A real passion for the ocean
The legendary oceanographer Sylvia Earle was born in 1935 in Gibbstown, New Jersey, USA. This 81-year-old marine biologist, an American explorer, author and lecturer, has dedicated her life to the oceans and continues to communicate her passion. When she was 12, her family moved to Florida, and there, facing the Gulf of Mexico, she discovered the ocean, its fauna and flora. This is how everything began for Sylvia. She then decided to study botanic science. In 1956 she wrote her dissertation on algae in the Gulf of Mexico.
After obtaining her PhD International PhD, she participated in numerous research projects, and to date she has written about 200 scientific papers on the marine world. Sylvia earle is a true pioneer of ocean exploration, with 7000 hours spent under the sea and hundreds of deepwater expeditions. Nothing stopped her, even pregnant she continued her underwater explorations. The press even nicknamed her “its Depth”!
Mission Tektite II and Feminism
When she was kicked out of a science program because of her sex, she decided to create and manage her own expedition, the Tektite II expedition, composed exclusively of women. For two weeks, Sylvia and her team decided to live underwater to test the viability of long-term submarine laboratories and their impact on aquatic fauna and flora. This project demonstrated that the work of a women’s team is just as effective as the one of a men’s team.
It also showed the negative impact of the pollution on corals. Sylvia fought since then to educate the world on the importance of ocean preservation.
Ambassador of the Oceans
For her, the protection of the oceans concerns us all. She realized that, in order to achieve her goal, she needed to spread the informations, reports and documentaries of her expedition widely on youtube and other channels. She is also the author of the documentary Mission Blue, in which she shows the impact of the pollution on the oceans. Thanks to her, the oceans are now visible on Google Earth and we can not only admire their beauty, but also the scourges that can affect them such as oil spilling. Since 1970, she is also a resident explorer of National Geographic. Sylvia Earle, by her approach, reminds us that, without the oceans there is no life, and that we must get involved in making the world a better place.
