Just as the ocean is vast, covering 72% of our planet, so is the sheer range of problems involved in its conservation - from pollution, farming and public awareness, to quotas, funding and the lives of fishermen.
Today at the Symposium, four experts led a discussion of these and other issues. David de Rothschild kicked off by suggesting that the lack of attention and funding in this area is due to indifference or fear: “How do we fix the ocean if we are so devoid of emotional contact with what it contains?”
Chris Gorell-Barnes, meanwhile, pointed out that there is a lack of public awareness of what species should and shouldn’t be eaten, and of the fact that the most exclusive and fashionable restaurants in cities like London and New York are serving endangered species on their menus.
So should we eat less fish altogether? Some think so, although Lida Pet-Soede pointed out the implications for food security, saying that if people aren’t eating fish then they are probably eating meat, which of course has its own environmental implications. So perhaps we need more fish farms so that the wild fish can be left alone.
Taking a different tack, Jon Bowermaster argued that “we need to eat fish because there are 28 million fishermen who need work!” His focus is on the 4 billion people who live on the edge of the ocean, many of whom are slaves – a largely unreported issue. Bowermaster pointed out that 1 in 6 fish is caught by a slave, in places like Burma, and then exported to big US companies like Walmart. So - we need to appeal to their boards of directors; but also, he suggested, the media can make a difference by raising awareness.
Lida Pet-Soede pointed out that most marine conservation is being done by the private sector in partnership with NGOs. So the key question for her is where does the money come from and how does it flow? If we can combine philanthropic money with social development funds then we can scale up more easily, she suggested.
But even with marine reserves set up there is the problem of enforcement, as Bowermaster pointed out in relation to problems at the Galapagos Islands. Gorell-Barnes agreed, saying that “we need a global navy to police the high seas.”
There are other solutions already taking hold, however. One is targeting wealthy people who use the oceans, value it and can afford to contribute, through schemes like Gorell-Barnes’ Yacht Club.
Another is getting travel and tourism to take the initiative as the health of the ocean is central to the future of their business. There was a reminder of this in the room, as Eva Shivdasani, creative director of Soneva, spends much of her time lobbying the world’s top restaurants to stop serving shark-fin soup (in particular), but also endangered fish species.
While today’s brief session could only scratch the surface, there were hints of collaborations and initiatives between participants beginning to form. Watch this space!