Tutorials

Dr. Carl Safina explores how the ocean is changing, and what those changes mean for wildlife and for people. His writing conveys the scientific dimensions as well as the moral and social implications of our relationship with nature. His childhood by the seashore launched a life-long passion that led to his bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies at Purchase College, SUNY, followed by scientific studies of seabirds and fish for his PhD in Ecology from Rutgers University. He is the author of many highly regarded articles and books on ecology and the oceans. In 2003, he co-founded the non-profit Blue Ocean Institute.

 
Carl Safina © Rui Camilo

Carl Safina participated in the Kava Bowl Talks. In his blog, he writes:

“What is the ocean worth to you?
That was the question posed as we convened for the Kava Bowl Ocean Summit Conference in Honolulu this week. The spiritual power of our convening came from the seven traditional voyaging canoes that had sailed in the ancient fashion—no GPS, no compass—with master Pacific navigators using the stars to guide them from places like Tonga, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tahiti, and elsewhere.

Vaka Moana © Rui Camilo

From these distant points of the compass—though they do not use a compass—they converged on Hawaii to attend the conference, where world-class scientists ticked off a daunting suite of problems plaguing our ocean: Overfishing. Pollution. Plastics. Warming waters. Melting Ice. Acidifying seas that will make life next-to-impossible for corals and shellfish in coming decades.”

Plastic from the Pacific © Aunofo Havea Satuala

We are fortunate indeed to present a series of tutorials Carl Safina wrote about different topics raised at the Kava Bowl Ocean Summit. You can browse them in our blog archive or download them here:

Tutorial about Acidifcation