A little background:
From an early age, I developed a strong passion for the ocean. This began with my Dad always telling me his stories about the myriad of colorful wonders that hid beneath the ever-changing realm of blue: about the mesmerizing surroundings and the unimaginable diversity of creatures; The more of these stories I heard, the deeper I fell in love with the sea.
My message to you:
We must not continue to pretend that we do not know, to persuade ourselves that it is fine to just let the problem continue to worsen. We live in a world where Mother Nature is a shadow of her former self. The environment, especially the ocean, is deteriorating day by day; Marine life is on the brink of extinction - All because we have done little to stand up and protect the safety of the ecosystems. It is unjust. Mother Nature provides to us, she gives us food and water, but all the while we continue to carelessly toxify her with pollution, emptying waste into her mouth.
Every year, humans heedlessly ravage marine ecosystems, shattering the beauty, and tearing apart the peaceful lives of marine animals. In fact, Data shows that each year, humans carelessly throw over 8 million tonnes of plastic waste in the ocean, leaving devastating effects on the marine environment and threatening the lives of every creature. For instance, baby sea turtles suffocate on eating the plastics, not knowing what they are. Seahorses fall ill and die under acidified water conditions. Fish and corals slowly suffer and die from toxic material decaying. If we do not stop this now, the whole seabed will soon become a lifeless underwater desert. The consequences will haunt all of humanity.
A few people have asked: Why do we need to protect the oceans? How does it affect us?
The answer to this, is very clear. We need to protect our oceans because if they die, so do we. Oceans are the lifeblood of every living thing on Earth. The water-bodies take up 71% of our planet and contains 97% of all the water on the planet. Wherever you are in the world, the oceans are always affecting you and ensuring your survival. For instance, did you know that the oceans absorb more than a third of all Human Carbon emissions? And that over 50% of the world’s oxygen is produced by underwater plants? The oceans are an important producer of the basic element that we depend on to survive. Furthermore, oceans regulate the weather that we experience, reducing drastic climate change as much as possible, and they also form clouds that rain the fresh water that we drink. By polluting the oceans, we are pretty much poisoning the water we consume. In addition, the oceans are responsible for a lot of the food that we eat, and a lot of medicinal cures for cancer and other diseases. (So next time you see Sushi on the table, please do not waste any of it!) And not only us, 36% of the world’s fish catches each year go into feeding farmed fish, chickens and pigs too, which are also our food sources. As you can see, our safety and survival depends on the healthiness of the ocean. By ensuring its future, we are ensuring our own future, the future of the entire human race; hence we must learn to love our oceans and to care them, not exploit them.
As an avid scuba-diver, I have seen many wonders that our oceans have to offer, and I have learnt to appreciate them for what they are truly worth. This is why I have published Aqua Utopia, my very own underwater album, dedicated to raising awareness for the protection of marine life. I hope that I can turn my underwater hobby into something contributive to society: I wish to spread awareness through my photography, to awaken the concept of marine conservation in people’s minds, and hopefully inspire change in people’s views towards the ocean. Another contribution I have dedicated myself to, is a marine conservation team, which aims to help raise awareness through our organized events. Activities we do include coastal cleanups and also coastal excursions to educate people about the oceans.
The main message to take away from this, is that, “It is the worst of times but it is the best of times because we still have a chance”. We need to protect our oceans. We cannot stand aside as spectators of Mother Nature’s deterioration: Oceans are an important part of our lives, our survival depends on how we act now. So, next time you decide to throw rubbish into the ocean, think about the consequences of doing so. Please try to raise awareness, talk to your parents, your families and friends, anybody. Thank you so much for reading, and I hope that through this small piece I will have inspired you to become more environmentally friendly person.
Remember, every small effort counts. Little by little, a little becomes a lot. Together we can make a big difference.
If you are interested and want to know more about the project, please contact lucalit888@gmail.com"
From an early age, I developed a strong passion for the ocean. This began with my Dad always telling me his stories about the myriad of colorful wonders that hid beneath the ever-changing realm of blue: about the mesmerizing surroundings and the unimaginable diversity of creatures; The more of these stories I heard, the deeper I fell in love with the sea.
My message to you:
We must not continue to pretend that we do not know, to persuade ourselves that it is fine to just let the problem continue to worsen. We live in a world where Mother Nature is a shadow of her former self. The environment, especially the ocean, is deteriorating day by day; Marine life is on the brink of extinction - All because we have done little to stand up and protect the safety of the ecosystems. It is unjust. Mother Nature provides to us, she gives us food and water, but all the while we continue to carelessly toxify her with pollution, emptying waste into her mouth.
Every year, humans heedlessly ravage marine ecosystems, shattering the beauty, and tearing apart the peaceful lives of marine animals. In fact, Data shows that each year, humans carelessly throw over 8 million tonnes of plastic waste in the ocean, leaving devastating effects on the marine environment and threatening the lives of every creature. For instance, baby sea turtles suffocate on eating the plastics, not knowing what they are. Seahorses fall ill and die under acidified water conditions. Fish and corals slowly suffer and die from toxic material decaying. If we do not stop this now, the whole seabed will soon become a lifeless underwater desert. The consequences will haunt all of humanity.
A few people have asked: Why do we need to protect the oceans? How does it affect us?
The answer to this, is very clear. We need to protect our oceans because if they die, so do we. Oceans are the lifeblood of every living thing on Earth. The water-bodies take up 71% of our planet and contains 97% of all the water on the planet. Wherever you are in the world, the oceans are always affecting you and ensuring your survival. For instance, did you know that the oceans absorb more than a third of all Human Carbon emissions? And that over 50% of the world’s oxygen is produced by underwater plants? The oceans are an important producer of the basic element that we depend on to survive. Furthermore, oceans regulate the weather that we experience, reducing drastic climate change as much as possible, and they also form clouds that rain the fresh water that we drink. By polluting the oceans, we are pretty much poisoning the water we consume. In addition, the oceans are responsible for a lot of the food that we eat, and a lot of medicinal cures for cancer and other diseases. (So next time you see Sushi on the table, please do not waste any of it!) And not only us, 36% of the world’s fish catches each year go into feeding farmed fish, chickens and pigs too, which are also our food sources. As you can see, our safety and survival depends on the healthiness of the ocean. By ensuring its future, we are ensuring our own future, the future of the entire human race; hence we must learn to love our oceans and to care them, not exploit them.
As an avid scuba-diver, I have seen many wonders that our oceans have to offer, and I have learnt to appreciate them for what they are truly worth. This is why I have published Aqua Utopia, my very own underwater album, dedicated to raising awareness for the protection of marine life. I hope that I can turn my underwater hobby into something contributive to society: I wish to spread awareness through my photography, to awaken the concept of marine conservation in people’s minds, and hopefully inspire change in people’s views towards the ocean. Another contribution I have dedicated myself to, is a marine conservation team, which aims to help raise awareness through our organized events. Activities we do include coastal cleanups and also coastal excursions to educate people about the oceans.
The main message to take away from this, is that, “It is the worst of times but it is the best of times because we still have a chance”. We need to protect our oceans. We cannot stand aside as spectators of Mother Nature’s deterioration: Oceans are an important part of our lives, our survival depends on how we act now. So, next time you decide to throw rubbish into the ocean, think about the consequences of doing so. Please try to raise awareness, talk to your parents, your families and friends, anybody. Thank you so much for reading, and I hope that through this small piece I will have inspired you to become more environmentally friendly person.
Remember, every small effort counts. Little by little, a little becomes a lot. Together we can make a big difference.
If you are interested and want to know more about the project, please contact lucalit888@gmail.com"