1. Commit to Making a Real Difference
Everyone can help protect our world's ocean. Small changes we make in our everyday lives can add up and have a big positive impact on the health of our seas. By taking The 7 Cs Pledge and committing to make a real difference you can protect the ocean, its incredible inhabitants, and even your own community. There are big challenges facing our ocean right now including climate change, ocean acidification, pollution, and overfishing, but these challenges are not insurmountable. We can all take steps and turn the tide for our seas!
The term "Seven Seas" has been used for centuries as a general description for all the oceans of the world. The 7 Cs Pledge uses this play on words to help us all remember how each of us can make decisions in our daily lives for the benefit of our planet's future.
2. Conserve in My HomeWhat gets poured down the drain often ends up in our waterways and the ocean. Lots of household waste also finds its way to the sea. The cleaning chemicals, pesticides, fertilizers, and plastic waste that we use in our homes can travel downstream and wind up polluting and harming the ocean. While the ocean was once considered a bottomless dump, we now know that there are limits to what it can safely absorb. Everyday cleaning and yard-care products can greatly harm the ocean and even your health. These chemicals and excess fertilizers are causing dead zones in the ocean where life cannot survive. There are lots of ways to maintain a healthier yard, home, and ocean. Did you know that there is a giant plastic soup twice the size of Texas circulating out in the Pacific Ocean? Plastic marine debris is a huge problem for fish and other sea life and can even make its way up the food chain to humans. Single-use plastics such as grocery bags and bottled water we use for just minutes spend thousands of years in the sea. These leading offenders are also some of the easiest things to cut out of our lives. You can take durable bags when you go shopping and fill up a reusable water bottle. It's easy to start taking steps to make our ocean safer for fish and people to swim in!
3. C hallenge Myself DailyReducing my energy consumption There's a lot of talk right now about climate change, but most people don't realize how climate change will impact the ocean. Climate change is resulting in ocean acidification and rising sea temperatures which can greatly harm many marine species and the health of the overall ocean. Keeping the ocean healthy is also hugely important for fighting climate change since the ocean plays an incredibly important role in regulating climate due to the fact that 80% of the world's oxygen comes from the sea. Vast amounts of energy are used in making consumer products. Lots of energy and resources go into everything you buy. By purchasing less stuff you will reduce your carbon footprint, conserve resources, and prevent pollution. While battling climate change may seem daunting, there are actually many things that you can do to help. By making small changes in your daily life you can be a part of the solution.
4. Consume ConsciouslyMaking Ocean-Friendly Food Choices What you eat affects the sea. Choosing foods that are sustainable, local, organic, and lower on the food chain can help protect the ocean and its creatures. Sustainable Seafood People are eating more seafood than ever, and the ocean and its fish are being pushed to the limit. According to the United Nations, approximately two-thirds of ocean species are overfished, and many types of ocean fish farming are highly damaging to coastal environments. The situation is so serious that a study in the journal Science recently projected that without a change in course the populations of all wild fish species currently caught will collapse before the year 2050. Some types of fishing also catch up to seven times more unwanted fish than targeted species which ends up dead and thrown overboard. Some fish species also have unsafe levels of toxins that are harmful to humans. The situation can get better! Each of us can help solve this crisis by becoming "ocean friendly" when making our seafood choices. By limiting fish consumption to a few special meals a month and choosing species that are abundant and fished or farmed with minimal harm to the surrounding environment, we can eat well and do good at the same time!
Eat Local Take a look around your grocery store and see where your food comes from. Food that comes from far away has a much larger carbon footprint than food produced locally because it takes lots of energy and fuel to get it to your supermarket. Choose local alternatives and check out nearby farmer's markets for fresh, carbon-light food. Food from farmer's markets is also less packaged and processed which means that it used up less energy and makes less waste.
Eat Organic Harmful pesticides and other chemicals used to grow non-organic food can get into our drinking water and ocean.
Eat Lower on the Food Chain Did you know that 18% of greenhouse gas emissions come from meat? That's more than all forms of transportation contribute together. Meat, especially red meat, takes much more energy to produce than plant products and the methane released by cows is a powerful greenhouse gas. You can significantly decrease your carbon footprint by becoming a vegetarian or at least eating less meat.
5. Connect in My CommunityGet involved in your community to protect our ocean! Think globally, act locally. Climate change is problem that may seem too big to tackle, but we can all take steps in our own communities to address the issue
6. Communicate My Interests and ConcernsUse your powers of communication to become a powerful voice for our ocean! If you live in the United States, your Representative and Senators represent you and your concerns in Congress. Find their contact information and ask them to work to protect our ocean today! What issue do you care about most? The power of the pen (or computer keyboard) is a simple, yet effective way to have your opinions heard that is too often overlooked. Add your ideas to the buzz in your community Make your opinions heard online, on the radio, and in your newspaper 7. Celebrate Our OceanTake the time to appreciate all that our ocean has to offer and get inspired to take action! Spread your love of the ocean to friends, family, and especially children. For kids, hands on experiences in nature can create lifelong enthusiasm for protecting our ocean.
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