Deepening ocean literacy for our Southern Ocean ‘mission critical’

This World Ocean Day, the Marine Stewardship Council launched a partnership with the International Antarctic Centre to advance ocean literacy in the Southern Ocean. 

Over 70 educators were introduced to the MSC’s Te Kawa O Tangaroa - a nine topic ocean centred learning programme designed to inspire the next generation to advocate for sustainable solutions to restoring ocean health.

Miranda Satterthwaite, Academy Director at the International Antarctic Centre and driving force behind the ambition to empower the next generation urged a range of stakeholders from scientists to educators and business leaders: “Only by looking to the future, can we accelerate the urgent action required to protect our Southern Ocean ecosystem. Equipping the next generation is mission-critical and part of our wider approach to ocean literacy both for students and the wider public who visit us and experience the wonder of Antarctica, which must be protected.”

Teachers were also given an exclusive preview of a new teaching kit now available via the House of Science. The kit called Big Blue Future equips teachers with immersive and interactive activities to explain concepts such as overfishing, bycatch and marine food webs. Member schools of House of Science can now order the kit in Christchurch with future expansion of the resource to a further 14 locations across New Zealand made possible by corporate sponsors.

Speaking at the launch, Alex Webb, Senior Communications and Marketing Manager at the Marine Stewardship Council, said: “Our ocean is our life support system. While as adults we can take immediate action now, we must also empower the next generation, our future leaders and consumers, to make smart choices and take bold decisions to protect our ocean and way of life. The power of partnerships such as those now launched with the International Antarctic Centre, the House of Science and the National Aquarium of New Zealand, are crucial to accelerating our mission to end overfishing and ensure oceans teeming with life.”

“Our curriculum aligned resources are free to use and have been designed by teachers with teachers in mind. As teachers, you have the power in your hands to inspire the next generation to make the step-change required to tackle the ecological challenges we face.”

The free-to-use teacher resources can be downloaded at msc.org/tangaroa.