The story of whales and our survival | GWC

Telling a New Story about Whales and our Survival

Awakening the public to the vital role whales play in keeping the earth’s atmosphere and oceans in balance, and helping to mitigate climate change.

Whales are critical to a sustainable ocean and a livable planet. Scientists are now learning how whales are ecosystem engineers, helping to capture carbon on their bodies and fertilize the ocean so more phytoplankton grows. They are an irreplaceable component of the ocean’s capacity to regulate the atmosphere. The oxygen/carbon exchange between the atmosphere and the ocean is part of the earth’s life support system, providing for a habitable earth.

“Worldwide, this “biological carbon pump” transfers about 10 gigatonnes of carbon from the atmosphere to the deep ocean each year. Even small changes in the growth of phytoplankton may affect atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, which would feed back to global surface temperatures.” – NASA Earth Observatory

Did you know? – The contribution of whales to carbon cycling and carbon capture was recognized and endorsed by 41 of 71 member nations of the International Whaling Commission in September 2018.

More information about how marine life can help to combat climate change can be found here: http://www.grida.no/publications/417

GWC sponsors and participates in events, communications campaigns and educational tools that help change the conversation about our relationship to whales and the natural world, gaining support for protection, mitigation and conservation efforts worldwide.

We galvanizing public support by bringing our life-sized blue whale - Mz. Blue - to large public events http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/tales-about-whales/2204963