First Quarter 2011 Newsletter

In this issue:

  • Our Ocean Space Successfully Launches
     
  • World Ocean Video
     
  • The Sea Connects All Things - A New Public Presentation

 

Our Ocean Space Successfully Launches

In January 2011, the World Ocean Observatory (W2O) inaugurated its new educational service, Our Ocean Space, a web-based network for the exchange of projects, art, audio-visual presentations, and other imaginative formats, created and up-loaded by young Citizens of the Ocean to share with their counterparts worldwide. In the two weeks since we've launched we have posted several wonderful projects by elementary school students on such subjects as Robotics, Beach Litter, Microorganisms in the Gulf of Mexico, an Oil Plume Experiment, and an Art Contest on Marine Debris, from schools and programs in Honolulu, Hawaii, Plymouth, England, and Mountain Brook, Alabama.

We are eager for more. Please pass the Our Ocean Space opportunity on to students and teachers in the United States and abroad. We are very interested to post projects from our international colleagues as a means to link students and classrooms around the world through their growing understanding of the ocean -- how it works and what it means. Thanks.

 


 

World Ocean Video

 

Also in this quarter, W2O will expand its aggregation of the best ocean video interviews and presentations from our own catalogue, TED Talks, YouTube links, and other sources. This new feature is part of our Information & Resources drop-down menu that also includes World Ocean Forum, our blog; Breaking Waves, our daily news digest; World Ocean Radio, our weekly audio feature available as RSS feed and podcast; and World Ocean Observer, this quarterly Newsletter.

We invite you to visit World Ocean Video, and to send your suggestions of possible videos to be included to [email protected].

 


 

The Sea Connects All Things – A New Public Presentation

 

The World Ocean Observatory (W2O) defines the ocean as an integrated, global, social system. We advocate through information and education to build public awareness in order to demonstrate the direct relevance of the global ocean as a powerful, motivating system for how we view and behave in this rapidly changing world. Our goal is to relate the ocean to the immediacy of our lives, indeed to the primary question of human survival, through responsible, efficient, and effective communications.

W2O Director, Peter Neill, has created a new illustrated public presentation that relates the ocean to species, habitat, national boundaries, fresh water, climate, food, energy, public health, transportation, trade, science, technology, research, exploration, conflict, policy, governance, national and international finance, coastal development, and cultural traditions.

The presentation identifies immediate and obvious context for change. The one hour lecture addresses social structure, globalization, finance, environmental sustainability, and shifting values and behavior; discusses change for planning and governance; and it suggests actions, beyond the predictable conventions, for organizations and individuals to adopt as an innovative strategy for the future.

The Sea Connects All Things is available for presentation to college, school, and institutional audiences. For further information about lecture schedule and arrangements, please contact [email protected].