© Lucas Handley - coral-bleaching
(c) Blue
© Madison Stewart and Valerie Taylor swimming with sharks (c) Blue
© Overfishing (c) Blue
© Turtle ghostnet (c) Blue
World Oceans Day 2018: in the sign of the plastic garbage
June 7, 2018
Film premiere of "Blue" should shake the world
Since 2009, the 8th of June has been celebrated annually as the World Oceans Day by the United Nations. The aim of the day is to gain global attention for the current challenges associated with the oceans. The main focus of this year's World Oceans Day is the littering of the seas by plastic waste.
To celebrate the World Oceans Day, the creators of the powerful documentary film "Blue" started the
public release worldwide. The screening started in New Zealand and will work its way around the planet ending in Hawaii (right now available in New Zealand, Australia, Germany, Spain, France, UK, ireland, USA and Canada - more to come). Even you can host a screening in your community or school. Also hosting a screening in a cinema is possible and it is a great way to reach out to your community (see also:
bluethefilm.org/watch/).
The message of the film is clear: we must act now to protect our most precious resource, the oceans. The film premiered before the UN General Assembly and has since won major prizes, including the Best Impact Film Award in New York and Vancouver, as well as the Okeanos Foundation Award for Meritorious Service to the Ocean.
Half of all marine life has been lost in the last 40 years. By the year 2050, there will be more plastic in the sea than fish. The way the ocean works (e.g.
the ocean currents) is different as 100 years ago. We must not see the oceans as a place of unlimited resources and at the same time as a garbage dump any more. "Blue" takes the audience on a provocative journey into the realm of the oceans. With passionate advocates of marine conservation, the film takes you into its world where the story of the changing ocean unfolds. Viewers meet those who defend habitats, fight for smarter fisheries, fight marine pollution and fight for the protection of key species.
This documentary comes at a time when humanity is making critical decisions that will determine the legacy left to future generations. The film shows that there is a way forward and the time has come for action.