Our oceans: a deep dive

The oceans are vital to life on this planet. They cover 71% of our planet’s surface and host 95% of the biosphere. We rely on them to support human life and our economic, cultural, social, and environmental wellbeing. But our oceans are under threat from climate change, overfishing and many other human-caused stressors.

This report serves as a summary of the event series Our oceans: a deep dive, hosted by The University of Bath Institute for Policy Research (IPR) throughout 2021-2222. This series engaged with experts, advisors, policymakers, and the general public to address the role the oceans can play in our collective action to reach net zero; how we can protect indigenous communities; how we can tackle marine pollution, overfishing, and other problems; the role and opportunities of nature-based and geoengineering solutions; and the geopolitics of our oceans.

This report provides a collection of summaries of the public lectures delivered as part of the IPR events series, presenting perspectives from a range of diverse stakeholders including social and political scientists, indigenous activists, and practitioners.