OCEAN REVOLUTION CO-FOUNDER J NICHOLS "EARTH DAY" WORDS OF CHALLENGE
"In the 1970’s, I idolized Evel Knievel. He was rock star, sports hero, and folk legend in one. His death-defying jumps inspired me to launch my bicycle over puddles and many a hapless friend.
Now, I find new inspiration in my childhood hero. In 1961, before he became “Evel,” Robert Craig Knievel hitchhiked with the rack of a bull elk from Montana to our nation’s capital to protest the culling of elk in Yellowstone. The Kennedy administration responded and countless elk were saved.
Today, we face more serious crises—loss of biodiversity, a warming planet, collapsing fisheries, looming food and water shortages, and pollution in every corner of the globe. Scientists forecast a “2050 Scenario” in which Earth is hotter, dirtier, and overcrowded with nine billion people who are left to wage wars for what little remains.
Jumping this chasm will be the greatest challenge we have ever faced. It will require revolutionary changes in society and technology. To succeed, we must be brave, creative, and outspoken. We must undertake the audacious, the impossible, and the dangerous. We must risk our financial, social, and physical comfort. In other words, we must become EcoDaredevils.
Everywhere I go, I meet EcoDaredevils. They are debating, creating, evolving—yes, sometimes crashing—but always, always coming back for more. Two Texas women cleaning a beach and inspiring Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup that is now half-a-million strong. Sir Richard Branson greening aviation. Feliciano dos Santos campaigning with music for clean water in Africa. Architect Renzo Piano turning a massive roof into a meadow with solar panels. WaterKeeper Julio Solis drag racing in Mexico to raise awareness of our ocean crisis.
Changing light bulbs, inflating tires, and toting reusable bags are each important gestures. But it’s going to take action far more thrilling to make it over this canyon. But, we must do something for the planet—something that invites personal risk.
They say that Evel Knievel broke every bone in his body at one time or another. But, he kept on jumping. His steely will enthralled me as an eight-year old. It still does today.
So, it’s Earth Day 2008. Look deep inside. Grab hold of your inner EcoDaredevil. Strap on a helmet, some red-white-and-blue leathers, and let’s go for a ride."
Dr. Wallace J. Nichols is a Senior Scientist at Ocean Conservancy and a Research Associate at California Academy of Sciences. He is working to inspire an Ocean Revolution among EcoDaredevils around the world.
Internships for 2008
New Job and Scholarship Opportunities!!!!: Internships provide an opportunity to make a difference right now. Add your mind and your muscle to the movement pushing for a better healthier planet. Whether your interest is politics, fieldwork, policy, research, environmental justice, media, or mechanics you can place yourself squarely in the middle of a Revolution being created by hundreds of young people around the globe. You can create the environmental program as a summer counselor at Hayground Camp in the Hamptons. In Mozambique you could do underwater research for the Manta and Whale Shark Research Centre or work alongside the Bitonga Divers teaching African communities about the economic promise of sustainable eco-tourism. Maybe you're an econ major and you could do an economic study of tuna ranching in the Gulf of Mexico with Barbara Block's Tag-a-Giant or with fisheries titan Dr. Daniel Pauly at University of British Columbia. For some it might be essential to campaign for a congressional candidate that's an Ocean Champion in this election year! What about learning and creating new media, video editing and web design so you can produce pro-ocean propaganda in your own native language no matter what it is? Tree Media, creators of the11th Hour and 11th Hour Action.com is offering internships remotely or in their offices in Santa Monica. These are just some of the ways you can use your time to make a difference. Many Universities (Stanford and Duke for example) have programs to pay your expenses while you fight for what you believe in, whether it's a semester off or a summer project. Work with professionals and new leaders like yourselves determined to get the oceans we want instead of the ones we're getting. Contact
to learn more.
Ocean Revolution internships are partially underwritten by a grant from the Knight-Vision Foundation
Mozambique offers a unique study in conservation. The Madagascar Channel is one of the world's most fertile and diverse ocean environments. BiTonga Divers, Ocean Revolution along with PADI Project Aware, The Manta Ray and Whaleshark Research Centre, and Tofo Scuba have joined forces to initiate and promote a program of conservation awareness, sustainable economic development and eco-tourism through scuba in the Tofo Beach region of Mozambique.
native oceans council 2008
The 2008 Native Oceans Council consisted of fifty-three indigenous people from Australia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Palau, Panama, and Venezuela. The interaction between these community leaders and representatives of the worldʼs leading marine research institutes, universities, large internationally based NGOʼs and government policy makers framed the science and management strategizing at the Symposium. By the numbers, one-third of all symposiumʼs presentations incorporated reflections and observations based on Traditional Knowledge. More importantly, the presence of so many ancient turtle hunting cultures that have now turned their efforts to conservation drove the participants to look deeper and enlist new allies tin the fight against the assaultive escalation of marine destruction.
Hayground Campers raise money for Ocean Revolution! You've read a little about the Ocean Revolution program at Hayground Camp this summer but what you didn't know is that some of the kids have become Ocean Revolution funders! Organized by Hayden (fourth from the left) campers Henry, Will, Josie, Hayden, AJ and Ben (missing from the photo) wrote, produced and contributed the receipts from a play to two charities. Ocean Revolution is incredibly proud to be one of those chosen and thanks all these fine characters for their efforts and their incredible generosity. We will definately be hearing more form them in the future. +more revolutionaries
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being created by hundreds of young people around the globe. You can create the environmental program as a summer counselor at 
