The ESS Lecture Reflections. Ocean’s or the marine life’s importance

Lecture Reflection
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Lecture Reflection
ESS 1
In this lecture, one of the things that stood out for me was the ocean’s or the marine life’s importance to the ecosystem and sustainability. Without a deeper understanding of the value of oceans, they cannot be glorified as they should be. From the lectures, one gets to comprehend the oceans’ significance to not only the local but international well-being. Well-being here is absolute, meaning it encompasses economic development, poverty eradication, human health, food security, etc. Humanity’s survival hinges on the protection of marine life. However, humanity has not been kind towards the oceans and seas. Humanity’s activities in the oceans, along the coastlines, and on dry land continues to impact the health of marine life negatively. Currently, a lot of waste from dry land is channeled to the oceans, and this continues to degrade the state of life in and out of the oceans.
The statement above leads to the next crucial point from this lecture. What man does in or on ocean waters in the spirit of enhancing marine life’s health (after degradation) is not as important as what man does to prevent the degradation of life in the ocean waters. Human impact on ocean waters is currently at an all-time high with technological developments, making it possible for humanity to explore and conduct further tests in ocean waters. For a long time, humanity has been egotistical or self-centered and has thus not seen itself as part of the ecosystem. However, from this lecture, one gathers that the solutions to the problems witnessed at sea can only be solved if humanity considers itself part of the ecosystem and thus endeavors to find solutions that will guarantee sustainability. The problem with humanity today is valuation of everything. One statement, however, caught my eye, and it sought to discredit humanity’s obsession to value everything within its environs. “Not all aspects of natural capital – the contribution of wildlife, for example – can be robustly valued at present, and we do not always need to know a monetary value to know that something is worth protecting.” This statement castigates the capitalistic mindset that humanity adopted and seeks to spur action without the promise of monetary profits. The full value of marine life may not seem relevant at face value. However, one gathers from this lecture that grasping the full value of marine life is crucial towards the attainment of the world’s sustainability goals.
Last but not least, this lecture also introduced me to the importance of saltmarshes. First of all, I would like to admit that I did not know much about saltmarshes before this lecture. However, by the time we came to the end of it, I was well aware of what it is and its benefits to the ecosystem. Apparently, saltmarshes help enhance sustainability by providing a wide array of benefits to the world’s coastline. Some of these benefits include shoreline protection, carbon sequestration, water quality improvement, as well as fishery support. Research is also emphasized as an integral part of sustainability. The world needs to invest greatly in research in the hope of a...