World Oceans Day: Fishing for a Future

The ocean is my "happy place"; a powerful presence in my life from a young age, it never ceases to soothe me and wash away the troubles of the terrestrial world. I was fortunate enough to grow up by (and largely in) the ocean, my classroom was the waters of the warm Pacific and my education was one of  respect and reverence. I never grew out of my connection with the ocean, the smell of salty sea air still fills my heart with childish delight and when I have the opportunity to submerge my body in the beautiful blue, I am free, bound to the surface only by lack of gills: "when I grow up I want to be a mermaid".

Today is World Oceans Day, a day to celebrate and promote the conservation of the magnificent bodies of water that make up over seventy percent of our planet. Whilst not everybody has a strong personal connection with the ocean, many can't escape it's appeal as a food source, with one billion of the population relying on it as an important source of protein. However as we are all too slowly learning, with mass consumption comes equally massive impacts to our environment. In the 60 odd years since commercial fishing began on a mass scale and increasing technology made it virtually impossible for any fish (turtle, dolphin, shark, whale) to escape our nets we have depleted our ocean's large fish stocks by 90 percent. The bluefin tuna that so many of us have eagerly snapped up off the sashimi plate is now an endangered species and if you think that's disappointing, how about the prediction of the end of seafood by 2048 (if we keep fishing at this rate)? Not to mention the fact that disharmony in the ocean will undoubtedly lead to other serious environmental problems, taking into consideration 50-70 percent of the oxygen we breathe comes from the ocean.

What's most troubling about all this is that unlike other environmental problems, this one is fairly easy to solve. If we cut back and regulate world fishing practices these ocean species will replenish themselves and we can continue to enjoy the fishy fruits of the ocean for many generations to come. Unfortunately though, the change needs to happen now and the governments and fishing industries are not heeding the call. We as consumers and guardians of the planet need to put pressure on the fishing industries and governments to implement sustainable practices before it is too late. We also need to push for increased ocean reserves (no fishing zones) which currently sit at less than one percent!

Ok so what can we do? Firstly, get informed! I highly recommend watching The End of the Line, an insightful documentary revealing the impact of overfishing on our oceans:

 But if you want to skip straight to the solution:

1. Eat only sustainable seafood: ask where your fish comes from and how it was caught.
2. Tell politicians: respect the science and cut the fishing fleet.
3. Join the campaign for marine protected areas and responsible fishing.

For further info and to join the campaign visit:

The End of the Line
One World One Ocean