WEBVTT 00:00.360 --> 00:04.050 CAMMY: I have so many questions for you, Dr Earle, 00:04.050 --> 00:07.710 but one of my most burning questions I'll just start 00:07.710 --> 00:12.900 right off with is you've spent so much time in 00:12.900 --> 00:16.245 the Gulf of Mexico and in the world's oceans. 00:16.245 --> 00:21.510 And you've had a long and really productive career. 00:21.520 --> 00:24.660 And so, one of my most burning questions is what 00:25.530 --> 00:27.990 has been the single most dramatic change 00:28.230 --> 00:31.950 that you've witnessed in our ocean ecosystems 00:31.950 --> 00:33.806 across the globe in your lifetime? 00:35.887 --> 00:40.810 DR EARLE: Well, there are two, let me say there're 00:40.810 --> 00:42.270 three things I wanna comment on. 00:42.300 --> 00:45.900 First of all, how much has changed. 00:45.900 --> 00:51.800 When you look at the big issues, 00:51.800 --> 00:58.480 especially relative to the Gulf of Mexico, half of the coral reefs, 00:58.480 --> 01:01.820 more than half in the Gulf are gone as compared 01:01.820 --> 01:05.209 to what was there when I was a child, 01:05.209 --> 01:06.980 when I first began exploring the ocean 01:06.980 --> 01:10.580 as a young scientist in the 1950s. 01:13.370 --> 01:15.500 The mangroves, the seagrass, meadows, 01:16.520 --> 01:20.540 they've been transformed because of human actions. 01:22.850 --> 01:26.690 The coastal areas in particular have felt the crunch 01:26.690 --> 01:32.000 of human activity as our numbers have prospered. 01:32.510 --> 01:38.000 Go back to even 1980, the number of people 01:38.000 --> 01:40.490 around the world was about 4 billion. 01:40.490 --> 01:42.170 We almost doubled that number. 01:42.680 --> 01:50.520 That means where every person who was around in 1980, 01:50.520 --> 01:52.120 there are now two in that same place. 01:52.140 --> 01:57.360 I mean, we just now our impact on the planet because 01:57.360 --> 02:03.135 of our sheer numbers has been of considerable force, 02:03.135 --> 02:06.240 but it's also our, what do we use? 02:06.240 --> 02:08.639 We use water, we take food products. 02:08.639 --> 02:10.840 All the things that we've taken from nature 02:10.840 --> 02:14.415 has greatly increased, and it's continuing. 02:14.415 --> 02:16.740 And looking at our future prosperity, 02:16.740 --> 02:23.633 can we continue to consume the forests on the land, the water? 02:23.633 --> 02:25.995 I mean, everybody needs water. 02:25.995 --> 02:28.560 And the more of us are, 02:28.560 --> 02:32.639 the more water we take from the natural systems that, 02:32.639 --> 02:34.500 so what are the limits? 02:34.919 --> 02:41.790 How can we take the knowledge that now exists and reflect on? 02:41.790 --> 02:42.300 OK. 02:42.300 --> 02:43.860 Here's the problem. 02:43.860 --> 02:44.880 Here are the problems. 02:44.880 --> 02:45.919 What can we do about it? 02:45.930 --> 02:49.550 Imagine if we did not know, 02:49.550 --> 02:55.040 so greater change than in all preceding history, perhaps, 02:55.550 --> 02:57.020 but greater knowledge too, 02:57.020 --> 03:00.620 we've learned more at the same time that we've lost more. 03:01.950 --> 03:06.690 And this collision is where we're at. 03:06.690 --> 03:09.960 And I say, it's the best time ever to be a human because 03:10.860 --> 03:14.880 we're aware as no humans ever could be before 03:15.360 --> 03:18.300 of what we now face that we didn't even know we had 03:18.300 --> 03:21.660 to think about such things when I was a child. 03:21.660 --> 03:25.020 We now know that polar ice is melting. 03:25.980 --> 03:28.155 Who knew when I was a kid? 03:28.155 --> 03:29.010 Nobody. 03:29.010 --> 03:33.389 A few who might have seen us and understood this, 03:33.389 --> 03:35.766 we're in the tiny minority. 03:35.766 --> 03:38.130 Now, it's headline news. 03:38.610 --> 03:39.930 We're armed with knowledge. 03:40.980 --> 03:43.290 This is the greatest moment in all of history for 03:43.290 --> 03:47.760 us to make history in a positive way to secure 03:47.760 --> 03:50.550 an enduring future for us within the natural 03:50.550 --> 03:54.300 systems that make our existence possible. 03:54.960 --> 04:01.470 Imagine if we didn't know, I think the greatest discovery of all of 04:01.470 --> 04:04.515 the 20th century and now into the 21st 04:04.515 --> 04:08.475 is how much more there is to learn. 04:08.475 --> 04:11.520 The magnitude of our ignorance should cause us 04:11.520 --> 04:16.455 to kind of say, wait a minute, just hold on. 04:16.455 --> 04:20.015 We're thinking how much we didn't know, 04:20.015 --> 04:24.490 even in the 1950s compared to what we now know. 04:24.490 --> 04:30.010 What else don't we know that we should know before we make 04:30.880 --> 04:34.690 the kinds of decisions that are once and never more? 04:34.690 --> 04:41.110 Should we be willing to sacrifice the very last of the mangroves just 04:41.110 --> 04:45.086 because we think we need that coastal area for some other purpose? 04:45.086 --> 04:49.670 Or armed with what we not only know, but what we don't know, 04:49.670 --> 04:54.800 should we embrace them with a magnified 04:54.800 --> 04:58.279 sense of understanding what we don't 04:58.279 --> 05:08.330 know that we should have respect for this moment in time when we have 05:08.330 --> 05:12.560 a chance to hold on to the diversity of life as never before, 05:12.560 --> 05:17.089 not to lose the last best chance we have to make peace with 05:17.089 --> 05:21.337 nature so that we can prosper going forward, anyway. 05:22.557 --> 05:24.180 CAMMY: Thank you so much. 05:24.210 --> 05:25.589 Thank you so much for that. 05:26.520 --> 05:31.149 I see that we have a question from Dr DeYoe. 05:31.149 --> 05:34.410 And Dr DeYoe will invite you to unmute yourself 05:34.410 --> 05:35.981 and go ahead and ask your question. 05:36.337 --> 05:37.466 HUDSON DEYOE: Thanks, Cammy. 05:37.466 --> 05:41.520 Yeah, I'm Hudson DeYoe at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. 05:42.750 --> 05:46.890 I work with seagrass and watersheds and stuff like that. 05:46.890 --> 05:51.060 And I'm gonna bring up a topic that is right in 05:51.060 --> 05:53.100 the middle of the Texas Water Development Board. 05:56.040 --> 05:59.325 Flooding is an issue in Texas. 05:59.325 --> 06:04.580 And the state is spending for a good reason, lots of money, 06:04.580 --> 06:07.320 trying to deal with what to do about flooding. 06:08.130 --> 06:10.980 And there are things called regional flood planning groups, 06:10.980 --> 06:12.510 which I'm a member of. 06:12.510 --> 06:13.260 OK. 06:13.260 --> 06:18.900 And on the other side, of course, is well to one way 06:18.900 --> 06:22.645 to deal with the flood is to improve drainage, 06:22.645 --> 06:26.460 to move water, more water faster to the coast. 06:29.370 --> 06:33.900 Of course, where it's going, well, for me is the Lower Laguna Madre, 06:34.170 --> 06:36.400 which has some of the, and I'm proud of this, 06:36.400 --> 06:38.670 the best seagrass in Texas. 06:38.670 --> 06:39.270 OK. 06:39.270 --> 06:45.620 (LAUGHS) And I'm intent on keeping it that way, Amy, I mean, Cammy. 06:45.620 --> 06:46.200 Anyways. 06:46.200 --> 06:51.810 (LAUGHS) So, my question is with that conflict 06:52.140 --> 06:58.480 between managing floods and addressing the, 06:58.480 --> 07:02.220 what happens to that floodwater when it gets to the coast, 07:02.220 --> 07:06.870 there's a lot of money being spent on flood planning, 07:06.870 --> 07:08.070 management, et cetera. 07:08.820 --> 07:12.990 My quick take is (UNKNOWN) is don't have as much money 07:12.990 --> 07:16.483 that she needs for solidity studies, et cetera. 07:16.483 --> 07:21.630 So, I appreciate your take on this conflict 07:21.990 --> 07:24.345 between flood planning and coastal health. 07:25.920 --> 07:30.383 DR EARLE: (LAUGHS) Oh, I wish I had the magic wand. 07:30.383 --> 07:37.120 I would love to hear from some other members of the team here, 07:37.120 --> 07:47.571 because what you are putting forward is a dose of reality. 07:47.571 --> 07:57.750 We are inheriting policies and practices born of 07:57.750 --> 08:00.720 a time when we did not know what we now know. 08:01.610 --> 08:02.570 We gotta deal with it. 08:03.950 --> 08:08.180 And the good news is there is greater 08:08.180 --> 08:12.290 knowledge about how things do connect 08:12.290 --> 08:19.000 and how what happens upstream and what happens far away impacts 08:19.000 --> 08:28.240 right here at home and how local policies have to be thought through 08:28.990 --> 08:34.816 and understood to be connected to all the rest and how, 08:34.816 --> 08:39.460 instead of just taking it as if this little piece 08:39.460 --> 08:41.815 is going to solve the problem to realize you've 08:41.815 --> 08:48.309 gotta start upstream as well as where you live 08:49.120 --> 08:53.065 and to put nature on the balance street. 08:53.065 --> 09:00.120 We in the past have not done a good job of doing just that. 09:00.120 --> 09:09.850 So, whether it's storms coming from offshore or storms 09:10.360 --> 09:16.570 bringing water inland to the coast, that fringe, 09:16.570 --> 09:24.970 that coastal living fringe is a key to solving or living 09:24.970 --> 09:33.100 with the natural events that we need those mangroves, 09:33.100 --> 09:35.938 we need those coral reef, we need those seagrasses. 09:35.938 --> 09:39.770 They're our best defense or best offenses 09:39.770 --> 09:41.920 or best way of working with nature 09:41.920 --> 09:47.710 and working with how we have channeled 09:47.710 --> 09:50.559 water in ways that are not natural. 09:51.880 --> 09:57.940 They're still there as our primary ally, if you will, 09:58.420 --> 10:01.750 in terms of dealing with these events, 10:01.750 --> 10:06.410 whether it's stormwater coming in or flood water gushing into the Gulf. 10:06.410 --> 10:15.360 I would love to hear members of the board respond to this real issue, 10:15.370 --> 10:17.800 how do we protect the seagrass meadow, 10:17.800 --> 10:21.650 given the freshwater influx that seagrasses 10:21.650 --> 10:26.700 can tolerate a fair amount of low salinity, 10:26.700 --> 10:31.267 but they can't live in fresh water for long. 10:31.267 --> 10:34.929 So, having large amounts of freshwater discharged 10:34.929 --> 10:39.760 into the Gulf does have a very dramatic, 10:39.760 --> 10:44.344 negative impact on the various systems that are truly our best friends. 10:44.866 --> 10:45.214 CAMMY: Yes. 10:45.214 --> 10:54.130 And I will just add to that and say that we do have a body of science 10:54.130 --> 10:58.059 that helps us understand the impact of freshwater inflows, 10:58.360 --> 11:01.870 either too much or too little on seagrass 11:02.230 --> 11:04.090 beds in the Lower Laguna Madre. 11:04.100 --> 11:09.040 And so, I think that part of our job is to tell the story of 11:09.040 --> 11:14.110 the seagrass and to help decision-makers understand the science 11:14.800 --> 11:19.570 and understand what the impacts are so that we can craft 11:19.570 --> 11:23.880 the best possible plans and make the best possible decisions. 11:23.880 --> 11:27.450 So, part of it that I see that is lacking 11:27.450 --> 11:31.440 is the science communication and again, 11:31.440 --> 11:32.860 telling that story, 11:33.070 --> 11:36.760 telling the story of the seagrass and helping everyone, you know, 11:36.760 --> 11:40.000 be on the same page in terms of understanding 11:40.000 --> 11:42.200 the freshwater inflow impacts. 11:42.200 --> 11:45.340 So, that's my thought there. 11:45.340 --> 11:48.580 But Hudson, we're so very fortunate to have 11:48.580 --> 11:50.590 you working on this issue in Texas. 11:50.590 --> 11:54.940 And I appreciate your engagement in the regional flood planning 11:54.940 --> 11:57.220 groups and with our coastal science department 11:57.220 --> 11:59.350 and all the work that you did to support the environmental 11:59.350 --> 12:02.020 flows process as an expert science team member. 12:02.020 --> 12:06.850 So, my best advice is that we continue working together 12:07.150 --> 12:09.260 to tell the story and get the science. 12:09.260 --> 12:12.040 We need more studies, certainly. 12:12.040 --> 12:16.840 So, we can always fill, you know, work towards filling some of the gaps 12:16.840 --> 12:21.170 in our understanding because it's, you know, we're up against, 12:21.460 --> 12:24.520 we're up against a lot in terms of not only 12:24.520 --> 12:27.520 the changes to the freshwater inflow regime, 12:27.520 --> 12:31.870 but also changes in our climate and changes 12:31.870 --> 12:34.540 in the population growth in the region. 12:34.540 --> 12:37.210 And so, there's a lot of confounding factors 12:37.210 --> 12:40.330 and that we have to, that we have to understand. 12:40.330 --> 12:43.155 So, there's a lot of science still yet to be done. 12:43.980 --> 12:46.690 SPEAKER: Well, I just wanted to thank Hudson as you did Cammy 12:46.690 --> 12:49.690 for serving on the regional flood planning group. 12:49.690 --> 12:55.195 And as many of you know, this is a monumental for the state of Texas, 12:55.195 --> 12:57.970 it's putting together through the regional flood plans 12:57.970 --> 12:59.500 and then moving forward with the first-ever 12:59.500 --> 13:03.955 state flood plan and doing it in a way that we've never done it before, 13:03.955 --> 13:07.120 recognizing that what happens upstream impacts 13:07.300 --> 13:09.210 folks downstream and vice versa. 13:09.220 --> 13:12.280 And so, that certainly is inclusive of 13:12.550 --> 13:14.260 the habitats that you talked about. 13:14.440 --> 13:18.030 I think another and Cammy mentioned this another kind of standout 13:18.030 --> 13:22.630 initiative within Texas is the focus on environmental flows 13:22.990 --> 13:26.710 and recognizing that any type of new 13:26.740 --> 13:29.320 water development needs to recognize 13:29.320 --> 13:31.850 the importance of environmental flows and that need to be, 13:31.850 --> 13:34.030 needs to be provided in the permitting effort 13:34.030 --> 13:36.920 in a certainly that resides within TCEQ, 13:36.920 --> 13:40.030 but the better the data, the better the science, 13:40.030 --> 13:42.100 the better the science, the better the policy. 13:42.429 --> 13:48.568 And that's kind of our motto, I think, at the water development board. 13:48.568 --> 13:50.890 I think the fact that we are not regulatory, 13:50.920 --> 13:54.150 that we exist to be a resource that we provide the tools, 13:54.150 --> 13:56.790 and that in Texas, it's a bottom-up process. 13:56.800 --> 14:02.380 And so, we have Hudson and people like him from the community that 14:02.380 --> 14:07.210 volunteer their time to evaluate the data and the science 14:07.490 --> 14:10.150 and to recommend the other pieces that we need to kind of fill 14:10.150 --> 14:14.110 those gaps and recognizing that it needs to not only be. 14:14.260 --> 14:18.580 And I think this is a huge expectation for people across 14:18.580 --> 14:21.910 the state is how can we put together moving 14:21.910 --> 14:25.465 forward some projects that take flood waters 14:25.465 --> 14:27.980 and make them available as a water supply. 14:27.980 --> 14:35.400 And so, absolutely the need to look at it as Dr 14:35.400 --> 14:38.440 Earle was talking about as an overall system. 14:38.860 --> 14:42.010 And again, having the science, having the technology, 14:42.190 --> 14:47.650 having the talent of folks who are committed 14:47.920 --> 14:50.040 from all walks of life locally, 14:50.040 --> 14:52.790 and, you know, make the best decisions that we can, 14:52.790 --> 14:54.940 and then be open and make sure that 14:54.940 --> 14:57.220 the process moving forward is adaptive 14:57.220 --> 14:59.380 and that we can come back and as we learn more information, 14:59.560 --> 15:02.080 we can go back and we can change it and we can tweak it. 15:02.080 --> 15:06.220 But it's kinda like when you were maybe, you know, 15:06.220 --> 15:08.660 back in college and you were given test paper. 15:08.660 --> 15:12.400 I mean, there were those students that was spend a lot of 15:12.400 --> 15:14.950 time kind of figuring out how do I solve the problem. 15:14.950 --> 15:18.010 And then there were others that just started immediately writing down. 15:18.010 --> 15:21.220 I know in engineering school, you know, the various equations. 15:21.220 --> 15:22.546 Well, the time is ticking. 15:22.546 --> 15:22.804 OK. 15:22.804 --> 15:24.220 And you only have an hour. 15:24.490 --> 15:28.030 And so, the person that spent all the time trying to figure out, 15:28.030 --> 15:29.153 OK, how do I solve the problem... 15:30.610 --> 15:33.827 SPEAKER: You know, it doesn't have enough time at the end of the time test 15:33.827 --> 15:37.660 to actually write down the solution and vice versa, you know, 15:37.660 --> 15:39.460 the person who's written down all the equations 15:39.460 --> 15:40.950 and hasn't thought about it, you know, 15:40.960 --> 15:43.390 as Einstein had kind of coached us, you know, 15:43.390 --> 15:45.630 doesn't have time again, to affect the solution. 15:45.630 --> 15:47.070 So, that's kind of the balance. 15:47.080 --> 15:49.480 I mean, we can't spend all of our time trying 15:49.480 --> 15:51.438 to understand it and resource it. 15:51.438 --> 15:53.170 We need to do something now, 15:53.170 --> 15:55.180 but we need to do it in a very thoughtful way, 15:55.180 --> 15:56.140 kind of moving forward. 15:56.140 --> 15:59.244 So hopefully, you know, with the talent of the people that 15:59.244 --> 16:01.502 are serving in the regional flood planning groups, 16:01.502 --> 16:04.041 the wonderful work by our staff and others across 16:04.041 --> 16:06.581 the state and certainly the heart institute that are, 16:06.581 --> 16:10.250 you know, looking at, you know, what is that best science is available. 16:10.250 --> 16:13.354 We can take all those tools and we can, you know, 16:13.636 --> 16:16.176 in a very prescribed and logical and thoughtful manner, 16:16.176 --> 16:19.844 move forward and take that information and kind of move it, as Dr. 16:19.844 --> 16:21.255 Earl said, into the policy realms. 16:21.910 --> 16:23.560 So, I just wanted to say thank you for your 16:24.580 --> 16:25.870 commitment and for your support in 16:25.870 --> 16:27.310 the regional water planning process 16:27.310 --> 16:29.290 and the regional flood planning process. 16:29.515 --> 16:35.578 DR EARLE: That there is awareness now that might not have existed previously 16:35.578 --> 16:41.090 about the risks involved with building on a natural floodplain. 16:41.090 --> 16:47.704 We have laws that promote that it's OK, and we're, you know, 16:47.704 --> 16:54.319 in places we are armed with knowledge and looking at the reality, 16:54.319 --> 16:58.177 you say, Well, we shouldn't build there, 16:58.177 --> 17:02.586 we should not put people in harm's way, 17:02.586 --> 17:08.098 we should understand that it may not happen this year, 17:08.098 --> 17:14.713 it may not happen for 10 years, but it's going to happen. 17:14.713 --> 17:19.674 This place will flood, you know, you just don't... 17:19.674 --> 17:25.737 we are again burdened by not taking into account the big 17:25.737 --> 17:29.595 picture of understanding how the system functions. 17:30.285 --> 17:36.457 At least we have been in the past, but it's not an excuse anymore. 17:36.457 --> 17:40.425 We've got the knowledge, it's how do we now 17:40.425 --> 17:43.070 take this knowledge and understanding that 17:43.070 --> 17:46.597 people do live in places where they should 17:46.597 --> 17:49.243 not have been put their structures. 17:49.243 --> 17:54.532 But we've got to deal with it and how we deal with 17:54.532 --> 17:58.060 it is really the challenge going forward. 17:58.690 --> 18:02.740 I wish I had answers to that when the flood 18:02.740 --> 18:04.750 comes and human lives are at risk, 18:05.320 --> 18:10.290 what do you do when you know, human lives first, right? 18:10.800 --> 18:18.820 But in the end, what happens to the consequences that affect all of us. 18:18.820 --> 18:24.215 And so lots of questions out there, I see people raising their hands. 18:24.215 --> 18:25.400 So, I should be quiet. 18:26.180 --> 18:29.050 SPEAKER: So, next we have Dr Romney Pani if you 18:29.050 --> 18:30.800 wanna unmute and ask you a question. 18:31.070 --> 18:33.980 DR ROMNEY PANI: Hi, Dr Earle, my name is Romney Pani. 18:33.980 --> 18:37.840 I work in the coastal hydrologist in the boat here. 18:38.840 --> 18:43.580 It is really great to see you in this estuary science talk. 18:43.580 --> 18:46.310 I really appreciate your time and presentation. 18:46.310 --> 18:52.820 So, my question is based on your expertise on environmental sciences 18:53.570 --> 18:57.935 and the experiences that you have got from your life, 18:57.935 --> 19:02.810 what are your most urgent suggestions for current 19:02.810 --> 19:06.800 generation researchers and scientists that could 19:06.800 --> 19:10.910 help to protect coastal water resources in their aquatic 19:10.910 --> 19:13.369 biota from the threats of climate change? 19:14.030 --> 19:22.140 DR EARLE: Most important, I think, is to take advantage of the knowledge 19:22.140 --> 19:27.825 that now exists that literally could not exist before. 19:27.825 --> 19:35.910 In 2020, I took a deep dive into the big questions 19:35.910 --> 19:38.130 about who we are, where we've come from. 19:38.670 --> 19:46.590 I actually was responding to putting together a book about 19:46.590 --> 19:52.200 the ocean on National Geographic Ocean, a global odyssey. 19:52.200 --> 19:59.060 You know, in the crunch of doing what we all do day to day, 19:59.060 --> 20:05.470 it sometimes seems a luxury just to sit back 20:05.470 --> 20:09.730 and and ask the questions, what do we know? 20:09.970 --> 20:10.840 What don't we know? 20:10.840 --> 20:11.770 What should we know? 20:14.290 --> 20:23.830 What is the way forward early in the 21st century 20:23.830 --> 20:26.950 so that we can deal with climate change, 20:27.000 --> 20:29.320 we can deal with population growth, 20:29.320 --> 20:31.330 we can deal with hunger and all the rest. 20:31.395 --> 20:36.724 And, you know, in the end, respect for nature 20:36.724 --> 20:40.276 and understanding that we are part 20:40.276 --> 20:46.196 of nature and that we have had in the past 20:46.196 --> 20:49.157 an attitude of conquering nature, 20:49.157 --> 20:57.446 overcoming whatever it is that we thought nature in a way was the enemy, 20:57.446 --> 21:01.592 you have to protect yourself from nature, 21:01.592 --> 21:04.552 protect yourself from the wild. 21:04.552 --> 21:05.144 Alright. 21:05.144 --> 21:10.473 This point right now, we need to think differently, 21:10.473 --> 21:18.762 we need to protect the natural systems as if our lives depend on it, 21:18.762 --> 21:23.499 because now we know clearly they do depend. 21:23.499 --> 21:32.380 A world without the fabric of life, is not a world where we can survive. 21:33.440 --> 21:35.260 Think Mars, think Jupiter, 21:35.260 --> 21:38.390 think any other place in the universe, it's Earth, 21:38.630 --> 21:44.660 this living planet that we can engineer our way 21:46.470 --> 21:48.359 to channel water where we want it to go. 21:48.380 --> 21:56.525 We can engineer houses to live where it's really cold or 21:56.525 --> 22:00.140 to engineer coolness in places that are really warm. 22:00.920 --> 22:03.080 But in the end, we need to think about how 22:03.080 --> 22:05.270 we are impacting the natural world. 22:06.200 --> 22:09.980 And when you look at where we are right now, 22:11.540 --> 22:16.420 having consumed so much of the natural world, 22:16.420 --> 22:19.880 90% of the sharks are gone, 22:19.880 --> 22:24.080 more than 90% of some of the big tunas have been 22:24.080 --> 22:27.605 taken since the middle of the 20th century, 22:27.605 --> 22:33.050 95% of the old-growth forest in North America has already been taken. 22:33.050 --> 22:38.480 We have a few precious places that remain like libraries 22:38.480 --> 22:43.122 of knowledge that we don't know how to write. 22:43.122 --> 22:48.280 But we need to protect these places for 22:48.580 --> 22:52.540 information that we need going forward. 22:52.570 --> 22:58.030 And the same is true in the ocean, the places that have been developing 22:58.030 --> 23:02.680 over not just centuries or even thousands of years, 23:02.680 --> 23:06.460 a long time as humans measure time, we're talking about millions, 23:06.609 --> 23:09.880 hundreds of millions of years invested in 23:09.880 --> 23:12.260 the fabric of life that keeps us alive. 23:12.260 --> 23:16.990 So, it's understanding and respecting we're a part of nature 23:18.100 --> 23:22.510 and working with the technologies that now give us that insight. 23:24.040 --> 23:33.600 I think we have had this attitude that we have to conquer nature. 23:35.640 --> 23:39.750 I think the most important thing that the current generation 23:39.750 --> 23:44.830 of kids coming along need to absorb is the knowledge, 23:44.830 --> 23:51.630 that respect for the laws of nature, find our place within this 23:51.630 --> 24:00.505 wonderfully diverse world that is still habitable for us. 24:00.505 --> 24:03.570 But if we keep doing what we've been doing it'll 24:03.570 --> 24:08.275 become less and less habitable for us. 24:08.275 --> 24:13.810 The opportunity we now have as never before to 24:14.170 --> 24:18.330 truly work with nature and that's the key. 24:18.340 --> 24:22.450 You can do it locally, we can do it nationally, we can do it globally. 24:23.920 --> 24:26.859 But the talk about seagrasses in the Gulf of Mexico, 24:26.859 --> 24:33.130 about who lives there naturally, what was here 100, 1,000 years ago, 24:33.640 --> 24:38.960 what made the Gulf of Mexico what it is and how have we impacted that 24:38.960 --> 24:43.350 body of water in ways that are causing it to be less prosperous? 24:43.359 --> 24:48.775 How can we restore health to systems that we really need? 24:48.775 --> 24:51.970 Something as basic as where does the water 24:51.970 --> 24:54.240 come from and where does the water go? 24:55.090 --> 25:00.220 It's kid like questions that scientists are doing their best to try 25:00.220 --> 25:05.650 to answer and inform the policies that we're now wrestling with, 25:05.650 --> 25:09.680 the very practical policies of what do you do 25:09.680 --> 25:13.340 with floodwater when lives are threatened? 25:13.820 --> 25:14.825 DR ROMNEY PANI: Thank you so much. 25:14.825 --> 25:16.430 I appreciate your response, Dr Earle. 25:17.480 --> 25:19.220 SPEAKER: Fernando, are you ready to ask your question? 25:19.608 --> 25:19.926 FENANDO: Yeah. 25:20.827 --> 25:22.071 SPEAKER: Good, you're on. 25:23.021 --> 25:23.272 FENANDO: Hi. 25:23.272 --> 25:24.525 Hi, good afternoon. 25:24.525 --> 25:30.541 Thank you so much for the presentation and everything you have done. 25:30.541 --> 25:32.546 I think that is. 25:32.546 --> 25:37.560 So, I am Fernando (UNKNOWN) I am a Texas A&M PSC candidate 25:37.560 --> 25:41.570 for marine biology working on the (UNKNOWN) running story. 25:41.570 --> 25:46.082 I think it is impossible that the legislation goes 25:46.082 --> 25:49.190 ahead of the future enterprises and technologies. 25:49.190 --> 25:52.599 Do you think it is possible to change 25:52.599 --> 25:57.111 the education model in such a way that people 25:57.111 --> 26:00.619 is thinking on the environment and sociological 26:00.619 --> 26:02.626 implications rather than on profit? 26:05.744 --> 26:07.935 DR EARLE: What a great question. 26:07.935 --> 26:11.766 I think the understanding that a sound 26:11.766 --> 26:15.050 economy and a sound environment are 26:15.050 --> 26:21.619 not like a different ends of a spectrum, but totally tied together. 26:21.619 --> 26:29.829 It may seem in the short term that cutting a forest to sell the trees, 26:29.829 --> 26:34.208 board feet of lumber is a good idea. 26:34.208 --> 26:40.229 But value in nature is now coming to be understood as 26:40.229 --> 26:46.250 part of what we need to put on the balance sheet. 26:46.250 --> 26:52.819 And one of the ways that it is coming into focus right 26:52.819 --> 26:57.198 now is the carbon cycle, the climate change, 26:57.198 --> 27:03.766 the value of trees alive as having a value that we hadn't 27:03.766 --> 27:09.240 put on the balance sheet before because we didn't know. 27:09.409 --> 27:16.186 We didn't know that climate is not just a physical chemical process, 27:16.186 --> 27:19.575 climate is a biologically driven process, 27:19.575 --> 27:22.963 the carbon cycle, the nitrogen cycle, 27:22.963 --> 27:27.481 the oxygen cycle, this is a living planet. 27:27.481 --> 27:33.693 We have not until quite recently thought about things like whales 27:33.693 --> 27:39.340 as being valuable in a dollar sense until they're dead. 27:39.340 --> 27:44.988 You can sell a whale for oil and for meat, 27:44.988 --> 27:48.377 grind it up and create fertilizer, 27:48.377 --> 27:52.895 great, that's how the economy has been structured. 27:52.895 --> 27:59.107 Fish from the ocean, you know, they have a zero accounting 27:59.107 --> 28:03.060 base when they're swimming in the ocean, 28:03.060 --> 28:07.578 it's only when you capture them and market 28:07.578 --> 28:10.967 them that we consider them valuable. 28:10.967 --> 28:13.790 We're starting to rethink these questions. 28:14.355 --> 28:19.580 The International Monetary Fund commissioned a study 28:20.359 --> 28:23.675 that was reported at the World Economic Forum 2020, 28:23.675 --> 28:34.430 that the carbon value of whales alive today is more 28:34.430 --> 28:40.300 than a trillion dollars carbon in the whales. 28:40.300 --> 28:47.070 So, if it's true with whales, it's got to be true with shrimp, 28:47.070 --> 28:50.190 it's got to be true with tuna, 28:50.700 --> 28:56.730 it has to be true with life, the carbon value as it relates to climate. 28:57.950 --> 29:03.590 We give at least in some measure, it has, you know, 29:03.590 --> 29:06.870 carbon credits for keeping trees standing, 29:06.870 --> 29:10.120 carbon credits for protecting coral reefs. 29:11.850 --> 29:14.510 I mean, it's an idea that is beginning to work its 29:14.510 --> 29:21.320 way into our thinking about the value of nature. 29:21.320 --> 29:28.910 What's the value of having a live, healthy reef? 29:30.350 --> 29:32.825 Is it just in terms of what you can take out of it 29:32.825 --> 29:37.010 or is there value in a healthy coral reef because 29:37.010 --> 29:39.980 of the knowledge that we can gain or its role 29:39.980 --> 29:43.160 in maintaining a healthy Gulf of Mexico? 29:43.520 --> 29:45.530 Or you could say that about a seagrass meadow. 29:47.480 --> 29:49.280 Historically, you could look at it and say 29:50.420 --> 29:52.670 the only value of that seagrass meadow is what 29:52.670 --> 29:56.150 we can do when we turn it into a landfill 29:56.720 --> 30:00.170 and put a parking lot on it, that has value. 30:00.350 --> 30:02.750 It's shallow enough close to the shore, 30:02.750 --> 30:06.695 we need shoreline development purposes and whatever. 30:06.695 --> 30:10.760 But we're rethinking that model, if you will. 30:11.870 --> 30:18.040 And I think that's the challenge that we're, as never before, 30:18.040 --> 30:24.320 we're facing those questions because why? 30:24.320 --> 30:30.240 The diversity of life is shrinking these natural systems, 30:30.240 --> 30:36.063 we're losing them, and as they are getting fewer and fewer numbers, 30:36.063 --> 30:42.020 that we're beginning to look at them with new fresh understanding, 30:42.020 --> 30:47.800 that if we lost every seagrass meadow in the world, 30:48.430 --> 30:50.710 what would be the consequences economically? 30:52.050 --> 30:53.580 We haven't thought that way before, 30:54.300 --> 30:57.630 but it's time it really is, maybe it's overdue. 30:57.630 --> 31:01.140 And I'm so glad to have you asking these 31:01.140 --> 31:04.490 questions because you have a chance, 31:04.490 --> 31:10.260 you personally can make a difference by using this, 31:10.260 --> 31:13.410 asking the question and coming up with answers that... 31:14.160 --> 31:19.505 DR SYLVIA EARLE: It can really turn into policies that acknowledge 31:19.505 --> 31:23.540 or a relationship with nature with new values. 31:25.050 --> 31:25.620 Go for it. 31:29.550 --> 31:30.060 Thank you so much. 31:31.170 --> 31:31.260 SPEAKER: Alright. 31:31.260 --> 31:33.840 Our next question we have is from Dr Evan Turner. 31:36.590 --> 31:37.460 DR EVAN TURNER: Hi, Dr Earle. 31:38.330 --> 31:41.750 It's so exciting again for you to be here with us. 31:42.230 --> 31:45.230 I work at the board, and I work under Caimee, actually, 31:45.230 --> 31:47.465 which is as exciting as you think it'd be, 31:47.465 --> 31:49.415 she's really fun to work with. 31:49.415 --> 31:52.516 And our director Jackson has this famous saying, 31:52.516 --> 31:53.720 and she said it in the meeting 31:53.720 --> 31:56.930 and she always says that the better the data the better the science, 31:56.930 --> 31:59.580 the better the science the better the policy, right? 31:59.580 --> 32:03.760 Well, I'm the guy at the board that deals with the better the data. 32:04.070 --> 32:08.090 And my whole career is really collecting data, 32:08.090 --> 32:10.220 mainly salinity data in the coast. 32:10.850 --> 32:14.830 And I design all the experiments to, you know, 32:14.960 --> 32:18.380 our monitoring programs to collect our salinity data 32:18.380 --> 32:21.440 and everything out down at the coast, and water quality. 32:23.300 --> 32:24.440 So, and my question for you, 32:24.440 --> 32:27.610 this is a question I've asked a lot of other people too, 32:27.610 --> 32:30.110 you know, not to say, if you were me, 32:30.350 --> 32:36.430 but really, you know, for Sylvia Earle if you had a magic wand, 32:36.430 --> 32:39.600 and you could collect what kind of data you wanted to get, 32:39.600 --> 32:44.870 because, to know all these issues we have to have data in order to, 32:45.110 --> 32:47.420 you know, say that these things are declining, 32:47.420 --> 32:50.780 or, you know, the salt is increasing or the seagrass 32:50.780 --> 32:52.975 is when I was saying, the monitoring. 32:52.975 --> 32:56.950 We have to monitor the seagrasses to know what their health is. 32:56.950 --> 33:00.760 So, if you had a magic wand and you could tell me, 33:00.760 --> 33:02.600 because I'm the person at the board to 33:02.600 --> 33:05.690 design this experiment for monitoring, 33:06.410 --> 33:11.120 what would you do to monitor the Texas coast 33:11.990 --> 33:15.380 in order to inform the best data to 33:15.380 --> 33:18.320 then inform the greatest science we can do, 33:18.530 --> 33:20.600 which would then inform policy? 33:23.250 --> 33:25.860 DR SYLVIA EARLE: Some of what I would wish to be able to do, 33:25.860 --> 33:29.610 I'm not sure that we're currently capable of doing. 33:31.740 --> 33:35.840 One thing, I'd love to be able to go back in time to know 33:35.840 --> 33:42.710 what it was like 10 50 100 years ago, 1000 years ago. 33:42.710 --> 33:48.440 We can infer some of that by looking at the settlements and so on. 33:48.440 --> 33:53.230 But yeah, my magic wand, if it were big enough 33:53.230 --> 33:55.940 would take us all back to see what 33:55.940 --> 33:58.370 was so we can better understand what currently 33:58.370 --> 34:01.410 is and what in the future will be. 34:01.410 --> 34:06.900 So, I do think we should be mindful of 34:07.320 --> 34:10.545 what does exist in the past records. 34:10.545 --> 34:16.158 The census of marine life took place starting in 2000, 34:16.158 --> 34:22.575 10 year deep dive into who lives in the ocean today. 34:22.575 --> 34:26.910 Who did live in the ocean in times past. 34:26.910 --> 34:32.130 And take a wild guess about an informed guess about 34:32.489 --> 34:34.635 where does that trend take us into the future? 34:36.060 --> 34:39.180 Looking into past records of what was 34:39.180 --> 34:43.036 the coast like to the best of our knowledge. 34:43.036 --> 34:48.670 And what are how, have human activities made 34:48.670 --> 34:52.620 a difference shaping it into its present form. 34:52.620 --> 34:57.040 I think would be a really important part 34:57.040 --> 35:00.265 of understanding where we are today, 35:00.265 --> 35:07.690 you know, you cannot know your future if you do not know your past. 35:11.350 --> 35:18.950 But more than that, I think, 35:18.950 --> 35:26.510 take into account who lives in the waters that you're measuring. 35:26.510 --> 35:30.200 Having the salinity is critical. 35:30.200 --> 35:33.830 That's like here's the temperature and salinity, 35:35.180 --> 35:38.930 the chemistry and the temperature are the two 35:38.930 --> 35:41.150 factors that really change everything. 35:41.630 --> 35:43.460 Change the temperature, everything changes. 35:43.610 --> 35:46.660 Change the salinity, changes the chemistry, 35:46.660 --> 35:49.681 is it more acidic, it is less, whatever it is. 35:49.681 --> 35:53.330 Those are factors that determine who can live where. 35:54.140 --> 36:02.170 And I think measuring the nature who lives not just the physical, 36:02.170 --> 36:04.130 chemical characteristics of the water, 36:04.130 --> 36:09.820 but if there's a way to keep a check on what kinds of creatures. 36:09.820 --> 36:12.620 And I know it's a big ask. 36:12.620 --> 36:16.219 But one informs the other. 36:16.219 --> 36:22.430 That if oysters are living there, you know that the temperature 36:22.430 --> 36:24.739 and salinity have to be within a certain range. 36:24.739 --> 36:29.290 You can use the creatures who live there in a sense as 36:29.300 --> 36:32.710 a way to determine what the chemistry and temperature 36:32.710 --> 36:37.370 are because forms of life can only exist within 36:37.370 --> 36:39.920 a certain narrow band of circumstances. 36:41.870 --> 36:47.450 So, Ruth Patrick with her studies on diatoms was a real revolutionary in 36:47.870 --> 36:51.500 terms of understanding the water conditions based on who lives there. 36:52.520 --> 36:56.630 What kinds of diatoms or are there any diatoms here at all? 36:57.980 --> 37:01.790 As a measure, an indicator of health. 37:01.790 --> 37:08.150 So, I think you're absolutely on the right track to gather data. 37:09.080 --> 37:12.350 My wish list would be if to enhance it 37:12.350 --> 37:15.500 in every way possible with information 37:15.500 --> 37:22.219 on the life that occurs within the certain areas that you're, 37:22.640 --> 37:26.630 you know, just monitored the breakdown to the microbes. 37:28.880 --> 37:29.510 Big ask. 37:31.340 --> 37:34.280 But now we know that it matters. 37:37.790 --> 37:39.197 SPEAKER: Thank you so much. 37:39.197 --> 37:42.830 And yeah, OK, so you need microscopes, Caimee. 37:43.790 --> 37:45.590 DR SYLVIA EARLE: Well, you know, who's missing? 37:46.280 --> 37:51.425 If you can find out by looking into past records 37:51.425 --> 37:58.286 of who lived in the areas you're monitoring 37:58.286 --> 38:03.280 when records were taken 50 years ago or more, 38:03.280 --> 38:06.055 it gives you an indication of change. 38:06.055 --> 38:08.290 And sometimes the changes are not bad. 38:08.290 --> 38:15.250 Sometimes they're good and sometimes you wonder what are we doing that 38:15.250 --> 38:19.690 has made it inhospitable for creatures who once occurred here? 38:22.969 --> 38:27.200 This is off topic a bit but it pains me 38:27.200 --> 38:30.200 knowing that there were seals living 38:30.650 --> 38:36.410 in the Gulf of Mexico as far north as Galveston as recently as 1952. 38:36.410 --> 38:38.810 And they are all gone. 38:40.219 --> 38:44.480 Life in the Gulf of Mexico became inhospitable for them, 38:44.480 --> 38:45.620 and now they're extinct. 38:46.520 --> 38:50.660 Wasn't water quality I think that caused their 38:50.660 --> 38:54.702 demise it was humans just killing them. 38:54.702 --> 38:57.739 That we have the power to do that. 38:58.130 --> 39:01.520 We could kill, we could take every last blade of seagrass, 39:01.520 --> 39:03.690 we have the power to do that. 39:03.690 --> 39:05.750 Chop down every last mangrove. 39:06.770 --> 39:11.719 But we have the power to resist, the power to restore. 39:11.719 --> 39:16.250 And armed with exactly what you are focusing on knowledge, 39:16.370 --> 39:20.870 data, information, what exists now, what did exist. 39:20.870 --> 39:23.480 What kind of world do we want going forward? 39:24.230 --> 39:28.640 We can't bring back munch sales, but we can certainly restore much 39:28.640 --> 39:32.150 of what has been lost when we didn't know that it mattered. 39:32.780 --> 39:33.730 SPEAKER: Thank you, Dr Earle. 39:33.739 --> 39:36.770 Can I ask a quick follow up question before we address 39:36.770 --> 39:38.900 a couple of questions that we have in the chat room? 39:39.170 --> 39:42.739 And this relates to Dr Turner's question and something 39:42.739 --> 39:46.100 that my director just reminded me of, 39:46.100 --> 39:50.347 which is that you probably know Dr Paul Montagna 39:50.347 --> 39:52.580 from the Heart Research Institute. 39:53.030 --> 39:58.256 And he has, you know, a 30 year or more dataset on benthic. 39:58.256 --> 40:01.010 Benthic indicators which are, of course, 40:01.010 --> 40:03.710 really wonderful biological indicators of 40:03.710 --> 40:06.210 freshwater inflow and ecosystem health. 40:06.210 --> 40:10.520 So, as he is, you know, hopefully gearing up to 40:10.790 --> 40:14.239 retire at some point in his life, you know, 40:15.260 --> 40:20.750 we need to continue that data set so that we have the ability to link 40:21.469 --> 40:25.820 the freshwater inflows and water quality data to a biological outcome. 40:26.239 --> 40:32.120 And so, my question is, you know, how do we convince others 40:32.120 --> 40:36.290 that that endeavor is worth funding an expensive, 40:36.290 --> 40:38.739 you know, biological monitoring program? 40:38.750 --> 40:41.930 How do we convince others that that needs to be funded? 40:43.790 --> 40:46.160 DR SYLVIA EARLE: Well, let's just say it right now. 40:48.110 --> 40:52.357 It would be tragic to lose that, the continuity, 40:52.357 --> 40:56.160 because that's how you measure change over time. 40:57.270 --> 41:01.715 You can't know who you are or where you've come 41:01.715 --> 41:07.396 from unless we dive in and look at our history. 41:07.396 --> 41:15.160 And we all say that we are concerned about the future. 41:16.730 --> 41:22.655 The best way to predict is by knowing where 41:22.655 --> 41:26.900 you are in the timeline, knowing the past. 41:26.900 --> 41:35.020 So, anything that can be done to protect 41:35.020 --> 41:40.570 that as a valuable resource knowledge, 41:42.370 --> 41:46.480 let's by all means make it happen. 41:46.480 --> 41:49.870 It is critically important. 41:51.610 --> 41:55.420 It isn't just, it seems like who cares about 41:55.420 --> 41:56.680 what those little critters are doing? 41:56.680 --> 41:57.850 Why should I care? 41:59.510 --> 42:04.870 Well, 50 years ago, I think it would be harder 42:04.870 --> 42:06.730 to answer that question than it is today. 42:07.420 --> 42:12.640 Today, we can see the connections that it all ties together. 42:12.820 --> 42:14.800 A healthy ocean means healthy people. 42:15.580 --> 42:16.930 How do you have a healthy ocean? 42:16.980 --> 42:17.890 Well, let's find out. 42:17.890 --> 42:19.330 What is a healthy ocean? 42:19.690 --> 42:24.100 How do you know unless you've done exactly what Paul has spent his 42:24.100 --> 42:29.560 lifetime trying to define that these are the indicators of health, 42:30.340 --> 42:34.270 and we can do it with our own bodies but we need to 42:34.270 --> 42:39.700 look at the ocean as our part of our our home. 42:40.360 --> 42:42.040 It's part of what keeps us alive. 42:42.460 --> 42:45.219 It's critical actually, to keeping us alive. 42:45.969 --> 42:48.430 So, of course we need to know. 42:49.000 --> 42:52.750 And of course, we need to keep that dataset going so that we can 42:52.750 --> 42:56.680 have better chance of keeping ourselves going in the future. 42:57.400 --> 43:00.880 It's not just a nice thing to know, it's really critical that we know. 43:02.610 --> 43:03.630 SPEAKER: Thank you so much. 43:07.790 --> 43:07.870 SPEAKER: Alright. 43:07.870 --> 43:09.500 Let's move on to some questions in the chat. 43:09.500 --> 43:11.330 I think this next question is really good because 43:11.330 --> 43:13.969 I'm sure you're a hero to many on this call. 43:14.750 --> 43:17.771 So, David Bosin asked the question, 43:17.771 --> 43:20.540 did you ever meet or work with Jacques Cousteau? 43:20.870 --> 43:23.180 Who were your heroes that you wanted to emulate 43:23.450 --> 43:24.739 as you were starting your career? 43:26.719 --> 43:30.719 DR SYLVIA EARLE: Yes, I have known Jacques Cousteau. 43:30.719 --> 43:33.688 And I've known most of his family. 43:33.688 --> 43:36.320 He has kids, he has grandkids. 43:37.160 --> 43:39.300 I never got to dive with Jacques Cousteau 43:39.300 --> 43:42.500 but when I read his book as a kid, 43:43.560 --> 43:47.945 it really helped inspire me to want to go and see what he saw, 43:47.945 --> 43:53.110 the idea of meeting creatures on their own, 43:53.110 --> 43:57.120 of seeing giant grouper not just carved up on my 43:57.120 --> 44:00.020 plate but to see them out there in the ocean. 44:00.020 --> 44:09.210 And so, one of the most telling things 44:09.210 --> 44:13.770 that I heard from Jacques Cousteau, 44:13.770 --> 44:21.637 it was at a dinner in Orlando in the last year of his life 1997. 44:21.637 --> 44:29.360 Just one of his sons, Jean Michel was present as well. 44:31.239 --> 44:34.750 And I got to sit next to him at this big banquet. 44:36.010 --> 44:45.989 And he said, "You know, I saw things as 44:46.640 --> 44:52.890 a boy that I can't show my own children." 44:52.890 --> 44:56.300 He couldn't show his son's what he saw because 44:56.810 --> 44:59.750 things have changed so much in his lifetime. 45:00.830 --> 45:03.050 He was thinking of the Mediterranean which 45:03.050 --> 45:05.900 is a lot like the Gulf of Mexico. 45:05.900 --> 45:11.430 Seagrass meadows instead of manatees and dugong, 45:11.430 --> 45:13.280 but they have coral reefs. 45:13.790 --> 45:17.510 Some people call the Gulf of Mexico America's Mediterranean. 45:18.350 --> 45:20.870 The changes he witnessed in his lifetime made 45:20.870 --> 45:23.450 it such that things he knew as a child, 45:23.450 --> 45:26.870 he could not share with his own children. 45:28.130 --> 45:31.160 I ate breakfast was Jean Michel the next morning. 45:31.160 --> 45:33.110 Not making this up. 45:33.590 --> 45:38.732 He said the same thing about how his experiences in his lifetime 45:38.732 --> 45:42.202 he is so glad to have seen the many things he had seen, 45:42.202 --> 45:47.080 but he said things have changed so much that in my lifetime 45:47.080 --> 45:50.640 I can't show the same things to my children. 45:50.940 --> 45:52.650 He has a son and a daughter. 45:52.650 --> 45:54.719 Made my hair stand on. 45:54.719 --> 45:59.887 In the generations of Cousteau reflecting on how much had changed 45:59.887 --> 46:02.730 that they couldn't show their kids what they had witnessed. 46:03.020 --> 46:08.308 And now, I know Fabian, one of the grandson, 46:08.308 --> 46:11.690 Cousteau's grandson, he is driven. 46:11.690 --> 46:12.870 He is. 46:12.870 --> 46:15.670 Because he's got this history that he wants 46:15.670 --> 46:20.035 to share not just when he has children. 46:20.035 --> 46:25.360 He doesn't have children yet, but he wants to not lose 46:26.230 --> 46:31.120 a world that is there to be lost or there to be protected. 46:31.540 --> 46:34.465 And that's, I think what you're facing. 46:34.465 --> 46:36.885 What the water board is facing with all of you involved. 46:36.885 --> 46:40.000 We're in a changing planet. 46:41.020 --> 46:43.000 Greater change in a shorter period of time 46:43.000 --> 46:45.010 than during all preceding human history. 46:46.710 --> 46:48.989 Our challenge is what do we do about it? 46:50.310 --> 46:53.310 How can we be driven like Jacques Cousteau's grandkids, 46:53.310 --> 46:54.390 kids and grandkids? 46:54.400 --> 46:57.520 How do we, you know you can't change 46:57.520 --> 46:59.550 nature but you can work with nature. 47:01.380 --> 47:04.590 DR. EARL: To change ourselves so that we can be more compatible, 47:04.590 --> 47:08.010 we can protect what remains of the natural 47:08.010 --> 47:10.260 systems that make our existence possible. 47:10.710 --> 47:13.260 I think that's the big message of our 47:13.260 --> 47:16.350 time that all of us whoever we are, 47:16.350 --> 47:22.680 whatever power we've got, we all have, some of us are engineers, 47:22.680 --> 47:27.017 some are scientists, some are teachers, some have away with music, 47:27.017 --> 47:31.094 some have away with math, I don't know. 47:31.094 --> 47:37.020 Whatever makes you to be able to seize the moment and say, 47:37.020 --> 47:41.690 I'm going to protect what makes Earth what 47:41.690 --> 47:43.910 makes existence or our existence possible, 47:44.630 --> 47:47.739 whether it's in my backyard, or my backyard, the Gulf of Mexico, 47:47.750 --> 47:52.219 or do what I can influence this policy in 47:52.219 --> 47:55.310 the Arctic or the Antarctic, because it matters. 47:55.310 --> 48:00.897 And we all can do something to make that transition. 48:02.283 --> 48:05.010 SPEAKER: Thank you for that insightful response. 48:05.010 --> 48:07.930 So, I think that actually plays into our next question. 48:08.420 --> 48:08.728 Dr. 48:08.728 --> 48:09.344 Carla Guty. 48:09.344 --> 48:11.620 Yes, it seems that the scientific community 48:11.620 --> 48:14.170 does not encourage and value studies 48:14.170 --> 48:18.250 of the natural history of organisms and ecosystems in this modern era. 48:19.150 --> 48:22.270 I worry about the effect going forward of not training 48:22.270 --> 48:24.969 and encouraging new scientists to study natural history, 48:25.480 --> 48:27.760 which is a foundational building block of science. 48:28.420 --> 48:31.210 Have you seen a decline in the focus on natural history? 48:31.570 --> 48:34.140 What are your thoughts on this? 48:35.080 --> 48:37.273 DR. EARL: I've seen Yes. 48:37.273 --> 48:44.730 A move into what people want to generally refer to as molecular science. 48:44.730 --> 48:49.620 So, let's get into the chemistry of life itself. 48:50.400 --> 48:53.750 I was a personal witness at Harvard, 48:53.750 --> 49:02.317 as a student to the big debate between Jim Watson who was, 49:02.317 --> 49:05.560 you know, well known for cracking 49:05.560 --> 49:09.969 the code of looking at the double helix, 49:09.969 --> 49:16.080 the chemistry of life, and Ed Wilson, a true natural historian, 49:16.080 --> 49:20.450 looking at the nature of not just ants, 49:20.719 --> 49:26.840 but made him famous how he got into the social structure of ants. 49:28.250 --> 49:35.750 But as a kid growing up in Alabama, Ed Wilson just he almost 49:35.750 --> 49:38.480 he came within a whisker of becoming a marine scientist. 49:38.930 --> 49:42.170 His first love was jellyfish, that he that used to 49:42.170 --> 49:49.100 come ashore sometimes on the beaches in Alabama. 49:49.460 --> 49:51.860 He was so intrigued with these creatures. 49:51.860 --> 49:55.790 He never lost his sense of wonder, 49:56.030 --> 49:58.460 the childlike wonder that everybody is 49:58.460 --> 50:03.530 born with curiosity about the world around them, that's natural history. 50:04.310 --> 50:08.300 Kids are natural scientists, they're natural explorers. 50:08.780 --> 50:11.570 They want to know everything about everything. 50:12.770 --> 50:17.810 Growing up in cities makes it harder to appreciate the nature of nature. 50:19.160 --> 50:22.370 Lucky kids in Texas, if you live along the coast, 50:22.370 --> 50:23.940 and you can do what Ed Wilson did, 50:23.940 --> 50:28.100 as a kid splashed around and just ask questions 50:28.100 --> 50:31.763 and meet jellyfish on their own terms. 50:31.763 --> 50:40.545 But I've also, you know, the right in the 1960s, was this great, 50:40.545 --> 50:46.285 fewer the fervor of learning about the chemistry of life. 50:46.285 --> 50:49.997 And it seemed like dull, boring, ancient history, 50:49.997 --> 50:53.757 just to be worried at Natural History, 50:53.757 --> 50:57.660 birdwatchers is butterfly catchers and things like that anyway. 50:58.650 --> 51:01.695 But here, it's all coming together. 51:01.695 --> 51:03.450 And it came together. 51:03.960 --> 51:09.670 I actually watched Ed Wilson and Jim Watson sitting on 51:09.670 --> 51:15.130 a stage together reflecting on their separate paths. 51:15.670 --> 51:19.510 They used to be, you know, fierce opponents. 51:20.290 --> 51:26.093 One would deviate walking down the street, 51:26.093 --> 51:28.460 rather than meeting on the street, they would, 51:28.460 --> 51:30.290 they would separate so they wouldn't have 51:30.290 --> 51:32.060 to talk to each other, see each other. 51:32.239 --> 51:34.670 It was that verse was very personal. 51:35.190 --> 51:39.260 But they came back together realizing that we need both. 51:40.040 --> 51:43.040 We need to really embrace the chemistry of life 51:43.040 --> 51:46.790 and understand that we're all connected. 51:46.969 --> 51:50.710 The basic chemistry of bacteria, 51:50.780 --> 51:53.300 elephants and humans and birds and fish 51:53.300 --> 51:55.880 and it's all the same basic recipe, 51:56.660 --> 52:03.440 but it's all comes together in that every single organism is unique. 52:04.580 --> 52:08.600 Look at the people on we're looking at if each of us is different, 52:08.600 --> 52:10.010 every human is different. 52:10.550 --> 52:16.406 Every cat, every dog, every whale, every bird, every microbe, 52:16.406 --> 52:20.760 while being sharing this common chemistry of life, 52:21.570 --> 52:24.450 we all are individuals, 52:24.450 --> 52:27.180 it's the biggest miracle of all that 52:27.180 --> 52:29.719 we can have this enormous diversity, 52:29.719 --> 52:34.694 coupled with this, this common chemistry. 52:34.694 --> 52:40.160 And so, seeing these two individuals duke it out on the stage 52:40.160 --> 52:44.050 about how they weren't once were fierce opponents, and how, 52:44.050 --> 52:51.790 ultimately, they have come together to realize that it's all nature, 52:51.800 --> 52:54.680 it's all natural history, if you will. 52:55.190 --> 52:59.780 There's nothing unnatural about the science, 52:59.780 --> 53:02.690 the understanding of life on Earth. 53:02.690 --> 53:09.950 And that by looking at animals, or plants, ecosystems, 53:09.950 --> 53:14.860 what we now call in the big, comprehensive term biodiversity, 53:14.860 --> 53:19.900 from individual bacterial, to individual humans, 53:19.900 --> 53:23.540 to the societies of ants, the societies of humans. 53:24.560 --> 53:28.850 I think the understanding that the immense complexity, 53:29.870 --> 53:31.910 the immense collaboration, 53:31.910 --> 53:37.817 cooperation among cells, among species, 53:37.817 --> 53:48.030 among societies, that I think it's the first time that we've 53:48.030 --> 53:52.260 had enough information about all the little pieces, 53:52.260 --> 53:55.370 and how it all works together to realize 53:55.370 --> 53:59.620 we have to be extremely respectful 53:59.620 --> 54:07.239 of the natural systems that make our existence possible, 54:07.239 --> 54:12.070 that have made earth a habitable place for humans. 54:13.239 --> 54:17.070 It takes the Natural History looking at the big picture, 54:17.070 --> 54:19.000 right down to the individual species 54:19.000 --> 54:21.925 and diving into how the cells function, 54:21.925 --> 54:25.955 what is the chemistry of life, 54:25.955 --> 54:31.500 and to realize that we're connected to it or not, apart from it, 54:31.500 --> 54:39.105 that we need to protect this living planet, it's our home. 54:39.105 --> 54:42.660 And we have somehow convinced ourselves over 54:42.660 --> 54:45.552 the agents that we are apart from nature, 54:45.552 --> 54:49.230 that we don't have to respect the flow of water, 54:49.230 --> 54:52.770 we can change the flow of water to suit ourselves, 54:52.770 --> 54:56.190 that we don't have to take care of these 54:56.700 --> 54:59.196 trees that have lived for 1000 years, 54:59.196 --> 55:03.315 let's just turn them into lawn furniture and shingles for our roofs. 55:03.315 --> 55:06.137 Because we're the big boss of the world, right? 55:06.137 --> 55:10.190 21st century humans, for the first time, 55:11.420 --> 55:17.180 we're beginning to respect what has been 55:17.180 --> 55:19.239 there all along the laws of nature, 55:19.239 --> 55:26.210 and studying the laws of nature and finding out how the cells work, 55:26.540 --> 55:32.495 how the systems work, it's not one or the other or links together. 55:32.495 --> 55:39.680 And we're so fortunate to have as much information as now does exist, 55:39.680 --> 55:44.040 to be able to begin to make better decisions 55:44.489 --> 55:46.560 about where do we go from here? 55:47.900 --> 55:52.383 Not either or, we needed all. 55:53.356 --> 55:55.200 SPEAKER: That is very well put. 55:55.830 --> 55:57.415 I hear your rooster crowing in the background. 55:57.415 --> 55:59.306 And that's the end of our meeting time. 55:59.306 --> 56:02.950 Do you happen to have time for one more question in the chat? 56:03.420 --> 56:03.890 DR. EARL: I do. 56:03.980 --> 56:04.960 I don't know about you, great. 56:05.954 --> 56:09.650 SPEAKER: So, Nina Chopra asked to what extent do you think we 56:09.650 --> 56:12.969 should assign economic values to natural ecosystems? 56:12.969 --> 56:15.739 Hopefully companies would see these values 56:15.739 --> 56:18.380 and realize they aren't too expensive to destroy, 56:18.469 --> 56:21.200 or they could proceed to influence these ecosystems 56:21.200 --> 56:25.010 and use those values as basis for mitigation funds. 56:26.630 --> 56:29.420 DR. EARL: No, I suppose there is a place for that like 56:29.469 --> 56:35.090 the World Economic Forum or the study about whales. 56:35.090 --> 56:39.020 When you think alive for carbon credits, 56:39.890 --> 56:41.540 it could be worth a trillion dollars. 56:43.520 --> 56:45.410 Then you ask what's life worth? 56:45.410 --> 56:46.450 What's your life worth? 56:46.450 --> 56:49.050 While insurance companies do assign a value? 56:49.050 --> 56:55.070 It's how human minds have tended to develop 56:56.350 --> 57:00.597 that put $1 sign on everything. 57:00.597 --> 57:01.655 Yep. 57:01.655 --> 57:05.960 Well, it may be useful, we shouldn't get carried 57:05.960 --> 57:11.180 away with putting $1 sign on nature. 57:11.180 --> 57:16.160 Coupled with that, wherever it is a useful tool. 57:18.730 --> 57:28.710 I think we must recognize that humans are not just about numbers. 57:28.710 --> 57:35.905 We are organisms with heart, maybe soul, 57:35.905 --> 57:42.330 it's that the ethic of how we deal with nature should 57:42.330 --> 57:52.960 be a factor that it's maybe just as important as 57:52.960 --> 57:57.380 what is the value of that 1000 year old tree, 57:57.380 --> 58:04.770 or that sea grass meadow, or that big old fish that 58:04.770 --> 58:11.100 is out there that you can you can kill it. 58:11.100 --> 58:12.340 You can sell it. 58:13.650 --> 58:18.300 If you keep it in the ocean, it has a carbon value but there's more. 58:18.300 --> 58:24.210 What right do we have as a dominant force on 58:24.210 --> 58:28.200 the planet to homogenize all the rest of 58:28.200 --> 58:30.750 the world that we don't know how to put back 58:30.750 --> 58:38.207 together again once we've destroyed it? 58:38.207 --> 58:47.500 When we think respecting the magnitude of what we don't know, 58:47.500 --> 58:49.690 should be on the balance sheet. 58:49.690 --> 58:56.200 When we try to assign a value to nature, you know, 58:56.200 --> 58:59.350 I've heard figures where World Wildlife Fund I think, 59:00.190 --> 59:04.330 tried to evaluate the value of life in the ocean 59:04.330 --> 59:08.500 and came up with many trillions of dollars. 59:09.370 --> 59:14.450 But OK, so you have all this money, and somebody gives it to you, 59:14.450 --> 59:20.650 and they say, OK, now make me a tuna from scratch. 59:22.450 --> 59:23.590 We don't know how to do that. 59:24.580 --> 59:31.765 Build me 1000 year old redwood, from scratch, do it right now. 59:31.765 --> 59:37.270 Got all this money, all you have to do is make a sea grass bed with 59:37.270 --> 59:40.686 all the elements that make the sea grass bed, the sea grass bed, 59:40.686 --> 59:43.846 you know, you've got the blades up near the root, 59:43.846 --> 59:46.590 so you got all these little creatures at the microbes. 59:46.590 --> 59:50.380 Alright, here's all this money, make one for me. 59:53.140 --> 59:56.566 Until we can do that, I think putting $1 59:56.566 --> 01:00:00.505 sign on nature has limited real value. 01:00:00.963 --> 01:00:01.787 SPEAKER: Thank you, Dr. 01:00:01.787 --> 01:00:04.010 Earl, thank you so much. 01:00:04.010 --> 01:00:05.680 for your time today. 01:00:06.130 --> 01:00:07.530 I'm going to close this out, 01:00:07.530 --> 01:00:12.220 because we're already over our scheduled allotment for this morning. 01:00:12.580 --> 01:00:15.550 And I want to say from the very bottom 01:00:15.550 --> 01:00:18.640 of our hearts and with deep gratitude. 01:00:18.940 --> 01:00:21.890 Thank you so much for sharing your time, 01:00:21.890 --> 01:00:24.970 and your insights and your passion with us today. 01:00:25.270 --> 01:00:27.325 It truly is a gift. 01:00:27.325 --> 01:00:31.476 And quite possibly the highlight of my career. 01:00:32.284 --> 01:00:37.615 DR. EARL: Having me here, really exciting to hear your thoughts. 01:00:37.615 --> 01:00:41.935 And to know that you're thinking about these things, 01:00:41.935 --> 01:00:44.380 you're not just thinking about them, you're taking action. 01:00:45.100 --> 01:00:48.883 And this is never before maybe is never again, 01:00:48.883 --> 01:00:52.870 this is the moment when doing what you're doing really 01:00:54.070 --> 01:00:56.890 can make a difference is making a difference. 01:00:57.490 --> 01:01:00.250 SPEAKER: Well, thank you so much for setting an example 01:01:00.250 --> 01:01:02.980 for us and for calling us to action. 01:01:02.980 --> 01:01:07.660 Because I guarantee you lots of people, not just here in this call, 01:01:07.660 --> 01:01:09.370 but around the world are listening. 01:01:09.370 --> 01:01:12.940 And you are such an inspiration to me, 01:01:12.940 --> 01:01:15.670 but also countless numbers of people around the world. 01:01:17.050 --> 01:01:19.810 And you've inspired me to pursue a career in 01:01:19.810 --> 01:01:22.240 science and to maintain a career in science. 01:01:22.600 --> 01:01:26.020 And so for that, I am very thankful. 01:01:26.020 --> 01:01:31.330 And you know, you really have called all of us to 01:01:31.360 --> 01:01:37.780 think critically about how we are living our 01:01:37.780 --> 01:01:40.450 lives as a part of nature and how we are taking 01:01:40.450 --> 01:01:44.590 care of our one and only blue planet (LAUGHS). 01:01:44.590 --> 01:01:50.410 So, thank you so much for your time today and just cannot say enough. 01:01:50.410 --> 01:01:51.190 Thank you. 01:01:52.060 --> 01:01:54.310 It's been such a pleasure to have you and thank 01:01:54.310 --> 01:01:55.990 you for answering all of our questions. 01:01:56.440 --> 01:02:00.745 We will be hosting future estuary science exchange events. 01:02:00.745 --> 01:02:05.680 So, if any of you have ideas for future discussion topics that you 01:02:05.680 --> 01:02:08.560 would like to discuss with your colleagues, please let us know. 01:02:08.560 --> 01:02:11.730 And we're happy to host another event in the future. 01:02:11.740 --> 01:02:14.470 We do hope to have these about three to four times a year. 01:02:15.910 --> 01:02:18.430 So again, I'd like to also express my thanks 01:02:18.430 --> 01:02:20.560 to the Heart Research Institute, 01:02:20.560 --> 01:02:23.122 specifically Carmen Osier and Holly Lazenby 01:02:23.122 --> 01:02:25.840 and before helping to make this possible. 01:02:26.410 --> 01:02:29.730 And thank you everyone in the audience who attended today, 01:02:29.730 --> 01:02:34.090 and were courageous enough to ask your tough questions. 01:02:35.890 --> 01:02:39.820 We appreciate your engagement and we look forward to engaging with 01:02:39.820 --> 01:02:43.070 you again soon in the future, and having future fellowship. 01:02:43.070 --> 01:02:48.400 So, with that, I hope that all of you have a wonderful rest of your day, 01:02:48.400 --> 01:02:50.830 stay healthy and be well stay in touch. 01:02:51.580 --> 01:02:52.699 Thank you so much. 01:02:53.063 --> 01:02:53.427 DR. EARL: Thank you. 01:02:53.427 --> 01:02:54.520 SPEAKER: Oh, great job. 01:02:54.790 --> 01:02:55.420 Enjoyed it.