The Ocean: A Sea of Life

June 8 is World Oceans Day, a day when people around the globe come together to celebrate our ocean and take action to protect it. The ocean not only makes our world livable, it provides us with food, water, commerce, recreation, and medicine. The ocean has suffered some serious blows lately: 90% of the big fish in the sea are gone, the gyres are filled with more plastic than previously estimated, the Deepwater Horizon disaster dumped 4.9 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, and coastal dead zones from agricultural runoff are worse than ever.

The ocean has definitely seen rough times lately, and World Oceans Day is a good opportunity to rally and start turning things around.
Most Americans say they support a healthy ocean—after all, the beach is one of our all-time favorite vacation spots. But how do we as a whole feel about protecting the ocean?  The Ocean Project’s ongoing survey confirms that Americans care about healthy oceans; and has further insight on what Americans think and feel about ocean conservation.

We don’t realize the ocean is in danger
Most of us think that the ocean is healthy and “too vast” for individual action to have an impact. In fact, according to the World Ocean Day organization, Americans believe that ocean waters bordering the US are significantly less imperiled than are “foreign” waters.

The children are indeed our future
Young people were the most knowledgeable about environmental & ocean issues, and parents look to them for guidance when making green household decision-making. They also were overwhelmingly more likely to believe that the actions of individuals can make a difference!

There are hundreds of events being held all over the world, find one near you and celebrate. You can also organize an event yourself. Go to www.theoceanproject.org for ideas, free materials, and event listing.