Save the Oceans, Feed the World – Jackie Savitz

Save the Oceans, Feed the World – Jackie Savitz

TED Talk

Rating: *****

Overfishing is a big problem in today’s world. It threatens not only fish populations but also the long term sustainability of fish as a source of food for our growing population.

The amount of fish that we’ve been catching has been going down since 1988, and that’s not due to less people fishing them. Overfishing is causing fish populations to crash at an astounding rate and something has to be done. Most fish are caught in areas off the coast which can be regulated by countries’ governments. Jackie Savitz proposes that governments need to put laws in place to regulate fishing. If the 8 biggest fishing countries were to have laws against overfishing, that would affect over 60% of the fish catch. This is important not only for saving the fish, but also economically. Fish are by far the most cost effective meat. They also use the least land (duhh), don’t need a lot of freshwater, and have the smallest carbon footprint. By letting their populations grow and not destroying their habitat we can increase the fish yield over the long term, feeding more people.

I’ve learned a lot from this TED talk and it’s opened my eyes to a problem that’s plaguing our society. I’ve heard a lot about the problems of overfishing, but I never realized it was this serious. I feel like getting governments involved is the right way and the only way of solving this problem, but without more people to show their support for Jackie’s ideas, I don’t think that they’ll do anything. I think that a lot of the countries where overfishing is a problem are 3^rd world countries where they need the short term gain to survive. For example fishermen on the coast of Mexico live day to day, and if they don’t catch enough they can’t support themselves or their family. I think it’s up to larger governments to offer support in exchange for laws being put in place. That way the smaller countries get a future investment in the fishing industry and can still survive the present. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XFeW9dgyIs