On Sunday June 8, people around our blue planet celebrate and honor the ocean by observing World Oceans Day. World Oceans Day is an opportunity to celebrate the ocean, its importance in our lives, and how we can protect it.
Why celebrate World Oceans Day:
The world’s ocean:
– Generates most of the oxygen we breathe;
– Helps feed us;
– Regulates our climate;
– Cleans the water we drink;
– Offers a pharmacopoeia of potential medicines;
– Provides limitless inspiration!
3 ways to do your part for World Oceans Day 2014:
Connect with your family, friends, community, and the entire planet on World Oceans Day to take action and create the future you want. Take part in the campaign by creating your own event. Available online resources include campaign guidance notes for:
– Supporting clean energy to tackle ocean acidification. Here is why: ocean acidification is caused by the uptake of carbon dioxide pollution – from burning of fossil fuels – into the ocean, which then causes the water to become more acidic. This leads to potentially very dangerous outcomes, such as weakening of coral reefs and the collapse of the base of the ocean food chain: plankton, upon which fish, dolphins, whales – and humans – all depend.
– Promoting sustainable seafood for a healthy ocean. Here is why: Seafood is one of the leading sources of the world’s protein consumed by humans, with approximately 200 billion pounds of fish and shellfish caught or harvested each year. But many of the world’s major fisheries are in severe decline and, without intervention, global fish populations will be depleted within a generation;
– Promoting cleaner coasts. Here is why: Many people believe that if plastic pollution exists in the oceans, fishing and shipping industries are to blame, but, in fact, less than 20% of marine litter is dumped from the ocean. More than 80% comes from land-based sources, primarily litter. Plastic pollution poses a threat to human health, kills and harms marine life, damages and alters habitats, and can have substantial negative impacts on local economies.
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