Something to Believe In

We are people who believe the ocean is their mother;

People who believe the Pacific is dead;

People who believe in the healing power of a wave;

People who believe we need more regulations;

People who believe leatherback sea turtles are their ancestors;

People who believe that they can speak dolphin;

People who believe we shouldn't eat another fish, crab, clam or oyster;

People who believe in the infallible invisible hand of the pure market;

People who believe climate change is a hoax;

People who believe giant, off-limits swaths of ocean are our only hope;

People who believe we can and should fish more;

People who beleieve the study of the human brain holds the secrets to sustainability;

People who believe the end times on this earth are near;

People who believe in democracy;

People who grew up eating sea turtles;

People who believe humans are rational beings;

People who believe that the only way to save a species is to consume it;

People who believe their songs call the whales;

People who believe the world would be a much better place without us;

People who believe in love, compassion, and empathy;

People who believe if we just had more, better technology we could fix everything;

And people who believe in mermaids.

As a scientist and ocean advocate I work alongside, make art, celebrate, bitch and moan, learn from, argue and debate, dream big, make films, write books, collaborate, and conduct research with a lot of different kinds of people to fix what's broken in the ocean. We don't always agree, see eye to eye, or even live in the same universe of ideas and beliefs and I suspect that's likely to be true for the duration of my life. From time to time we have small and even large successes. What holds us together is the glue that comes from a common, shared goal. A living, thriving, evolving ocean for all time. That's something to believe in.