This personal reflection is part of a series called Turning Points, in which writers explore what critical moments from this year might mean for the year ahead. You can read more by visiting the Turning Points series page.
Turning Point:
In June, the United Nations adopted the Treaty of the High Seas, which established procedures to conserve and sustainably manage the two-thirds of the world’s oceans that lie beyond national boundaries.
I am a South Asian woman of color living and working as a marine conservationist in the global south. I also belong to the tropical majority — the 1.59 billion ocean-dependent people who live in low- to middle-income countries in the tropics.
Because of my background, I have encountered innumerable and unnecessary challenges to have my abilities acknowledged and gain a seat at the decision-making table with regard to marine conservation — despite graduating from top universities, conducting pioneering research on the ocean and its inhabitants and winning local and global recognition for my efforts.
I know that the opportunities I have had and continue to have pale in comparison to those of my counterparts from the global north, while the biases I face and continue to face are many times more.
The assumptions that come with being a person of color from the global south — that we, for instance, lack the knowledge, know-how and interest to participate in marine conservation — have historically been reasons to exclude people like me from participating in efforts to change our ocean’s future trajectory. But it is precisely our background and our localized commitment that makes us critical to this process.
The world endured the hottest summer on record this year — on land and in the water.
In mid-July, the average daily sea surface temperature reached a record-breaking high of 69.73 degrees Fahrenheit (20.96 degrees Celsius), while an extraordinary temperature of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius) was recorded in the waters off Florida — more than 2 degrees above typical seasonal peaks. Many areas experienced marine heat waves: Imagine the incredibly intense heat of a forest fire, but underwater.
We are at a crucial turning point in the history of our relationship with the ocean. We know more about it than ever before, and we also know that without significant change its future, and ours, looks bleak.
On our planet today, we have the human capacity to make the necessary shifts before it is too late. What’s stopping us? A distinct lack of equity and inclusivity in marine conservation.
My career began when I discovered that the population of blue whales around my island home of Sri Lanka lived their entire lives in the warm tropics. This behavior was unlike other blue whale populations, which migrate annually between cold water feeding grounds and warm water breeding and calving grounds.
When I requested support to build a long-term project researching these whales, experts from the global north attempted to bring in their teams to do the research. Their decision was based on an assumption that I, a local person from the global south, could not establish research in my backyard.
Twenty years later, my research has changed our understanding of the role tropical ecosystems play in the lives of the largest animal that has ever roamed our planet and brought to light the most significant threat to this unique population — ship strike.
Marine conservation has long been an exclusive space because of the high costs of participation, the need for specialized infrastructure and the global south’s lagging technical capacity, partially caused by decades of parachute science built on taking opportunity rather than creating it. Outside researchers would drop into countries like mine, conduct research and leave without investment in local people or infrastructure.
This process results in inequitable collaborations that use local and Indigenous people without acknowledgment or credit. It perpetuates false assumptions about the capacity of local teams and often hampers local conservation efforts. Research projects are driven by outsiders’ beliefs, motives and personal needs, inevitably leading to an unfavorable power dynamic between those outside and those on the ground.
Of course, inequitable, noninclusive and nondiverse teams of scientists who have parachuted into the global south have, in the past, expanded exploration, science and conservation. But we now know their actions also created a bottleneck for progress and a false perception that a handful can save the whole.
Expanding access to the ocean would matter less if the ocean had no bearing on our existence. But it does. Plants in the ocean produce every second breath we take; half of our available oxygen comes from them. The ocean absorbs excess heat — primarily generated by our actions — and holds it in. As the largest carbon sink on the planet, it buffers us from the worst impacts of climate change. Healthy oceans provide jobs to more than 3 billion people, and millions worldwide rely on wild-caught and farmed seafood as a significant source of animal protein. The oceans are also a critical link in the supply chain; almost everything we possess is shipped worldwide via their waters. And these are just the direct benefits.
From my experience, it’s clear that we must give everyone an equitable opportunity to engage with, explore and work in the oceans if we want to drive positive, sustainable change.
To do this, we have sought out funders that recognize the importance of locally led projects and then built partnerships centered around listening to, empowering and uplifting local and Indigenous people who live and breathe the challenges of their patch of the ocean. These efforts allow researchers like me to gain trust and work fast, even in the most complex situations. Designing projects that address local priorities and accepting that they may not always reflect or align with global challenges allows us to tailor contextually appropriate solutions.
Building equitable partnerships across the globe has increased and enhanced local technical capacity and skills, which are only useful when combined with local wisdom, priorities and context. Providing opportunities to engage with the ocean, whether in real life or vicariously through social media, has increased access to the ocean for many in the global south who don’t have the privilege of using these waters in ways that elicit joy and wonder. Investing in ocean literacy to enhance understanding and appreciation for the oceans has allowed us to transition our communities from ocean-fearing to ocean-curious.
Despite the lines we see on maps, our ocean is one big pool of water. It is our common heritage. Our technical know-how and ability to innovate will not get us very far in conserving this vital resource if we do not make a conscious effort to be inclusive and equitable.
Most of the world’s coastlines are in the global south — where talent is equally distributed while opportunity is not. Success in preserving the ocean will come only when we recognize that protecting the world’s largest ecosystem requires the world’s largest team.
Asha de Vos is a marine biologist, ocean educator and founder of Oceanswell, a marine conservation research and education organization in Sri Lanka.