Listen "Seaforestation & Marine Permaculture with Dr. Brian Von Herzen of Climate Foundation"
Episode Synopsis
Ocean regeneration is a rapidly emerging & fascinating area of the regenerative revolution, and in this episode we explore the challenge and the opportunity being taken on by the Climate Foundation, led by Dr. Brian Van Herzen. Together with an international team of scientists, engineers, technicians, social scientists & seaweed farmers, Dr. Van Herzen and his team are working to regenerate thousands of kilometers of lost kelp forest, protect coral reefs, and provide food security for millions of people. Their simple, thoughtfully designed approach involves floating marine permaculture arrays consisting of seaweed/kelp scaffolding and a wave driven or marine solar pump to re-start the natural upwelling that’s been disrupted due to heating of the oceans. This is a fascinating and hopeful discussion highlighting a rapidly growing movement and sustainable industry! We learned a ton and know you will too.Visit the Climate Foundation website and see their projects (in the process of being scaled up drastically, as explained in the episode) Stay in touch with the Climate Foundation by signing up for their newsletter Resource recommendation: Paul Hawken’s Regeneration “The world’s largest, most complete listing and network of solutions to the climate crisis. And how to do them!” Follow the podcast on Instagram Follow the Climate Foundation on Instagram Support us to create more episodes like this one on Patreon by clicking here! Show notes: What the current situation in the ocean is & why it needs to be regenerated: Over 90% of global warming has gone into the oceans, which has led to the top layer of ocean water heating up. This prevents natural upwelling, which was one of the major causes of the Permian mass extinction 250 million years ago. By restoring natural upwelling, we make it so kelp, seaweed forests, and coral reefs can stay alive. Bill Mollison’s inspiration for permaculture originally came from observing kelp forests off the coast of Tasmania in the 60s! Applying permaculture principles to the sea - look out for upcoming article with David Holmgren on permaculture design for the ocean. Moving from extraction to regeneration while providing food security for billions of people, by creating enviornmentally and economically sustainable industry How marine permaculture arrays are constructed and how they function: seaweed scaffolding & wave driven/marine solar pumps/depth adjustment Addressing scale: How much of this needs to happen how quickly? Covering just 1% of the ocean would create a climate wedge. How kelp functions for carbon sequestration How these systems help coral reef regeneration & give tools to address thermally induced coral bleaching How to get involved