June 8 has been officially recognized by the United Nations as “World Oceans Day” since 2008. This year, its organizers have dropped the “S”, and are asking the world to do the same. Learn more about the significance of this shift, and how you can get involved in protecting our one shared ocean.
Credit: Daria Shevtsova // Pexels
Earlier this year, The Ocean Project made the official decision to “drop the S” from its title and introduce a rebranded “World Ocean Day”. While this may seem like a simple marketing decision, the meaning behind the change is actually quite powerful:
We’ve all been taught that the world has five separate oceans, but that really isn't the case—it is all one connected, global waterway. Through this body of water, we are joined together in ways we never dreamed of, and all of us share a responsibility to protect it.
Why Drop the “S” in Oceans?
To learn more about this change, we spoke to Bill Mott, executive director of The Ocean Project. Here’s what he had to say:
"If you picture the image of Earth from space, it's easy to see that we live on a blue planet, with one large ocean that connects us all. Our shared ocean supports much of the life on Earth. It is the source of production for most of the oxygen that we breathe, and it regulates our climate. The ocean is also a great source of biodiversity, and it provides food for billions of people. Wherever we live, we all depend on the ocean to survive and thrive.
As we have learned during the COVID-19 pandemic, we are dependent upon each other in so many ways. We must continue to push forward together to protect and restore our ocean for everyone on Earth. After all, we share one ocean, one climate, and one future – together."
The MSC is Changing, Too
Here at the MSC, we couldn’t agree more, and we have begun making the switch to the singular “ocean” in our communications.
We know that our mission to end overfishing will only be achieved through the collective action of individuals around the world. We also know from the 1,700 proven impacts MSC-certified fisheries have made on the water that the small choices individuals make at the store have a big impact on the ocean. Keeping both in mind, we want seafood lovers to really understand the global impact they have by making the switch to certified sustainable seafood.
Our hope is that, as more consumers begin treating our ocean as one shared resource, we’ll all be inspired to take better care of it. So, from now on, we look forward to celebrating World Ocean Day every June
How Can I Protect the Ocean?
The easiest way to make a difference? Start changing the way you talk about the ocean—and get your friends and family to do the same! The more “ocean literate” people there are in the world, the better!
