Sustainability, systems thinking, and the ocean

Photo credit: Smithsonian Institution

By Heidi Gibson, Manager, Global Sustainability Series, Smithsonian Science Education Center

This blog is part of the Afterschool Alliance's Collective for Youth Empowerment in STEM & Society (CYESS) initiative. This series of blogs highlights examples of programs working at the intersection of STEM and civic engagement. We are excited to showcase the systemic change young people can make in their communities when their afterschool programs support them to layer action onto their STEM learning. If you would like to know more or submit a blog about your youth action program, please contact us.

Stop and think about the ocean for a moment. What comes to mind? You may conjure up a memory of being seaside, visualize a relaxing calendar picture, remember a deep-sea documentary, hear the white noise ocean waves that put you to sleep, start humming a song the references the ocean, or think of one of the many points of connection between you and the fascinating system of the ocean. Even if you have never physically been near the ocean, you are deeply and systemically connected to it.

Earth is called the blue planet for an important reason – the ocean occupies 71% of Earth’s surface and is a key part of making the planet habitable for people. The ocean regulates global temperature, absorbs massive amounts of carbon dioxide, is the birthplace of hurricanes and typhoons, and holds 97% of the water on the planet. And beyond its defining role in Earth’s systems, the ocean holds pivotal historical, cultural, economic, and social roles. Yet the ocean is threatened and often the role of the ocean in creating a sustainable future is underappreciated, one reason the United Nations called for the 2020s to “The Ocean Decade.”

Imagine an ocean teeming with life, where microplastics have been conquered, where coral remains vibrantly colored, where mangroves line the shores, where warming and acidification are no longer the status quo, and where people have equitable access to this vital part of our planet. This can be the reality and youth can be a critical part of envisioning and encouraging this transformation.

The Smithsonian Science Education Center has developed Ocean! How can we create a sustainable future for the ocean?, a new and free community research guide for youth ages 11–18. Underpinned by the UN Sustainable Development Goals, this guide helps young people use systems thinking to explore the multiple dimensions of the human relationship with the ocean. The guide is designed to be used as a resource to facilitate youth-led explorations to discover, understand, and act on ocean sustainability. Discovery activities employ an asset and place-based approach, prompting youth to recognize their existing knowledge and connections with the ocean and to identify further connections between themselves, the ocean, and their communities. Understanding is built through hands-on investigations, with opportunities to understand the natural science around ocean systems and also how people relate to the ocean. Finally, youth build their civic skills through self-determined action-taking.

As part of the Smithsonian Science for Global Goals project, Ocean! is the tenth freely available guide and includes research, activities, and perspectives from subject matter experts on various ocean topics. Within the guide, students explore current problems facing the ocean related to various types of pollution, ocean acidification, rising ocean temperatures, dwindling numbers of fish, and competition for coastal spaces. The Smithsonian Science for Global Goals guides integrate inquiry-based science education with social and emotional learning and civic engagement.