Blue Vision Summit 3: ocean conservationists bring the issues to Washington

Beginning this Friday, the third Blue Vision Summit will get underway in Washington D.C. Organized as a coming together of like-minded ocean conservationists and advocates, its goal is to focus on solutions to the many problems facing the ocean environment. With distinguished speakers and panelists, the summit runs through the weekend and culminates on Monday with a storming of the Bastille - actually a move to the halls of Congress to personally meet with legislators and discuss ocean issues.

I will be there, taking notes and meeting some new faces and catching up with some colleagues I have met before (You see? Not everybody stays in touch via Facebook!). There will be presentations and discussion groups on everything from acidification to ocean plastic to the aftermath and legacy of the Gulf oil spill - with opinions and recommendations from some of the leading experts in the field of ocean science, policy & management, and education.

"Join the Blue Frontier Campaign and members of the national and international marine community at Blue Vision Summit 3 as we come together to raise the profile of our community and work towards the enactment and enforcement of national ocean policy, addressing climate change impacts and Gulf restoration. Since the last summit, we have seen a strengthened bottom-up blue movement and a first national ocean policy. Recent setbacks in our efforts for healthy seas such as the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and on-going and growing concerns over the collapse of marine wildlife and ocean acidification reinforce the importance and timeliness of this event. We hope you will join us at the summit and in our efforts to create healthy marine environments. The 2011 Blue Vision Summit will include the 4th Annual Peter Benchley Ocean Awards. The ceremony is scheduled for Saturday, May 21st and it will conclude the day’s sessions. "

The Blue Vision Summit is the brainchild of David Helvarg, ocean conservationist, accomplished author, and director of the Blue Frontier Campaign, a recognized ocean conservation non-profit. The first Blue Vision Summit was in 2004, followed by 2009, and now this one - that couldn't come at a more important time what with the Gulf Oil Spill and a new ocean policy that is besieged by many politicians who, it seems, consider protecting the marine environment and endangered species as inconsequential priorities compared to the economic demands of big oil and other interests. The long-term consequences seem to elude them.

If you would like to attend the Blue Vision Summit, check out the event's website. Even if you can't make it, just perusing through the website will give you an idea as to the topics of discussion, and I am sure there will be plenty of post-summit follow up on the website. And I will post my impressions of the summit and what strategies and battle plans these ocean advocates have in mind to protect our seas now and in the future.



Visit the Blue Vision Summit 3 website.
Learn more about the Blue Frontier Campaign.

Saved By The Sea: review of David Helvarg's new book

There are many books available that delve into the complexities of the oceans or detail the many facts and figures to document the threats faced by the oceans and the marine life within. But there are few that make a personal one-to-one connection. David Helvarg's new book, Saved By The Sea, is a fascinating look at a man's life and how the thread of the ocean is woven throughout.

David Helvarg, founder and president of the Blue Frontier Campaign, a Washington D.C.-based ocean conservation organization, is a journalist, diver, television producer, war-time correspondent, and even a private investigator. And so his perspective on the oceans and how it developed, is different from, say, that of a marine biologist or scientific researcher. This book is full of personal experiences that emphasize to the reader that mankind is connected to the sea, whether man knows it or not.

First and foremost, Saved By The Sea is an autobiography. Helvarg starts from his childhood in New York City in the early 50's and moves from there - to Florida, San Diego, San Francisco, Hawaii, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Alaska, Antarctic, Fiji, Belize, and many more locales - whether to reside, travel on vacation adventures, or work on assignment. And through this eclectic existence there is an aquatic arc that begins with New England's waterways, fueled by TV's Sea Hunt, author Rachel Carson, Jacques-Yves Cousteau, and then Helvarg's own experiences as a young adult and working journalist, where he saw man's connection to the sea and how man was threatening the planet's greatest body of life.

"I came to appreciate the close connections between issues of war, development, population, poverty, and natural resource management, including management of the greater part of our blue world that's salt water."

The human condition is part exhilaration and part personal tragedy, and Helvarg reminds us of this with his relationship with Nancy Ledansky, an ardent adventurer who was his close companion for over ten years but who was lost to cancer. At this point in the book, I sensed a shift in Helvarg's life direction from someone who had seen many of the sea's wonders firsthand and then reported on the many adverse changes taking place, to someone who was now dedicating himself to activist change through the establishment of the Blue Frontier Campaign.

Many of us hope that with age comes a measure of wisdom - the end result of life's many ups and downs - and I could feel it at the close of Helvarg's book (perhaps I was searching for it, as he and I are the same age). Cynicism can be the evil cousin of wisdom but Helvarg keeps the spark alive as recounts the excitement of a dive at Anacapa Island in California:

"I am cold, wet, salty, and grinning like a fool. At moments like this, enveloped by the wonder of the everlasting sea, it's hard, despite the best available science, not to be optimistic."

But Helvarg does not escape from the hard truth: mankind has left his mark on the sea. And while there appears to be a growing ecological awareness, Helvarg leaves us with a question as to whether that rise will meet the ocean's decline in time.

"I'm not sure it will be enough to turn the tide. All I know for certain is that if we don't try, we lose. And this salty blue world of ours is too heart-achingly beautiful, scary, and sacred to lose. If you don't believe me, join the space program, travel out into the cosmos, and look back from the heavens. It's not God's green earth - it's God's blue marble."

While Saved By The Sea details many of the issues threatening the health of the oceans, it departs from many other ocean conservation books by retaining a very personal narrative - a man in love with life and in love with the sea. David Helvarg's impassioned writing gives us insight into what a life with a cause is all about.

Saved By The Sea will be available in leading bookstores on May 11.

Blue Vision Summit: bringing together the players to spread the word

Earlier this month, the Blue Vision Summit was held in Washington D.C. This conference represented a coalition of several ocean conservation groups, government bodies, and scientific organization, coming together to forward an agenda of proactive steps regarding ocean issues. Over 400 recognized scientists, oceanographers, decision-makers, political influentials, representing over 200 organizations including NOAA, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and National Geographic to name a few.

The summit was the brainchild of the Blue Frontier Campaign, headed by David Helvarg, author and ocean activist. The Blue Frontier Campaign has a 10 point plan to generate greater proactive interest by the general public regarding ocean issues by harnessing the power of education and media communications of all types.

There are many worthwhile organizations making their best efforts regarding preserving our aquatic resources. Summits like this allow them to pool their collective brainpower and capabilities to speak with a more unified approach. There are enough well-intentioned organizations; sometimes what is needed is for the public to hear them as one voice. It will be interesting to watch what comes from this event over the months to come.

To learn more about the Blue Frontier Campaign, their 10 point plan, and what was accomplished at the recent Blue Vision Summit, check out their web site. Click here.