 50km. This is an energy draining task for these not-so efficient swimmers, due to their paddling motion and the added drag of swimming at the water’s surface.

Polar bears wait at seal breathing holes

With summer sea ice disappearing, polar bears are becoming more dependent on food sources on land. These offer far less nutrition compared to the energy-rich blubber of seals and increases human-wildlife conflict.

They are currently listed as Vulnerable under the IUCN Red List (last assessed in 2015), facing threats from residential and commercial development, human disturbance and climate change.

How narwhals are impacted by climate change

Narwhals, distinguished by their long, protruding tusks, are remarkable divers capable of reaching depths of up to 1,500 meters in pursuit of prey. Their diet primarily consists of fish (Greenland halibut in particular), cephalopods (such as squid), and crustaceans.

Narwhals depend on breathing holes in the ice to survive

To support their slow, endurance swimming, narwhals have evolved a high proportion of specialised slow-twitch muscles, which make up about 90% of the muscle fibre in their bodies. These muscles are rich in myoglobin. This is an oxygen-binding protein that enhances their ability to store and use oxygen efficiently during extended dives.

Narwhals, like other marine mammals, depend on the stability of breathing holes in the ice to survive. However, climate change has made these ice conditions increasingly unpredictable, leading to entrapment and fatalities for narwhals when they can’t locate a breathing hole.

Their narrow temperature range coupled with strong attachment to specific locations and migratory routes makes them particularly vulnerable in the rapidly warming Arctic.

Currently listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List (last assessed in 2023), narwhals are increasingly threatened by climate change, as well as energy production and mining activities.

How orcas are impacted by climate change

Orcas inhabit the Oceans worldwide, ranging from polar regions to tropical waters. They are categorised into three distinct forms, A, B and C, with type B exhibiting cooperative hunting behaviour in pursuit of seals. In these strategies, family group members work together to create synchronised waves that wash seals off the ice.

Orcas find new opportunities in the changing polar regions

When searching for potential prey, orcas adapt their travel behaviours to the surrounding ice conditions. In open water with minimal ice, they tend to stay close together, while in pack ice, they spread out and often travel as individuals or pairs.

Near ice floes (thin sheets of frozen seawater), individuals engage in spy-hopping to locate seals, taking multiple views from various angles around the edge of the floe.

After observing, they swim away briefly to vocalise and communicate with other group members before returning.

Before attacking, the whales swim together in loose formation, often rolling at the surface. They move side-by-side away from the ice floe before charging back rapidly in a coordinated manner, generating waves as they approach.

Depending on the size of the floe, they create two distinct wave types. One is a breaking wave for smaller floes that can wash seals directly into the water, the other is a non-breaking wave for larger floes that shatters the ice and drives seals off.

Many Arctic marine species use frozen areas as a refuge from orcas.

Bowhead whales, which can break through the sea ice to create breathing holes, face few predators besides humans and orcas. However, as sea ice shrinks, orcas are increasingly detected in Arctic waters.

Many polar species use frozen areas as a refuge from orcas, but climate change and shrinking sea ice threatens them. Posted by Ocean Generation

While this provides new prey opportunities for these apex predators, it could significantly stress prey species, potentially altering their behaviour and population sizes. For example, the specialised locomotor muscles of narwhals make them too slow to escape orcas.

Moreover, the increased presence of orcas may impact indigenous communities that rely on subsistence hunting to sustain their way of life.

Orcas are currently listed as Data Deficient under the IUCN Red List (last assessed in 2017). This highlights the need for more research to comprehensively understand population trends and conservation priorities.

Turning climate challenges into opportunities

The survival of polar species is increasingly threatened by climate change, which leads to shrinking sea ice and altered ecosystems.

These changes not only challenge the feeding and breeding behaviours of these animals but also affect indigenous communities that depend on these species for their livelihoods.

We can help through supporting conservation organisations, taking climate action, advocating for policy change, engaging in sustainable practices, and raising awareness about our impacts on polar ecosystems.

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Thi Nguyen

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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14. 10. 2024 Thi Nguyen

Surviving the Polar Regions: Animal strategies and adaptations

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The polar regions are among Earth’s most unique environments

Characterised by low temperatures, limited food availability, harsh climates and extreme seasonality, it’s challenging to live in the polar regions. Species inhabiting the Arctic and Antarctic have evolved various physiological, morphological (structural), and behavioural adaptations to survive in these challenging conditions.

Where is the Arctic? Where is the Antarctic?

The Arctic is in the Northern hemisphere whereas Antarctica is in the Southern hemisphere.

Iconic Arctic species include the polar bear, Arctic fox, narwhal, walrus, and bearded seal.

In contrast, the Antarctic is home to species such as the leopard seal, Emperor and Adélie penguins, and rock ptarmigan (a medium-sized game bird).

Iconic Arctic and Antarctic animals, posted by Ocean Generation.

Slow and steady is key to survival.

Temperature has a major impact on how fast species develop. A pattern of slow development rates has been observed among Antarctic marine ectotherms (species that rely on the environment to regulate their body temperature).

For example, the development rates of marine larvae are slower at low temperatures compared to those in temperate and tropical regions. This is likely due to lower temperatures reducing protein synthesis and folding, resulting in fewer functional proteins available for growth.

With the close link between metabolism and development, polar species tend to have slower metabolic rates and use up minimal energy. Antarctic Nototheniodei fish, for instance, have evolved with reduced quantities of red blood cells and haemoglobin , the protein responsible for transporting oxygen throughout the body.

This reduction in haemoglobin reflects their lower metabolic rates and oxygen demands compared to species in warmer, temperate climates. Slow metabolism and development are key to surviving with the limited food available in the polar regions.

Slow metabolism and development are key to surviving in the polar regions.

How species cope with food scarcity in the polar regions

The polar regions experience dramatic seasonal shifts in solar radiation, with continuous daylight in the summer and nearly total darkness in the winter.

This is accompanied by blizzards, freezing temperatures and limited food availability.

During winter, reduced sunlight limits the growth of primary producers like phytoplankton and plants, which in turn affects the entire food chain. Additionally, the sea ice that forms over the Ocean restricts access to open water, where many marine animals feed. Snow cover makes it more challenging for land animals to access their food sources.

For some animals, these harsh winter conditions are too extreme, and they migrate to more favourable areas. For those that remain, many build up fat reserves during the summer and early autumn to prepare for the limited food availability.

How animals cope with food scarcity in the polar regions

In the Svalbard rock ptarmigan, for example, these fat reserves are primarily used during episodes of acute starvation rather than supplementing daily energy needs.

Some animals also exhibit surplus killing and hoarding behaviour in the summer, such as the Arctic fox. The fox has been observed storing food, with one cache containing as many as 136 seabirds.

Many animals will limit physical activity to conserve their energy and reduce their resting metabolic rate. This refers to the amount of energy the body uses at rest to maintain basic physiological functions.

Adult King penguins can go without food for up to one month. Meanwhile, chicks can endure fasting for up to five months during the subantarctic winter, losing up to 70% of their body mass while relying mostly on stored fat reserves.

Pregnant female polar bears accumulate up to 40% of their body mass as fat before entering dens in late autumn. Here, they hibernate through the winter to conserve energy during periods of food scarcity.

During hibernation, they refrain from eating, urinating, defecating, instead recycling urea to conserve protein and relying solely on fat reserves for energy. Polar bears also have an exceptional sense of smell. They’re capable of detecting prey from as far as 32 km away and seals beneath compacted ice from 1 km away.

Small invertebrates that live on the seafloor, or meiofauna, have adapted to polar environments by feeding on degraded organic matter, which remains available year-round.

In many Arctic marine mammals, the milk produced for their young is exceptionally rich in energy and nutrients, which is vital for the pups to survive in the harsh, cold environment.

How animals cope with freezing temperatures, explained by Ocean Generation, leaders in Ocean education

How species cope with freezing temperatures

Air temperatures in the polar regions can occasionally drop to -60°C, while Ocean temperatures are close to freezing. To maintain a stable core temperature, organisms must employ strategies to minimise heat loss through conduction, convection, radiation, and evaporation.

One common adaptation is the evolution of a rounded body shape to reduce exposed surface area. For instance, walruses have a large, tubular body with minimal projecting extremities, such as visible ears or a tail, reducing heat loss through conduction and convection.

Rounded body shapes help cope with freezing temperatures of the polar regions.

Many polar species develop dense fur for insulation, such as reindeer and caribou (also a species of deer), whose hollow guard hairs provide air-filled cavities for additional warmth. In marine animals, where fur offers little insulation value, a thick layer of blubber becomes essential for protection against cold seas. It also serves as a food reserve.

Many species have evolved sophisticated blood flow regulation systems in body parts exposed to the cold. In marine mammals, a network of blood vessels in the flippers operates as a counter-current heat exchange system. This is when warm blood flows to the flipper transferring heat to cooler blood returning from it. This adaptation allows them to conserve heat in critical areas while maintaining functionality in their extremities.

Moreover, both Arctic and Antarctic fish have independently evolved antifreeze glycoproteins, which are secreted into their blood to prevent the formation of harmful ice crystals. These compounds are produced during the cold winter months in Arctic fish and year-round in Antarctic fish.

Behavioural adaptations also play a key role in survival

Emperor penguins form large huddles in extreme Antarctic cold and wind, with groups consisting of hundreds of individuals. The penguins take turns occupying the warmer centre of the huddle, where ambient temperatures can reach 37.5°C, helping conserve energy and incubate eggs during the winter.

Emperor penguins form huddles to shelter from the cold

Snow place like home

Survival in the polar regions requires a combination of physiological, morphological and behavioural adaptations, enabling species to endure extreme cold, limited food availability and harsh climatic conditions.

As climate change continues to alter these environments, the ability of polar species to adapt will be crucial for their ongoing survival in an increasingly warming world.

Check out How Climate Change threatens polar species: Polar bears, Orcas and Narwhals, where we discuss the opportunities and challenges for animals in a changing world.

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Thi Nguyen

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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11. 10. 2024 Thi Nguyen

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

Balancing community and conservation in polar wildlife conflicts

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Addressing human-wildlife conflict is essential for both wildlife conservation and human well-being.

As human populations expand into natural habitats, finding solutions that promote coexistence between people and wildlife becomes increasingly important. By fostering harmony, we can support thriving species, healthy ecosystems, and positive relationships between local communities and conservation efforts.

Reducing conflicts benefits wildlife and eases financial losses for local communities. It also aligns with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals by enhancing livelihoods, building community resilience, and creating economic opportunities for local populations.

Mitigating human-wildlife conflict on land

Climate change intensifies human-wildlife conflict by changing the historical range and behaviour of wild species, increasing the frequency of interactions between humans and wildlife.

Climate change intensifies human-wildlife conflict. Posted by Ocean Generation, leaders in Ocean education.

While addressing climate change is key to reducing these conflicts, communities can adopt strategies to minimise interactions with conflicting species. Some of these approaches are listed below:

Fencing key resources, such as livestock, and securing protected areas. Planting buffer crops could also reduce wildlife consuming important resources.
Implementing animal-safe food storage facilities and improving waste management systems can prevent wildlife from being attracted to human food sources.
Integrating guarding measures, such as specialised livestock-guarding dogs or patrol officers, into resource protection could provide early warning signs to alert residents to potential conflicting wildlife.
The use of non-lethal deterrents, such as visual, chemical, and acoustic repellents, can further discourage wildlife from approaching human settlements and resources.
Economic costs of conflicts could also be reduced through compensation schemes, alternative income generation, or increasing wildlife-related tourism.

A better understanding of animal movement can help predict high-risk areas and times, allowing for more targeted mitigation efforts. For example, researchers studying moose found that the risk of vehicle collisions increases in winter when snow depth is below 120 cm and nighttime traffic is higher due to longer nights.

This highlights the need for seasonally adaptive strategies to mitigate such risks.

Mitigating human-wildlife conflict in the Ocean

Fishers have several options to minimise encounters with marine mammals.

Ocean mammals often become entangled in fishing lines

Mammals often collide with or become entangled in vertical lines attached to buoys, which mark where nets have been set. To prevent wildlife harm and gear damage, fishers could reduce the number of vertical lines in the water column or use ropes in colours more visible to mammals.

Common rope colors like yellow, green, or blue may be difficult for whales to detect. Switching to colours such as white, black, or striped patterns could make the ropes more visible to whales, potentially helping them avoid entanglement.

Another approach involves weakening lines so that entangled animals can break free more easily. However, this solution can result in financial losses due to reduced catch and replacing lost gear.

Technological innovations, such as acoustic buoy releases that surface only when triggered, could eliminate the need for vertical lines. Another potential solution is the use of pingers, which are devices placed on lines that emit noises at specific frequencies to warn whales and other marine mammals away from boats and fishing gear.

Fisheries-have-several-options-to-minimise-encounters-with-marine-animals

While these strategies could help reduce human-wildlife conflict in fisheries, more testing is needed to see how effective they are. Supportive initiatives, like financial compensation programs to cover losses from wildlife, can ease the economic strain on fishers and encourage the use of non-lethal deterrents.

Collaboration between scientists and communities is key to solving these challenges. For example, the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association partnered with biologists and bioacoustic experts in 2003 to study whale behaviour and minimise interactions with longline boats. This led to the creation of the Southeast Alaska Whale Avoidance Project (SEASWAP), a successful project improving our understanding of depredation.

Balancing conservation and community needs

The key to addressing human-wildlife conflict involves recognising and valuing the diverse attitudes towards conservation that influence both the conflict and resolution.

By appreciating the different perspectives of stakeholders, conservation plans can be designed to address the needs and interests of everyone involved. Engaging meaningfully with communities is key to developing policies that are not only effective but also widely supported.

Balancing conservation and community to mitigate polar wildlife conflicts, posted by Ocean generation

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Thi Nguyen

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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9. 10. 2024 Thi Nguyen

Bearly coexisting: Human-wildlife conflict in the polar regions

Human-wildlife conflict in the polar regions: Explained by Ocean Generation

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As human populations grow, we’re getting closer to natural habitats, leading to increased interactions with wildlife.

Conflict arises when wildlife presence poses real or perceived costs to human interests or needs, like loss of livestock, crop raiding or attacks on humans.

Human-wildlife conflict can have negative impacts on wildlife and can also affect community dynamics, commodity production, and sustainable development.

Conservation biologists are increasingly concerned about human-wildlife conflict in the polar regions – the Arctic in the Northern Hemisphere and Antarctic in the Southern Hemisphere.

Why is human-wildlife conflict increasing in the polar regions?

The polar regions are characterised by low temperatures, extreme seasonality, and the seasonal advance and retreat of sea ice. Both polar regions are home to numerous endemic species, but their survival is threatened by climate change, fishing, tourism, invasive species, and pollution.

Experts are concerned about human-wildlife conflict in the polar regions. Posted by Ocean Generation.

These pressures often lead to more frequent encounters between people and wildlife, especially in the Arctic where around 4 million people live.

A recent study on protecting Antarctic biodiversity found that current conservation efforts are insufficient. It’s predicted that around 65% of land animals and land-associated seabirds could decline by 2100 if global greenhouse gas emissions continue on their >2°C trajectory. The study suggests several ways to boost conservation efforts, such as:

Improving the quality of land that has been polluted or negatively impacted by human use
Managing infrastructure
Protecting areas
Controlling non-native species and diseases

How does human-wildlife conflict appear in the polar regions?

Encounters between people and polar bears

Polar bears are an iconic Arctic species, distributed across 19 subpopulations within five countries: the United States, Canada, Greenland, Norway, and Russia. They rely on sea ice for hunting (primarily seals), breeding, and resting.

With climate change accelerating and sea ice diminishing, polar bears are forced to spend more time on land. Here finding natural food sources becomes challenging, so they often seek out human settlements for a predictable source of nutrition.

The town of Churchill, Manitoba, Canada, is famously known as the ‘polar bear capital of the world’ due to the Western Hudson Bay population that pass through the town each summer and autumn.

Polar bears often seek out human settlements for food

Between the 1940s and 1980s, these bears regularly visited a waste disposal site, feeding on scraps that caused property damage, human injuries, and malnutrition for the bears. The food waste was often insufficient in fat and contaminated with plastics, metals, and wood. 

Efforts to manage the problem included better waste management, relocating bears, temporarily housing them at a holding facility until Hudson Bay froze, or, in some cases, lethal removal.

The Government of Manitoba has since closed the dump site and established the Polar Bear Alert Program to minimise the need for lethal measures and reduce conflicts with bears.

As polar bear encounters become more frequent, the significance of this program is expected to grow.

How orcas and Arctic foxes hunting impact communities

Sometimes predators feed on animals of economic and ecological importance to people. These are depredation events (events that cause damage or destruction).

Depredation events often happen in the polar regions. Posted by Ocean Generation

Mammals in the Arctic Ocean are increasingly observed preying on fish caught by commercial and recreational fishing boats. Longline fishing, which involves the use of baited hooks on a long line, is currently the most severely affected by depredation across both hemispheres, primarily by toothed whales, such as orcas and sperm whales.

These depredation events can result in financial losses for fishers who face difficulties due to reduced catch and often face costs for repairing damaged fishing gear. These interactions can also harm wildlife through injuries or fatalities caused by entanglement with fishing gear and responses from fishers.

Orcas, otherwise known as killer whales, are frequently involved in depredation events in polar regions. It’s been suggested that their group hunting behaviour enables orcas to effectively remove fish from longlines.

These animals are highly social and live in tightly knit family groups, known as pods. Research suggests that pods which overlap geographically can communicate and share information. It’s thought that this cultural transmission is causing depredation behaviour to spread throughout western Alaska.

Depredation on land is also a concern, particularly with Arctic foxes preying on reindeer calves

In the Yamal Peninsula, traditional reindeer herding practices are central to the lives of the indigenous Nenet people of Arctic Russia. However, reindeer mortality has increased due to factors such as pasture icing (explained later), disease outbreaks, and predation by Arctic foxes.

Arctic foxes prey on reindeer calves in Arctic Russia

The population growth of arctic foxes has been fueled by the collapse of the fur trade in the 1990s, which reduced hunting pressure. Industrial expansion also provided waste for foxes to feed on, further supporting their population increase.

Climate change worsens the issue by causing abnormal weather conditions, such as freezing rain and rapid temperature fluctuations, which lead to pasture icing. This occurs when a thick layer of ice forms over grazing land, trapping vegetation and making it inaccessible to livestock and wildlife. As a result, weakened reindeer become easier prey for foxes, while more carcasses are left for scavenging.

Finding solutions for people and wildlife

Human-wildlife conflict in the polar regions presents challenges, especially with the added pressures of climate change and other stressors.

However, finding solutions that harmonise conservation goals with community needs can lead to positive outcomes for both people and wildlife. Check out our article on Balancing Conservation and Community in Polar Wildlife Conflicts for strategies to effectively manage and resolve human-wildlife conflict.

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Thi Nguyen

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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3. 10. 2024 Grace Cardwell

Why does the climate change?

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The Earth’s climate has changed naturally for billions of years, but human emissions are rewriting the story.

Scientists know that the Earth’s climate has always changed by itself, even before humans existed.

The climate changed in a pattern for the past 800,000 years. Every 100,000 years, the Earth entered a warm period, called an “interglacial”, lasting 15,000-20,000 years. Between these periods, ice ages called “glacials” dominated.

Changes to the climate that caused these glacials and interglacials in the past can be explained by natural forcings. These are forces that act upon Earth’s climate, causing a change in how energy flows through it e.g., greenhouse gases.

What are some natural forcings?

1. Milankovitch Cycles

Milutin Milankovitch, a mathematician, discovered three “Milankovitch” cycles.

Over the past 800,000 years, these were the dominant causes of climate variability because they affect the amount of solar heat that can reach the Earth’s surface.

Eccentricity occurs every 100,000 years, corresponding with interglacials. Sometimes Earth’s elliptical orbit is more circular, which keeps the Earth at an equal distance from the Sun. When the orbit is more elliptical, Earth’s distance from the Sun changes. When Earth is closer, the climate is warmer. 

Obliquity, Earth’s axial tilt, changes between 22.1° to 24.5° every 41,000 years. Larger angles cause warmer summers and colder winters.  

Every 19,000 – 24,000 years, Precession impacts seasonal contrasts between the hemispheres and the timing of seasons. The Earth wobbles on its axis due to the gravitational pull of the Sun and moon, changing where the North Pole points. 

Milankovitch cycles are long term changes that affect the climate — *Design by Grace Cardwell*

2. Sunspots

Every 11 years, the Sun gets spots when its magnetic field increases. The temperature is lowered in this area, influencing the amount of solar radiation warming Earth.

3. Changes in Ocean currents

Ocean currents carry heat around the Earth. When the Ocean absorbs more heat from the atmosphere, sea surface temperatures increase, and Ocean circulation patterns change. Different areas become colder or warmer. 

Because the Ocean stores a lot of heat, small changes can have massive effects on the global climate. A warmer Ocean can’t absorb as much carbon dioxide (CO₂) and will evaporate more water vapour. Both contribute to the greenhouse effect and global warming.

4. Volcanic eruptions

Volcanoes spew out sulphur dioxide and ash, which blocks solar radiation and cools the atmosphere. CO₂ released in the eruption eventually overpowers this to increase temperatures, but this is only equivalent to 1% of human emissions.

5. Meteorite and Asteroid impacts

66 million years ago, an asteroid hit the Earth on Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula. Scientists call this the Chicxulub Impact, and it drove the extinction that killed 60% of all species, including all non-flying dinosaurs.

Lots of sulphur, soot and dust entered the atmosphere, blocking out the Sun. Temperatures plummeted 15°C, causing a 15-year winter.

Natural forcings explained by Ocean Generation.

Some climate change and emissions are unavoidable.

But natural forcings are too gradual or irregular to cause current climate change.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states “the observed widespread warming of the atmosphere and Ocean, together with ice mass loss, support the conclusion that it is extremely unlikely that global climate change of the past fifty years can be explained without external forcing, and very likely that it is not due to known natural causes alone”.  

Just right or too hot?

Greenhouse gases are natural, to an extent.

Some solar radiation passes through the atmosphere, hitting the Earth. Most of this is reflected into space, but some is absorbed by greenhouse gases and re-directed back to Earth.

This keeps Earth just right (Earth is called the “Goldilocks” planet!).

People are emitting too many greenhouse gases, too quickly. Therefore, more heat is trapped in the atmosphere, leading to global warming.

Greenhouse effect explained: normal and rampant CO2 — *Credit: National Park Service*

How are people causing climate change?

“External forcings” are things we’re doing that release extra greenhouse gases.

1. Power

We burn fossil fuels like coal, oil and gas to make electricity and heat. This releases carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide to the atmosphere. Half of this electricity powers our buildings.

Globally, only about ¼ of our electricity comes from wind, solar and other renewable sources.

Some people use more power than others: the richest 1% of the global population combined account for more greenhouse gases than the poorest 50%.

2. Food and Manufacturing

To make goods like steel and plastic, fossil fuels are burnt to power factory machines and many other processes. Manufacturing is one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.

Food production emits greenhouse gases at various stages. Livestock and rice farming releases methane, fertilisers release nitrous oxides, and carbon dioxide is released to make packaging and transport the food.

How are people causing climate change: Explained by Ocean Generation.

3. Deforestation

In places like the Amazon Rainforest, trees are cut down to make space for farming and houses. From 2003 – 2023, 54.2 million hectares of rainforest was lost there.

When trees are cut down, they release locked up carbon. With fewer trees, less CO₂ absorption can take place. Land use changes make up ¼ of greenhouse gas emissions.

4. Transport

Cars, ships and planes all burn fossil fuels such as petrol. This makes up ¼ of global energy-related CO₂emissions. This graph shows our impact on the atmosphere:

This graph shows our impact on the atmosphere.

Don’t put the blame on natural forcings.

Now we know current climate change is down to us; everyone has a responsibility to reduce their emissions. Have a look and see what you can do!

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Grace Cardwell

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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30. 09. 2024 Grace Cardwell

What can Antarctic ice cores tell us about the history of our climate?

What can Antarctic ice cores tell about the history of climate

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Ice cores are the key to the ancient climate and can help us unlock the mysteries of the future.

Scientists can drill into ice sheets to obtain a cylinder of ice, called an ice core.

Ice cores are “time capsules” of the climate. Over time, annual and seasonal snow with different chemical compositions, particulates (like dust), and bubbles of air are compressed into ice.

What-can-Antarctic-ice-cores-tell-about-the-climate — *Credit: Bradley R. Markle via Eos*

Scientists are asking the core questions.

One of Antarctica’s ice cores, Dome Concordia, shows the climate record for the past 800,000 years through the Quaternary period (2.58 million years ago – present).

Annual temperatures are estimated using oxygen’s heavy (O¹⁸) and light (O¹⁶) varieties, called isotopes. When atmospheric temperatures increase, more energy is available to evaporate water containing more O¹⁸from the Ocean. This water is precipitated in Antarctica and turns to ice. Scientists can relate the isotopic ratio in an ice layer to the temperature.

Trapped air is analysed for which/how much atmospheric greenhouse gases were present annually. Scientists can estimate carbon dioxide (CO₂) and methane (CH₄)to determine the degree of global warming.

Using this data and more, scientists can piece together past climates.

Ice cores are key to ancient climate: Explained by Ocean Generation.

What’s the story, ice cores?

Ice cores tell us that the climate swings between stable bounds of warm interglacials happening every 100,000 years which last 15,000 – 20,000 years, and cold glacials (ice ages).

Ice cores show these key events:

1. 800,000 years ago in the Pleistocene, ice cores show an interglacial Earth. The glacial-interglacial pattern continued from here…

2. 430,000 years ago, the Mid-Brunhes Event marked the sudden increase in the temperature range of climate cycles.

3. The penultimate deglaciation event, seen in Antarctic ice cores extends from 132,000 -117,000 years ago.

4. From 24,000 – 17,000 years ago, the Earth was glacial, with temperatures 20°C below pre-industrial levels.

5. Deglaciation began 16,900 years ago, punctuated with tiny ice ages, called the “Bøllering-Allerød” and “Younger Dryas”, thanks to the “bi-polar seesaw” (the Northern Hemisphere cools whilst the Southern Hemisphere warms and vice versa).

6. 15,000 years ago, ice sheets began to shrink. This heating continued into the Holocene (the official period of geological time which we currently live in)

7. This interglacial’s temperature peaked between 14,500 and 14,000 years ago.

What ice cores tell us about ancient climate.

8. From 13,800 – 12,500 years ago, Antarctica experienced a Cold Reversal, where temperatures plummeted.

9. The Holocene interglacial began 11,000 years ago, with temperatures fluctuating between warm and cold again.

10. 1,000 years ago, the Medieval Warm Period allowed crops to flourish, cities to rise, and populations to more than double.

11. The Little Ice Age, from the 14^th-19^th centuries, caused Viking colonies in Greenland to fail.

12. 1750 – the Industrial Revolution began. Ignorant to environmental consequences, humans started emitting greenhouse gases.

13. Scientists mark 1800 as initiating the Anthropocene, an unofficial epoch where humans effect the climate more than natural forcings.

14. Humans have continued global warming at an unprecedented rate. Summer 2024 was the world’s warmest on record. August was the 13^th in a 14-month period where global average temperatures exceeded 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.

Antarctic ice cores timeline of events _ Ocean Generation Download

Is the past a mirror of the future?

Levels of greenhouse gases are higher than in the past 800,000 years, with average CO2 at 419.3ppm as of 2023.

Paleoclimatology records like ice cores and marine sediments help scientists to understand past climates and estimate future climates. They can compare different emission scenarios with the past to see how future climates may respond.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have estimated several trajectories.

The aggressive mitigation scenario expects CO₂ concentrations to remain at Pliocene-like concentrations (>350ppm) until 2350. It will still take 100s -1000s of years for concentrations to return to pre-industrial levels.

Under a middle-of-the-road scenario, CO₂ peaks at 550ppm, remaining above Pliocene levels for 30,000 years.

If CO₂ reaches 1000ppm, the worst-case scenario suggests concentrations will remain at Mid-Cretaceous levels for 5000 years, Eocene levels for 10,000 years, and Pliocene levels for 300,000 years. It will take 40,000 human generations for CO₂ to return to pre-industrial levels.

Are past climates mirror of future events? — *Credit: International Geographical Union*

Scientists and governments can then prepare for the extreme consequences of climate change and make net-zero emission targets.

Although the Earth has recovered in the past, the future is uncertain. What will happen to our Ocean and our species? We all have opportunities to ensure a “best-case scenario”.

Antarctic ice cores unlock the past, our actions will unlock the future.

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Grace Cardwell

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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27. 09. 2024 Grace Cardwell

Why the Arctic is the fastest warming region on the planet

The changing Ocean climate: Why the Arctic is the fastest warming region

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A polar biome brimming with glaciers, permafrost, and sea ice. Home to countless species, but for how much longer?

The Arctic is extremely sensitive to environmental changes. The increase in global mean air temperature is linked to the excessive melting of Arctic sea ice: one of the most unambiguous indicators of climate change. Since 1978, the yearly minimum Arctic sea ice extent has decreased by ~40%.

Global warming is rapidly taking place due to our greenhouse gas (like carbon dioxide (CO₂)) emissions. Our current emission rates of ~40 Gt CO₂/year could leave the Arctic ice-free by 2050.

Our Ocean also plays a role in climate change.

Barents Sea is the hotspot of global warming: Explained by Ocean Generation

“The hotspot of global warming” – not the nickname you want!

Unfortunately, this is the nickname the Arctic’s Barents Sea is bestowed. Atlantification (the process by which the warming climate alters the marine ecosystem towards a more temperate (milder) state) is to blame.

Scientists (though they’re still not 100% sure of all processes involved) have noticed drastic changes in our Ocean where Arctic and Atlantic conditions collide.

Arctic water is colder and less salty than Atlantic water. Thawing ice releases freezing freshwater into the Ocean, keeping Arctic water buoyant. Atlantic water, being warmer and more saline, should sink beneath Arctic water, creating a salinity gradient called a halocline.

The halocline protects ice from thawing by blocking warm water from rising.

However, because atmospheric temperatures are increasing and melting the ice, and less ice is imported into the Barents Sea, freshwater supplies are dwindling. This disrupts the halocline. Surface winds stir up the Ocean, drawing Atlantic heat upwards to melt the ice.

Atlantification
and the Arctic halocline explained by Ocean Generation. — *Design by Grace Cardwell*

Throughout the 2000s, the Barents Sea experienced a 1.5°C warming of the upper 60m of its water column, with sea ice thickness decreasing by 0.62m/decade.

Plenty of fish in the sea – but are they the right ones?

Birds are indicators of a changing marine ecosystem.

After hot winters in Kongfsjord (Norway), Black Legged Kittiwake diets shifted in 2007 from Arctic cod to Atlantic capelin and, as of 2013, herring as their main meal. Whilst Kittiwakes seem to have adapted to their new diet, some species aren’t so lucky…

The most abundant sea bird in the North Atlantic, the Little Auk, should eat Arctic zooplankton.

The Little Auks decreased in fitness (the ability to survive and reproduce in a competitive environment) due to Atlantic water inflow. Chick growth rate decreased from six to five grams per day when Atlantic water inflow increased between 5-25% in Horsund (Norway).

Atlantic zooplankton are a suboptimal food source for the Little Auk because they provide less energy than Arctic zooplankton. Because there is less Arctic prey, chick parents spend time and energy foraging for it and might favour their own maintenance over their chicks.

Scientists anticipate the Arctic will have the largest species turnover globally, predicting a northward marine fish species migration of 40km/decade. Atlantic species are already outcompeting Arctic species, which could lead to extinction and changes in the food web.

Could the killer whale overthrow the polar bear, which has reigned as the top Arctic predator for over 200,000 years?

Feedback. But not the helpful kind…

In 1896, scientist Svante Arrhenius noticed that Arctic temperature changes were higher relative to lower latitudes. This is known as Arctic Amplification and has occurred for over three million years.

The main driver of this is the albedo effect. This effect is a positive feedback mechanism, where the result of the mechanism causes the mechanism to repeat itself – in a loop.

Dark objects absorb 93% of the sun’s energy. When the Arctic receives solar radiation in the spring, melting ice, darker areas are exposed amongst the ice which absorb more solar radiation. This reveals the even darker Ocean, repeating the loop.

Melt seasons are becoming longer as a warming climate leads to an earlier spring melt and exposes darker areas for longer. The Barents Sea’s ice-free season increases by 40 days per decade.

Where ice has melted, vegetation replaces tundra. Plants are darker than ice, so this furthers the albedo effect. Permafrost also melts, releasing CO₂ and methane (which has 84x the warming effect of CO₂in the first 20 years after its release), contributing to the greenhouse effect and exposing darker ground.

Since 1979, the Arctic has warmed
nearly four times faster
than the rest of the globe. Posted by Ocean Generation, leaders in Ocean education.

We are amplifying these positive feedbacks with greenhouse gas emissions. Since 1979, the Arctic has warmed nearly four times faster than the rest of the globe, with the most Arctic Amplification observed in autumn and winter.

Positive feedbacks are taking place very quickly, perhaps too quickly for negative feedbacks (like cloud cover) to balance them. Scientists are uncertain about future trajectories.

In the past, the Palaeocene-Eocene thermal maximum saw an ice-free Arctic. Is this a mirror of the future?

What can be done to slow down Arctic warming?

Local knowledge aids global governance and monitoring of organisms and landscapes.

Regional plans like Alaska’s 2017 “Climate Action for Alaska” set targets for reducing emissions.

Canada’s ArcticNet scheme distributes knowledge for policy development and adaptation strategies, helping Canadians face the challenges and opportunities of socio-economic and climate change.

The Arctic Council involves international cooperation towards marine and science research. Arctic and non-Arctic states, indigenous representatives and NGOs engage in binding agreements, for example: committing to enhance international Arctic scientific cooperation.

On a smaller scale, the Arctic Ice Project wants to spread silica beads across the ice to increase reflectivity.

But it’s clear: further global cooperation is needed. In 2015, The Paris Agreement stated that temperatures shouldn’t rise 2°C above pre-industrial levels, yet global warming is continuing.

Barents Sea is the hotspot of climate change: Explained by Ocean Generation

What can we do?

Every tonne of CO₂ we emit melts three m² of Arctic sea ice in the summer.

To reduce emissions, hold yourself, your country, and the businesses who produce the goods you consume accountable. Walk instead of drive. Switch off lights. Support others fighting for the Arctic.

Don’t just leave it to the scientists. The Arctic isn’t a disappearing, far-away land. Your help, regardless of scale, is necessary for our Ocean to thrive.

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Grace Cardwell

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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21. 08. 2024 Olivia Jones

Why do marine animals migrate: Everything you need to know

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Migration across the Ocean is such an extraordinary phenomenon that scientists today are still trying to discover how and why it’s done.

How does a turtle find the same exact beach where it hatched after an epic journey across the Ocean?
How do gray and humpback whales navigate record-breaking migrations: 14,000 miles of deep blue sea over 172 days?
Why do sardines, whales, turtles, hammerheads, great whites, manta rays and all manner of smaller creatures undertake these incredible journeys across our seas?

Why do marine animals migrate across the open Ocean?

Crossing an entire Ocean is extremely tiring. You could get lost or caught in a storm and you’re exposed to various risks along the way, so why do it?

Migration comes down to a need for a resource that an animal doesn’t have in its current environment. They’re often seasonal, long-distance movements in search of food, mates, habitat or to escape predation.

Long journeys across the Ocean come with many challenges for migrants. Posted by Ocean Generation, leaders in Ocean education

Food: One of the biggest reasons for migration.

Baleen whales, like humpbacks and gray whales, will migrate to northern latitudes during the spring and summer to feed in cold arctic waters, rich in krill and shrimp like crustacea. The long, tiresome journey from the south is made worthwhile for the feast of food that awaits them there.

Turtles also make their way north, with species like leatherbacks spotted in the waters off Canada, Alaska or Nova Scotia. Leatherbacks are some of the most highly migratory animals on Earth, the longest recorded journey being 12,744 miles from Indonesia to Oregon, USA.

Here during the summer months, there is an increasing abundance of a turtle’s favourite food: jellyfish.

But of course, the food can move too.

Fish are one of the most important sources of food on Earth, preyed upon by numerous different animals, including humans. The KwaZulu-Natal sardine run, also known as the “greatest shoal on Earth,” is a mass migration of South African sardines to the sub-tropical waters of the Indian Ocean.

Sardine run is a mass migration of South African sardines in the Ocean — *Image credit: Mark van Coller/Solent News*

Estimated to rival Africa’s wildebeest migration as being the largest biomass migration on Earth, this shoal becomes a ‘moveable feast’ for opportunistic predators like sharks, dolphins, gannets, seals and whales.

Whales also migrate to find a mate.

Whales, like humpback and gray whales, feed in cold arctic and sub-arctic waters but that’s not a suitable place to find a mate and give birth to their offspring. They could breed here but there are serious risks to the mothers and their calves with the cold water and predation by animals like orcas.

Instead they move from north to south during the winter months, giving birth to their young in shallow, warm waters such as lagoons. Popular destinations include Baja California, Mexico, Hawaii and Japan.

Frodo the humpback whale, named after the Lord of the Rings character, underwent his record-breaking adventure to find a mate from the Mariana islands to Mexico covering around 7,000 miles. Check out his journey on Happywhale.

Whales migrate thousands of miles across the Ocean. Posted by Ocean Generation — *Map of Frodo’s travels from Happywhale.com*

Humpbacks will often migrate the same routes they were guided on by their mothers. Frodo’s unusually long journey may be relic behaviour of the whaling industry, where depleted numbers require males to travel further in search of a mate.

Turtles will return to the exact same beach where they hatched to lay their eggs, known as natal homing. Most turtle species spend most of their time in the open Ocean, widely dispersed across the globe.

But how do they know where they are and where they’re going?

Turtles show remarkable navigation skills with pinpoint accuracy using a combination of external cues to calculate their position and route. When they are near the site of their hatching, turtles may use visual cues such as the incline of the beach or the smell of the water or air.

However, in deeper water turtles must resort to other methods to find their way home. Loggerhead, green and leatherback turtles have all demonstrated the use of a ‘magnetic map sense’ like other long-distance migrants such as bird and butterflies.

Along a coastline, the inclination and intensity of the magnetic field will vary, giving rise to a unique magnetic signature at a precise location. Scientists suggest that hatchlings imprint on this unique magnetic signature and use it to navigate back across the entire Ocean years later.

Sea turtles have remarkable navigation skills to migrate across the Ocean

Long journeys come with obstacles that Ocean migrants must face.

Our Ocean is becoming an increasingly treacherous place for its inhabitants, with threats from entanglement, ship strike, lack of jurisdictional protection and climate change.

As these migrants make their way along vast journeys, they tend to cross paths with one of the most dominant and widely distributed animals on Earth: people.

Many important migratory routes for whales and other surface-dwelling animals like turtles and sharks, converge with areas of heavy maritime traffic. This cross over can lead to ship strike, which is harmful if not fatal to an animal.

Species like the endangered North Atlantic Wright whale are particularly vulnerable as their habitat and migration routes are close to major ports and shipping lanes. There were 37 whales were reported injured in this region between 2010 and 2014 and that is likely to be an underestimate.

Furthermore, about 640,000 tonnes of discarded fishing gear, known as ‘ghost gear’, enters our Oceans every year, posing the major threat of entanglement.

The animals who travel the most are at higher risk of such encounters. For instance, an estimated 30,000 whales and dolphins die from entanglement each year.

Rising sea surface temperatures due to climate change may also alter where migratory species find food and push them past their heat tolerance. This could disrupt the longstanding migration patterns between feeding and breeding grounds.

Humpback whales migrate to warmer waters in the Ocean to breed

Nevertheless, there’s a push for the conservation of these migratory species and a desire to make the Ocean a safer place.

We’re constantly developing new technologies to help prevent animals from becoming entrapped in fishing gear. For example, Galvanic Timed Releases (GTRs) involve materials that disintegrate over time, opening doors or panels on the gear or allowing lines to break away.

Restrictions such as vessel speed limits and altered ship routes help avoid collisions with endangered species such as North Atlantic wright whales, as well as establishing temporary precautionary zones around recently sighted whale groups.

The migration of these marine travellers across the Ocean highway are some of the most extraordinary and treacherous journeys in the world.

Continuing to learn and understand these journeys is essential for protecting Ocean life and reducing the threat that is posed by humans.

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Olivia Jones

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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9. 08. 2024 Jemma Sargeant

Re-thinking the shark stereotype

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With torpedo-shaped bodies, forked tails, and dorsal fins, sharks belong to a group known as cartilaginous fishes (meaning their skeleton is made from cartilage, not bone).

As one of the oldest evolutionary groups, the earliest fossil evidence for sharks or their ancestors’ dates to 400 – 450 million years ago.

This means that the earliest sharks may have been around before trees even existed (trees evolved around 360 million years ago).

What makes sharks unique?

Sharks are one of the most diverse groups of predators in the animal kingdom. They come in all shapes and sizes. Sharks can have huge, gaping mouths (like the basking shark), long whip-like tails (like the thresher shark) or flattened, club-like heads (like the hammerhead shark).

The largest species is the whale shark, reaching lengths of 20m. The smallest is the dwarf lanternshark which grows to just 20cm long.

It’s this diversity in shape, size, feeding mechanism and habitat that has enabled sharks to persist throughout all parts of the Ocean over millions of years. They even live in some freshwater environments.

Why are sharks important?

Sharks can play many roles in ecosystem functioning: from predators to prey, competitors, and nutrient transporters.

Some species of shark are apex predators, meaning that they’re at the top of their food chain and exert a top-down control on food webs. Others can sit further down the food chain, yet still play an important role as food for other predators and transporting energy through ecosystems.

Large scale movements and migrations of sharks also connect even the most widely spaced food webs, transporting nutrients across the open Ocean system.

Unfortunately, sharks are heavily misunderstood.

Media and popular culture often demonise sharks, portraying them as senseless killers through sensationalistic headlines and striking imagery. This is designed to incite fear, leading us to believe that the threat posed by sharks is greater than it really is.

Did you know? Our fear of sharks originates from the ‘Jaws Effect’. It’s the powerful influence of the famous 1975 Hollywood thriller on our human perception of risk from sharks.

Put simply: Few animals are feared more than the shark.

Some sharks are at the top of the food chain

But in reality, sharks have much more to fear from us than we do them.

The probability of a shark biting a human is very low compared to many other risks that people face in their everyday lives. According to the International Shark Attack File, there were 69 unprovoked shark bites, including 10 unprovoked shark-related deaths globally in 2023.

To put this into perspective, on average, 500 people are killed by elephants each year.

Sharks don’t actively hunt humans. The most common shark incident is known as a ‘test bite’. It means sharks swim away after a single bite once they realise it’s not their preferred prey. Surfers and other board sports make up 42% of reported incidents, as the shape of their boards can bear a resemblance to seals and other prey from below.

When we do encounter sharks, it’s often because their natural behaviour clashes with our activities, from fishing to recreation.

In contrast, the global population of sharks and rays have plummeted by over 70% over the past 50 years.

The pressure on shark populations continues to rise. At least 80 million sharks are killed each year and over 1/3 of all shark and ray species now threatened with extinction.

To put that into perspective, there are only 19 countries in the world whose population is greater than 80 million. As of 2024, the number of sharks killed each year exceeds the total population of Thailand (71.8 million), the UK (68.3 million), and France (68.1 million).

Sharks are particularly vulnerable to overexploitation.

They grow slowly and take a long time to reach sexual maturity.

Shark mothers put a significant amount of energy and time into the development and care of their offspring. They also take extensive rest periods between pregnancies.

This makes sharks far less resilient and slower to recover from disturbance and overexploitation than other fish species.

Overfishing is the greatest threat to shark populations worldwide.

The 70% decline in shark and ray populations is largely attributed to an 18-fold increase in fishing pressure over the past 50 years.

A key incentive for shark fishing is the Shark Fin Trade. This is the practice of removing the fins from a captured shark and discarding the rest back into the Ocean. Shark fins have become one of the most valuable seafood products worldwide, and this globalised market exists largely to meet the demand for the traditional dish: shark fin soup.

However, despite widespread legislation designed to prevent shark finning in recent years, fishing pressure and shark mortality continues to rise.

Sharks are vulnerable to overfishing. Posted by Ocean Generation: We're rethinking the shark stereotype

Restrictions surrounding the practice of shark finning has driven up the appetite for shark meat. It’s because it’s often only illegal to land fins with the shark removed, not the whole animal. As a result, largely unregulated fisheries in the high seas continue to put pressure on global shark species.

These markets are muddied by misidentification (often of protected or endangered species). For example, in Brazil, the meat is labelled “cação”: an umbrella term under which both shark and ray meat are sold.

This lack of transparency leads to consumers being poorly informed, and they often aren’t aware that the animals on their dinner plate are at risk of extinction.

Scientists used satellite tracking to discover that about 24% of the area sharks use each month overlap with large-scale industrial fishing zones. This means that many shark species in the open Ocean spend almost ¼ of their time under the looming shadow of large-scale fishing fleets.

Climate change compounds these threats.

The Ocean’s oxygen minimum zones (naturally occurring areas of open Ocean low in oxygen) have expanded horizontally and vertically. This is due to higher temperatures and changing circulation patterns associated with climate change.

The expansion of these oxygen minimum zones has caused the habitat of oceanic sharks to be compressed towards the surface, since they can’t survive in low oxygen conditions.

Species like the blue shark are being pushed closer towards intense surface fisheries as a result, making them more vulnerable to being caught as bycatch.

Sharks diversity has enabled them to persist through millions of years. Posted by Ocean Generation: We're rethinking the shark stereotype

Despite the alarming statistics, it’s not all bad news for sharks.

In the northwest Atlantic, the white shark appears to be recovering after a 70% decline over the past 50 years, and hammerhead shark populations are also rebuilding here. This success is owed to strictly enforced fishing bans and quotas throughout their range.

This gives us hope that the successful implementation and enforcement of science-backed management across a species range can reverse shark population declines.

To protect sharks, we need to change the way we think about them.

Our irrational fear of sharks is limiting support for their conservation.

When we portray sharks in a negative light, our sense of risk becomes heightened. This leads people to believe that extreme mitigation measures such as culling are not only appropriate, but necessary.

This fear also diverts our attention away from the species which are at the highest risk of extinction and ignores the ongoing threats to sharks and their habitats.

Sharks have survived all five previous mass extinction events. For them to survive the sixth, we must re-evaluate our perceptions of them and show our support for the conservation of these magnificent creatures.

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Jemma Sargeant

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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9. 04. 2024 Storm Birch

The history of Earth Day and practical actions you can take

The history of Earth Day explained, with practical actions we can all take

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Everything you need to know about the history of Earth Day

Earth Day is celebrated annually on 22 April. It sparks environmental action and reminds us there is no planet B – but how and when did Earth Day start? We’re hopping in a time machine to break it down.

Can you imagine a time when factories polluting our waterways and spitting thick, toxic smoke into the atmosphere came with no consequences? Before 1970, that was the reality.

53 years ago, there were no legal or regulatory mechanisms in existence to protect our environment – even though climate change had started making the news in 1912.

*Unofficial Earth Flag created by John McConnell includes The Blue Marble photograph taken by the crew of Apollo 17. Via Wikipedia.*

A ripple in time: The birth of Earth Day

In 1970, amidst a growing environmental movement in the United States, Earth Day was created by the junior senator from Wisconsin: Senator Gaylord Nelson.

Public concern about pollution, deforestation and the deterioration of natural habitats was growing but environmental action and protection wasn’t yet on the US national agenda…

To force the issue, the Senator, along with activist Denis Hayes, envisioned a day dedicated to raising awareness about environmental issues and mobilising communities to take environmental action.

Although originally called the ‘Environmental Teach-In’ and aimed university students, the duo quickly realised their concept could inspire a wider audience. They renamed it Earth Day and pencilled it in on the calendar.

On 22 April 1970, the first Earth Day was celebrated.

What did the first Earth Day look like?

Looking back at the History of Earth Day: An image of demonstrators in Philadelphia, 1970. It's believed 20 million Americans raised awareness about environmentalism on the first Earth Day. Image shared via Ocean Generation

It’s reported that 20 million Americans took part in the first Earth Day (around 10% of the total population of the United States at the time).

They took to the streets, parks and auditoriums to demonstrate against the impacts of 150 years of industrial development.

From coast to coast, US citizens from all walks of life made it clear: They understood and were concerned about the impact we were having on the planet.

Their voices were heard.

In July of the same year, President Nixon called for establishment of the EPA: The Environmental Protection Agency. And in the 10 years that followed the first Earth Day, dozens of regulations to protect the environment were put in place in the US.

President Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon plant a tree on the White House South Lawn to recognise the world's first Earth Day. Shared by ocean Generation. — *President Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon plant a tree on the White House South Lawn to recognise the world’s first Earth Day.*

The origin of Earth Day reminds us that we have immense power to influence political decision making.

When we care, and make it known we want political action, we let the leaders of our countries know they better want it, too.

Why Earth Day matters: A call to climate action

By 1990, Earth Day was celebrated by over 140 countries around the globe. Now, Earth Day is the largest civic observance in the world.

No matter where we live or how old we are, there’s no denying that looking after our planet is in our best interest.

The Ocean deserves a VIP invitation to Earth Day celebrations

If we look down at Earth from space, most of what we see is blue. Over 70% of our planet is Ocean, but more than just big and blue, the Ocean is the beating heart and lungs of our planet.

The Ocean absorbs 90%
of the excess heat
associated with climate change.

5 reasons to look after the Ocean this Earth Day

The Ocean is keeping us all alive. It provides over 50% of all oxygen on Earth. Simply put: If the Ocean’s ability to produce oxygen was compromised, we’d be in trouble.
Around 30% of the CO2 we produce is absorbed by the Ocean.
The Ocean helps regulate land temperature and drive global weather patterns.
Coastal “blue carbon” ecosystems, like mangrove forests and seagrass meadows, can sequester (store) more carbon in their soils than terrestrial forests.
The Ocean is the main protein source for over 3 billion people.

We depend on a healthy Ocean for a healthy planet. In the words of Dr. Sylvia Earle, “No water, no life. No blue, no green.”

What’s the theme for Earth Day 2024?

In 2024, the theme for Earth Day is Planet vs. Plastics. 422 million tonnes of plastic are produced annually – half of which is for single-use purposes.

Plastic is everywhere. It’s in what we wear, the items we use daily, and it’s even in the food we eat.

We know plastic was designed to be indestructible (so, it’s not going anywhere, anytime soon). We know it has numerous negative impacts on human health. We know single-use plastics are the biggest contributors to marine litter. And we use it anyway.

It’s safe to say: We have a problematic relationship with plastic.

This Earth Day, rethink your relationship with plastic.

The 2024 theme for Earth Day
is Planet vs. Plastics.

What action can I take this Earth Day?

Say goodbye to unnecessary single-use plastics you can avoid.
Explore these 20 ways to reduce and reuse plastic.
In general: Buy less, reuse more, and become the friend who reminds everyone to bring their reusable cups and bottles when meeting up.
Implement these 15 practical climate actions anyone, anywhere can take

Riding the Wave of Change

As we commemorate Earth Day, it’s important to reflect on how far we’ve come and re-commit ourselves to leaving our blue planet better than we found it.

We only have one planet and it’s up to all of us to look after it.

We only have one planet so we have to look after it.

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Storm Birch

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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20. 02. 2024 Jemma Sargeant

Why there’s no health without the Ocean.

A healthy Ocean is our greatest ally against climate change.

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Our health depends on the Ocean.

This statement is true, of course, but it’s very easy to become desensitised to this idea when it all seems so abstract.

In this modern world, it’s easy to overlook the fundamental basis of our survival that we often take for granted.

It can be hard to directly link our everyday lives and habits to the Ocean, especially for those of us who don’t live anywhere near the coast, and don’t interact with the sea on a regular basis.

This can leave many of us feeling disconnected and disengaged from Ocean action.

But let’s dive deeper into this statement to find out what a healthy Ocean really means to us (humanity), and why we ~~should~~ must care.

A healthy Ocean is key to our survival.

In fact, the Ocean provides all the fundamental resources that we need to survive:

1. Air: The oxygen in every second breath we take comes from the Ocean.

It’s also believed that tiny, single-celled algae called Cyanobacteria provided the atmospheric conditions suitable for our very existence around 2.4 billion years ago. (That’s referred to as the Great Oxidation Event.)

2. Water: All water on the planet is connected by a system known as the hydrological cycle.

Water evaporates from the Ocean’s surface to form clouds, which provide us with the fresh water that we use to drink, shower, and cook with.

It’s all connected via rivers, streams, and groundwater tables.

Even the water that makes up 60% of your own body was part of the Ocean at some point.

Our Ocean provides air, water, food and shelter for our survival.

3. Food: Seafood provides a primary source of protein for over 3.3 billion people.

That’s over 40% of the global population (8.1 billion in 2023). The Ocean also drives the rain systems and climate patterns which help our crops to grow.

So even if you don’t eat fish, the Ocean still indirectly provides the food that you eat.

4. Shelter: The Ocean has been present during every element of our evolutionary history as human beings and continues to shape the way our society functions.

River basins, where land meets the sea, represent the earliest relationship between human society and nature. These areas of fertile plain fields, rich soil and abundant water resources allowed for the very first human civilisations to thrive.

Over time, the development of ports also provided a gateway of connectivity and transportation between societies.

This relationship continues today.

As of 2020, almost 1 billion people live within 10km of the coastline, and more than one third of the world’s population (2.75 billion people) live within 100km from the coast.

What’s more, over 3 billion people depend on the Ocean as a primary source of income, the majority of these from Ocean-based industries such as fisheries and tourism in developing countries.

Healthy people need a healthy Ocean.

The Ocean contains a vast biodiversity of life, with over 250,000 known species and many more (at least two thirds) yet to be discovered.

Each life form has a unique method of adaptation against disease and pathogens. We’re constantly learning from this strange and alien world to apply these mechanisms to our own needs.

We depend on this marine biodiversity to develop modern medicines. In fact, between 1981-2008, around 64% of all drugs used to fight infection, and 63% of anti-cancer drugs were derived from natural sources.

For example, the Horseshoe Crab is commonly referred to as a “living fossil” and has survived almost unchanged for around 200 million years. Its blue blood contains special cells called “granular amoebocytes” which can detect and clot around even the tiniest presence of toxic bacteria.

Humans harness the special property of this blood to test whether the drugs and vaccines that we produce are free from contamination.

A healthy Ocean is our greatest ally against climate change.

A healthy Ocean stabilises our entire planetary system and acts as a buffer against the worsening impacts of climate change.

It regulates global air temperatures by absorbing 26% of total CO₂ emissions and storing over 90% of the excess heat from the atmosphere.

But the Ocean is not just a victim of climate change, it’s also a source of solutions.

Our Ocean provides all the fundamental resources that we need to survive. Written by Ocean Generation.

Coastal “blue carbon” ecosystems, such as mangroves, tidal marshes and seagrass meadows remove and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. These ecosystems can lock away carbon in their soils at rates up to an order of magnitude faster than terrestrial forests.

Protecting and restoring these vital coastal ecosystems offers us a chance to ensure a sustainable future for people and planet.

If the Ocean thrives, so do we.

So, next time you’re having a drink of water, catching your breath after exercising, or waiting at the doctor’s surgery for some medicine, take a moment to stop and thank the Ocean for providing the fundamentals to make all this possible.

Our Ocean is not just a victim of climate change, it's a source of solutions.

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Jemma Sargeant

Balancing conservation and community in polar wildlife conflicts

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29. 01. 2024 Jemma Sargeant

Why is the Ocean so important?

Ocean wave crashing on a rock. Shared by Ocean Generation in an article about why the Ocean is important.

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Introducing the Ocean: Our most precious, life-giving, climate–regulating, yet recklessly exploited, undervalued, and underfunded resource.

Covering over 70% of our blue planet and holding roughly 97% of the world’s water, the Ocean provides the foundation for all living things. From the smallest plankton to the largest animal to have ever lived (the blue whale). And that’s just the beginning of why the Ocean is important.

Energy is cycled across its single, interconnected system; keeping everything in balance. It allows all life to exist together in harmony.

The Ocean makes up over 90% of all habitable space on Earth.

Just think about that. All the rainforests, grasslands, mountain ranges and deserts combined with every town, city and village of human civilisation make up less than 10% of the liveable space on our planet.

Everything else is Ocean.

The Ocean exists on a scale beyond our understanding. ocean facts shared by Ocean Generation: Experts in Ocean health.

An Ocean which is home to the world’s largest mountain range (the Mid Ocean Ridge is over seven times longer than the Andes).

And the world’s deepest canyon. (Challenger Deep is six times deeper than the Grand Canyon and could easily swallow Mount Everest.)

This vast, interconnected body of water exists on a scale so large that it’s almost beyond the realm of our understanding.

But we need to understand why the Ocean is important.

The Ocean defines our planet and provides the very foundation of our existence.

If it could talk, the Ocean would be able to tell us all about the dinosaurs, the ice age, and how Stonehenge or Egypt’s pyramids were really built. The Ocean watched as the earliest Homo Sapiens (that’s us) took our first footsteps. It may even hold the secrets to the very beginning of life on Earth.

Two circle images beside each other: One of the pyramids in Egypt and another of a calm Ocean scene. Ocean Generation is sharing why the Ocean is so important in this article.

To look back at the history of the Ocean is to look back at the history of life itself.

For millions of years, the Ocean has provided the conditions required for the evolution of all living things. The Ocean burst into life during the Cambrian explosion (the *relatively* sudden radiation and divergence of complex life forms) around 538.8 million years ago and has seen all five mass extinction events since.

Make that six.

At this very moment, we are living through the sixth mass extinction event. Research shows that species are now going extinct between 100 and 1,000 times faster than natural, background extinction rates.

The delicate balance of life which has been slowly ticking along for millions of years has taken decades to unravel.

According to the IUCN Red List, over 44,000 assessed species are threatened with extinction.

It’s almost impossible to comprehend that we are hurtling towards destruction on a scale comparable to that caused by a colossal asteroid collision 66 million years ago. (That, the last mass extinction event, wiped out the dinosaurs).

Except this time, humanity are both the asteroid and the dinosaurs.

A pod of dolphins swimming in the Ocean shared by Ocean Generation.

Is the Ocean too vast to feel our impact?

People used to think the Ocean existed on such an infinite, untouchable scale that nothing we, people, could do would affect its limitless bounty.

“Man marks the earth with ruin – his control stops with the shore…”
– Lord Byron, Nineteenth Century.

Sunset image of the Ocean and a pink sky. Shared by Ocean Generation the global charity providing Ocean education to everyone, everywhere.

We now know that this is wrong.

Throughout the last decades, our Ocean has been heating up. It’s becoming more acidic, choking in plastic, drained of its fish stocks, and pumped with toxic chemicals at a rate far beyond which it can sustain.

We have borne witness to record breaking temperatures, mass coral-bleaching and glacial melting events. Now, we are hurtling towards a ‘new normal’ in which instability and volatility are centre stage.

We have been recklessly exploiting our Ocean system.

We have watched as records are broken time and time again.

But in 2023, the Ocean temperature record wasn’t just broken, it was absolutely obliterated.

In fact, the entire upper 2000m of the Ocean experienced shatteringly high temperatures. As this surface layer heats up, it’s less able to mix with deep water below. As a result, surface oxygen content has decreased.

Image of a glacier in the Ocean with the quote: In 2023, the Ocean temperature record wasn’t just broken, it was absolutely obliterated.

This isn’t only detrimental to marine ecosystems, but it also slows the Ocean’s life-saving ability to sequester (remove and store) atmospheric carbon dioxide.

The global water cycle has also been amplified by our warming Ocean. For us on land, this means stronger, longer droughts as well as intensified rainfall, storm, and flooding events.

Restoring the Ocean starts on land – with us.

Just like how people once thought the Ocean was too large to feel our impacts. Now, it may seem like our impacts are too large to solve. But we know this isn’t true.

We have the technology, the knowledge, and the power to turn the tide and reverse our trajectory.

We know this because we’re in many parts of the world, it’s already happening.

Effectively managed Marine Protected Areas, Maximum Sustainable Yields (the maximum catch size that can be removed from a population to maintain a healthy and sustainable fish stock), and the rise in renewable energy technologies are all ways in which humanity has learned to collaborate more fairly with nature.

Rainbow over a beach and the Ocean with the quote: We have the opportunity to leave our Ocean in a better state than we found it. Shared by Ocean Generation, leaders in environmental education.

Working with the Ocean rather against it can reap limitless benefits for both people and planet. If the Ocean thrives, so do we.

This knowledge is power.
Power to be part of the solution, to consider the cost of inaction and unite to ensure our Ocean’s health is considered in all decisions – personal, business, and government policies.

We have a unique opportunity to be the first generation to leave our precious Ocean in a better state than we found it.

Your actions may feel like a drop in the Ocean, but together we can make waves of change.

Start by signing up to our newsletter and reading about 15 climate actions you can take to restore our Ocean. Learn more about why the Ocean is important by adding it to your scroll via your favourite social platform:

Post by

Jemma Sargeant

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