Blogs

By Kelly Martin

You open the newspaper or scroll through your newsfeed and it’s everywhere: another oil spill, natural disaster, or endangered species gone extinct. Doom and gloom fills the pages of most news we see, particularly news concerning the environment. After a while you may think to yourself, “is it even worth trying to fix the planet anymore?” You’re not alone in this sentiment: researchers at Columbia University’s Center for Research on Environmental Decisions (CRED) call this “emotional numbing,” a phenomenon that occurs after repeated exposure to emotionally draining scenarios. In a world saturated with information about the many environmental disasters happening all around us, it is easy to become numb to these issues. “Eco-anxiety” has also become an increasingly recognized problem, as issues ranging from devastating natural disasters to the more gradual impacts of climate change are linked to stress, a feelings of powerlessness, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. One study found that in Australia, 25% of children are “so troubled about the state of the world that they honestly believe it will come to an end before they get older.”

By Spencer Showalter

In November 2017, more than 200 countries convened in Bonn, Germany for Conference of the Parties 23 (COP 23), the most recent in the yearly United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) conferences. These meetings began in the 1990s with the creation of the Kyoto Protocol, a pioneering international agreement that set the groundwork for substantially reducing global greenhouse gas emissions. COP 23 was a notable meeting for two reasons. Firstly, it was the first meeting since the Trump Administration announced its intention to pull out of the Paris Agreement, the major outcome of COP 21. Secondly, COP 23’s main goal was to iron out the details of the Paris Agreement in order to continue to chase the international goal of limiting warming to under 2˚C (3.6˚F)—a goal that is already on tenuous ground. So, given that the US is not participating in the Paris agreement, what did the American delegation do at the conference? What were the outcomes of the conference?

By Kelly Martin

Whether you were ready for it or not, another year has come and gone. With the start of 2018, a few things are inevitable: you keep writing the date with “17” at the end, the post-holidays blues set in as you go back to work or school, and you struggle to stick to your list of New Year’s resolutions. While we can’t help you write the date correctly or ease the transition from the holidays back to the real world, we here at Currents have got you covered with a list of New Year’s resolutions that are easier to keep than waking up at the crack of dawn every morning to go to the gym. Below you’ll find a list of 5 New Year’s resolutions that will help save the oceans and only require small changes in your daily routine! Pick just one or take on all five – any changes are a great start.

By Sarah Poon

What if anyone in the world could access expert help and advice on fisheries management with just the click of button?

Overfishing is a global problem that can only be overcome by a global effort to address it. But there is no one-size-sits-all approach. Fisheries managers need access to tools and methods that can be effective on a local scale.

EDF's Virtual Fisheries Academy is a new resource for fisheries management professionals all over the world. Getting strong fisheries management in place around the world relies on an empowered network of fishery managers, fishermen, scientists and other practitioners who have the knowledge and skills to develop fishery management solutions that work for their fisheries.

Hi everyone! It was a pleasure to attend IMPAC4 in the beautiful beachfront town of La Serena, Chile. Joining me were 1100 attendees from 59 countries — a good turnout.

Below are the highlights of the conference, giving you the main news and outcomes from the week. If I’ve missed anything, please let me know at jdavis [at] marineaffairs.org and I’ll add it. Thanks! (And if you'd like a more detailed, blow-by-blow account of the conference, please see my live-blog of it.)

Golfo Dulce, a tropical fjord located on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast, exemplifies the need for conservation action in areas that provide critical ecosystem services to migratory species. In the marine realm, few point endemic or severely range restricted species exist and it is rarely possible to secure protection for the entire range of a species within a single Marine Protected Area. This exacerbates the need to prioritize sites with the greatest conservation potential for the establishment of MPAs. Protection is needed most in breeding, feeding, spawning, resting, and nursery grounds, where aggregations occur and migratory species visit seasonally.