Ocean & Human

As climate change and the rise of the sea-level become more prominent, humankind has been dealing with a series of water-related problems requiring creative solutions. Island nations like Tuvalu and Kiribati have already undergone geographical changes due to sea-level rise, even as residents of low-lying outer islands within Kiribati’s national boundary retreat inward. One proposed solution is “Seasteading,” a promising alternative to traditional, terrestrial governance to vulnerable island nations like French …

Earth is rightfully called the Ocean Planet – more than 70 percent of the surface is covered by sea. Despite being such an essential part of life, more than 80 percent of the world’s oceans are unmapped. According to the American Museum of Natural History in New York, merely 10 to 15 percent of the seafloor has been mapped with accuracy, which means we know less about the seafloor than the surface of Mars.
However, technologies of sea exploration…

Ecosystem services are something from ecosystems that are beneficial to humans (Costanza, et al., 1998). An ecosystem service contributes various interrelated ecosystem structures and functions. Well-functioning ecosystems and proper natural resources are the basis for constant ecosystem services to humans. Ecosystem services found in coastal areas include mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass meadows and small islands. These ecosystems are interrelated…

Marine debris or litters can be defined as all persistent, manufactured, or processed solid materials disposed of or abandoned over coastal and marine environments. Within marine debris, plastics constitute the dominant pollutant item. Its distribution ranges from the world’s most remote beaches, floating in the middle of the ocean, the deep seabed, and inside aquatic animals, to frozen within the polar ice. The detrimental impacts of plastics are largely associated with its high…

People have been living on islands for decades. It may be from the busiest, well-developed island to the most isolated one. People are drawn to reside on an island due to its beauty and rich marine biodiversity. As more resorts and tourism spots were developed, there has been a significant spike of inhabited island. Human expansion on an island is often followed by a large number of wastes, which may include solid based litter such as marine debris or wastewater. Wastewater …

The high seas – the vast open ocean and deep seabed areas found beyond any national jurisdiction – cover about half of the Earth’s surface and 64 percent of the global ocean area. The high seas are the international waters that are owned by everyone and no-one. They are part of the global commons and governed collectively by all nations. Once thought to be barren and devoid of life, it is now known that the high seas are one of the largest reservoirs of biodiversity on…