ERS 221 - Oceans Sustainability

Designed to introduce students to a wide range of ocean sustainability issues at a general level, this course starts with the how oceans work - tides, currents, waves, chemistry - and the life forms that live there - fish, seabirds, whales, dolphins, sharks, seals, and so on. We look at the uses of the ocean - shipping, fishing, aquaculture, naval warfare, trade - and the major threats to sustainability such as plastics, piracy, and climate change. And then we examine what is being done about it all through things such as the international Law of the Sea, maritime law, marine spatial planning, marine protected areas, collaborative governance systems, and blue economy strategies.