Robert Davidson: Why Aquariums Matter

Video credit: YouTube

Seattle Aquarium President and CEO Robert W. Davidson’s TEDxRainier talk, Why Aquariums Matter, was recently published to TEDxRainer’s YouTube channel.

The speech given on November 22, 2014 is about 15 minutes long; it covers the issues of ocean acidity, sea star wasting disease, plastic pollution and the giant Pacific octopus in Puget Sound.

Mr. Davidson refers to these four stories as “stories of discovery and of positive action” that affect both the unexplored, unknown ocean regions, the bodies of water closer to home.

The giant Pacific octopus is the largest species in the world. It’s a popular draw for divers in Puget Sound to see.

Washington law states that the harvest of a giant Pacific octopus is legal, and anyone with a valid fishing license can capture one each day in the Puget Sound area.

Photo credit: KOMO News

That’s a fact that shocked and horrified many when the photo of a dead octopus in the back of a fisherman’s truck went viral in 2012. The Seattle Aquarium has worked with government agencies to extend protections of this animal.

A twelve person committee – including the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), the state Department of Natural Resources, the Seattle Aquarium and other community entities – voted to prohibit the recreational harvest of the giant Pacific octopus in seven popular diving spots, covering 1,300 acres of subtidal waters; that’s a 65 percent increase in marine protection areas.

“Each of us has a personal aquarium window that magnifies and clarifies the world around us. Through this lens, if we’re lucky, we may feel a child’s wonder. The power of water, every drop, touching us to act while there’s still time,” Davidson said.

Watch the video above, and then check out the Seattle Aquarium’s blog for more information on the issues Mr. Davidson mentioned in his Tedx talk.