On the 1st of February 2025, I was lucky enough to attend the first Ocean Advocate Summit in Bristol, as an advocate for the Youth Ocean Network, a branch of the Marine Conservation Society.
The event was an opportunity for those interested in conservation to learn about threats to marine ecosystems, and importantly, attendees were given the tools needed to make their first steps towards actively conserving our environment, whether land or ocean based.
One of the creators of the event, Catherine Edsell, shared her journey as a conservationist. She started out protecting turtles from poachers, who would take their eggs and sell them on for human consumption, she progressed to citizen science, teaching volunteers how to aid scientific researchers in the field, where it is often difficult to gather data over a large area, by conducting surveys and taking measurements. She worked with Operation Wallacea, who organise expeditions around the globe, allowing people to get actively involved without needing any academic credentials.
A number of companies had stalls at the summit, advertising their missions and products. One of these was Water-To-Go, who have designed reusable bottles with a highly advanced filtration system, all with the use of plant-based materials. Another was The Shark Trust, who work to improve shark conservation globally by raising awareness through citizen science projects and campaigning.
From Professors to Filmmakers: the people creating change
I was struck by the range of perspectives I found at the summit, speakers were professors and students, founders of organisations and filmmakers to mention a few. As a result of this diversity, the ideas discussed varied greatly. Some speakers were informative, and talked about the impacts of industries such as mining and healthcare on marine habitats. Others explored the more personal, individual connection between the ocean and ourselves.
One of the speakers I saw was Professor Jon Copley, a marine biologist who spoke on the impacts humanity has on the deep ocean, and how they have evolved from industrial waste being dumped in the 30s, to nuclear waste in the 40s and demersal (seabed) trawling currently.
Most worryingly however, is our potential impact in the future. There is a possibility that legislation for deep-sea mining is approved (it is currently temporarily banned in Europe, due to a lack of research), which could disrupt the seafloor and displace oceanic organisms. Because there is not enough research on these environments, it would be irresponsible to start exploiting them so drastically.
Unexpected Impacts: how does medicine impact our oceans?
Paul Southall, who is a sustainability lead for the Royal College of Anaesthetists, gave a talk on an impact somewhat closer to home; the NHS and the world’s healthcare industry. This was interesting to me since I had never really heard talk of any environmental issues to do with medicine, nor had it ever occurred to me that it could be responsible for climate change to any degree. The amount of CO2 produced by the medical industry is actually about 5% of global emissions1, which is higher than industries such as aviation (2.5%)2 and presents a considerable obstacle to achieving Net Zero. That 5% largely comes in the form of shipping and medicine manufacture, but impacts aren’t limited to carbon emissions. Common pharmaceuticals such as Paracetamol and Metformin are toxic to aquatic life, and are often found around our coastlines due to ineffective wastewater treatment. Thankfully, there are a number of companies working towards healthier oceans, such as The Zero Emission Maritime Buyers Alliance (ZEMBA) and Evergreen Marine Corp. They both advocate for clean maritime transport, by accelerating the deployment of green shipping solutions and providing renewable solutions to the market.
Flowing towards a better future
This event was the first of its kind, which is timely, in light of the fact that 2025 is the International Year of Glacier’s Preservation, with glaciers also the focus of World Water Day 2025. Glaciers, and the wider cryosphere (the name for the portion of the Earth’s water that is frozen), are melting at an unprecedented rate. This contributes to sea-level rise that could, if unchecked, eventually displace huge numbers of people, destroying rare habitats and coastal communities. It’s time we advocate for policy changes and take action to protect our oceans, glaciers and waterways.
By the end of the Summit the sense of united purpose among attendees was prevalent. Rada Pandeva, a fellow member of the Youth Ocean Network, and the founder of The Thalassophile Project, discussed the Japanese concept of Ikigai, which roughly translates as; ‘the reason for being’. She encouraged an introspective discussion about what motivates all of us as individuals to protect the ocean, and our environment, and why it is important. Hearing the opinions of everyone in the group was very powerful, some people had traditionally relied on a healthy ocean for their livelihoods as fishermen, others spoke about their childhood memories of the sea. We might all have a plethora of completely different reasons for caring, but the fact that any of us does care is what matters.
Thanks for reading!
By George, AFC Ambassador and Youth Ocean Network member
Youth Ocean Network
If you are 13–25 and interested in joining the Marine Conservation Society's 'Youth Ocean Network' you can register your interest here.
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