Meet two climate champions fighting to save the world’s oceans

Two leading ocean conservationists are joining forces to highlight the urgent need to protect the world’s seas as marine ecosystems face mounting threats from climate change, pollution and human activity.

CNN’s Call to Earth will follow renowned oceanographer Dr Sylvia Earle and coral reef conservationist Titouan Bernicot over the course of a year, documenting how their organisations are working to protect and restore the world’s oceans.

In the first half-hour documentary, the two conservation champions sit down for a one-on-one interview at the National Geographic Museum of Exploration in Washington, DC, to discuss the state of the oceans and whether the world can achieve its commitment to protect at least 30 per cent of the ocean by 2030.

Bernicot, founder and CEO of Coral Gardeners, has made coral reef restoration the centre of his conservation work. Since 2017, the organisation has planted 221,212 corals, covering 25,100 square metres of ocean.

Based in Mo’orea, French Polynesia, Bernicot says his ambition is to take coral restoration beyond his island home and expand it globally.

He says the scale of coral reef decline is particularly alarming, noting that more than half of the world’s coral reefs have now been lost.

“It’s a global challenge that we’re facing. And now the goal is to be in 10 countries by the end of 2030,” he says.

Earle, a Rolex Testimonee and founder of Mission Blue, leads an organisation supporting 169 Hope Spots across 116 countries and the high seas, covering more than 57 million square kilometres of ocean.

She says communicating positive conservation stories is critical to inspiring action, arguing that many people do not understand how closely their survival is connected to the health of the ocean.

Bernicot warns that the crisis unfolding beneath the waves is being overlooked.

“People, they don’t realise that the biggest fire of all times is happening underwater,” he says. “And the ocean is on fire.”

On the global target to protect 30 per cent of the ocean by 2030, Earle says only about three per cent is genuinely protected by her standards.

However, she remains hopeful that new international frameworks could help accelerate conservation efforts, particularly in the high seas.

Bernicot says conservation must reach a wider audience by creating an emotional connection between people and the ecosystems they are trying to protect.

Earle also believes the future remains open, urging governments, scientists, businesses and individuals to turn hope into action.

“We can do this,” she tells CNN, calling for urgent and sustained action to ensure more people become part of the solution.

*Any use of this material must clearly credit CNN’s Call to Earth.*