Boiling it down to essentials, we have to produce more food on the same amount of land while respecting our planetary boundaries in ways that secure the health of humans, the biosphere, and our planet. Today’s agricultural practices do not deliver on these demands. Methods have to be reimagined and re-engineered, but not necessarily re-invented. Nature itself offers models that can be mimicked, if not all that easily.
Oceans are often categorized as victims of warming, acidification, pollution, and vanishing species and habitats. Alternatively, they instill fear as rising sea levels threaten lives and livelihoods. Much less attention and even fewer resources have been focused on the ocean’s own formidable potential to address these issues.
Every year, our oceans absorb some 90% of the excess heat caused by greenhouse gas emissions and 30% of the world’s atmospheric carbon dioxide. To continue in this leading role, the ocean needs additional support. This will generate exceptional returns.