guess i don’t have any cute jokes about Not yet 40, Dr. Johnson is much more than a Dr. Ayana Elizabeth ,” says Dr. Ayana Elizabeth John- marine biologist. Formerly executive director of Johnson dives in the seagrass-lined son, founder and CEO of nonprofit conserva- the Waitt Institute, she co-founded and led the fast- waters of Jamaica’s “ tion consulting group Ocean Collectiv. “Some growing Blue Halo Initiative. Launched in the Ca- coast in 2018. off-the-cuff dark-humor moments, for sure.” ribbean, Blue Halo coordinates expertise in coastal Her love of ocean Point taken. Comedy doesn’t exactly flow out societies to create sustainable ocean practices, si- study began with a I visit to Key West in of the topic. In our conversation, she describes major multaneously supporting at-risk coastal ecologies Florida as a child, cities woefully unprepared for a sea-level rise of six and local economies. In Barbuda, Blue Halo’s years where she learned feet or more, with storm surges on top of that; hun- of research and public discussions ultimately re- to swim and viewed the life of dreds of millions of climate refugees; and the possible sulted in ocean management regulations that were the from a extinction of the entire global coral reef ecosystem. signed into law in 2017. The program has expanded glass-bottom boat. Still, an opportunity for levity isn’t one a vibrant conversationalist like Dr. Johnson can easily pass up. “I am actually working on a TED Talk and there are some jokes in there,” she says. “One of them: Speaking as both a marine biologist and a single person, I can tell you, there actually aren’t that many fish in the sea.” Making WAVES to Curaçao and Montserrat, with other partner- Scientist, ocean How do you prioritize the many challenges facing The East River is just a waterway that connects Long ships as remote as Vava‘u in the Pacific. conservationist the planet’s oceans? Island sound and the harbor. It’s not even a river. In 2017, she founded Ocean Collectiv, whose ex- and social In a way, it’s a bit of a red herring. Should we fight We have over 500 miles of coastline in New York perts advise foundations, nonprofits and corpora- climate change? Or should we care about biodiver- “FROM A City. There are people who still haven't recovered entrepreneur tions on ocean conservation and the implications sity? Or should we care about habitats? Or should we from Hurricane Sandy [which devastated a wide dr. ayana BUSINESS for social justice. More recently she launched the care about food security? They’re all interconnected. swath of the US East Coast in 2012]. We have sea- Urban Ocean Lab, a think tank for the problems elizabeth I just look at where I can be most useful. PERSPECTIVE, horses that live in the lower Hudson River. And facing coastal cities. johnson tells We’re in this crazy time where it has to be all of the THINKING there are whales in New York Harbor—you can ac- Along the way, Dr. Johnson has become one of Brunswick’s above and all hands on deck. From a business per- tually go whale watching in New York Harbor. It is the leading public voices on climate change and preston spective, thinking of solutions as having some spe- OF SOLUTIONS still a living estuary system that’s worth protecting. environment issues, joining and supporting a golson and cific competitive advantage is the wrong approach. AS HAVING cadre of scientists who together are redirecting the liz dahan It should be more like, what unique skills or assets How do you talk about climate change to field toward the twin lights of conservation and about corporate does a company have that can contribute to solu- SOME SPECIFIC politicians or audiences who do not believe social justice. And she is helping to train the next action and tions? Whether that is platform, or market share, or COMPETITIVE the environment is in danger? generation, through mentoring and courses she transparency shifting corporate practices, or influencing policy. ADVANTAGE Conversations about what’s true scientifically are teaches at . needed in the often a diversionary tactic or disingenuous. If some- Yet she remains a marine biologist at heart—one climate crisis. Do you have a favorite example to introduce IS THE WRONG one has a question about how the science actually who likes to “geek out” on Twitter over reports of people to the topic of ocean conservation? works, I’m obviously happy to answer that. I’m newly uncovered fish fossils and octopus trivia. She I grew up in . It took being gone for 18 APPROACH.” entirely focused on solutions, not debating whether spoke to us about the responsibilities of business in years, getting a Ph.D., working in the Caribbean for a we have a problem. the face of the world’s climate crisis and the many decade and then moving back to Brooklyn for me to The good news is that finally, the majority of

other threats to ocean resources. ELIZABETH JOHNSON AYANA DR. COURTESY PHOTOGRAPHS: realize that New York City is actually an archipelago. Americans understand that climate change is

62 brunswick review · issue 19 · 2019 brunswick review · issue 19 · 2019 63 AYANA ELIZABETH JOHNSON happening. There will be people who until the bitter IN 2018, ONLY Wait—your obsession with octopuses? can do to support what’s happening at the local level, women—it’s not an accident. We’re all supporting end are like, “We’re not causing it. There’s nothing we Oh, they’re very cool. They have three hearts. They I’m always honored to do that. each other, trying to help each other be success- can do. It’s too expensive and it’s too inconvenient.” I can think independently with each arm. Octopuses ful because that’s what the world needs. Not more can’t spend all my time arguing about the realities of are amazing. The number of female voices in climate science competition, but more collaboration. the really dangerous world we’re creating. But I care a lot more about coastal communities has grown—yourself, Katharine Hayhoe and and people whose food security and livelihoods Katharine Wilkinson, for instance. Is that true in “WE NEED What would you like business leaders to take Individuals and individual business leaders often and cultures depend on the sea. Sustainability in climate science generally? away from this interview? despair of being able to make a difference. How that context is not just the ecology, but also the eco- That’s funny. I was emailing with both of those CORPORATE We’re operating in the context of a climate crisis. do you combat that? nomics, the sociopolitical and cultural context. women ahead of this interview. We’re on the same LEADERS TO MAKE Even though it sounds like just a few degrees, it’s as The secret there is asking yourself, what are you good The Blue Halo Initiative really looks at the chal- email thread. Yes, that is accurate: There are a lot if a human were running a fever—the difference at? Whatever it is, do that in the service of solving lenge of sustainable ocean management holisti- of phenomenally brilliant and shockingly funny FUNDAMENTAL between 101° and 104° is life and death. The number environmental problems. Some people are really cally. It works with local fishermen and fisheries women working on climate solutions. It’s really CHANGES IN of projected climate refugees from Bangladesh alone good at art, or music, or debate and changing peo- managers, park rangers, tourism operators, local impressive. Obviously, there are a lot of male voices is approaching tens of millions. We can’t just tinker ple’s minds, or influencing politicians, or throwing governments, legal advisors, a science team, a GIS there as well. But yes, I’m really pleased that women THE WAY around with the edges of this problem. dinner parties and getting people around the table mapping team and some communications sup- are prominent in this space. They’re doing good THAT THEY DO We need corporate leaders to make fundamental to really talk through stuff. Don’t try to invent a new port—really just figuring out all the skills we need work. And they’re fun to hang out with. They are BUSINESS.” changes in the way that they do business. I would skill necessarily. If you’re great at making websites, 9PERCENT OF at the table to protect and restore their ocean re- also super-effective and deserve way more support encourage them to be bold and visionary, to ex- we need this movement to look better too. EXPERTS sources for generations to come. for the critically important work they’re doing. plain why they’re doing what they’re doing, and to On the business side, the same thing: What are That’s what I carried to Ocean Collectiv, which is reach out to scientists. I’m not always convinced you good at? And then, the second layer is telling DISCUSSING a consulting firm for ocean conservation solutions Does that shift bring a change of perspective? that the science is getting in there the way it needs the story of how and why. For a corporation to go CLIMATE CHANGE grounded in social justice. I asked all these amaz- Yes. You have to remember, the science is objec- to. There aren’t a lot of science advisors in a lot of carbon neutral is really hard, so it’s important to say ing people I know in ocean conservation who were tive—you’re measuring heat in the atmosphere, for these companies. Every scientist I know would be why you’re doing it and, perhaps more importantly, ON TV NEWS independent or freelance if they wanted to join an instance. But when it comes down more specifically happy to talk to someone who’s trying to make a how you did it. Then you’ll have a much larger im- SHOWS WERE umbrella organization where we could collaborate to what is studied, that’s very much the decision of big decision about how to shift their practices to- pact. That’s the part I’m really excited about. Lever- on a project basis to support nonprofits, founda- the scientist. I was interested in sustainable manage- ward sustainability. aging your specific skills and strengths but then also PEOPLE OF tions and companies trying to do better—to help ment of fishing on Caribbean coral reefs because I Think about how business leaders can get to- telling the story in a way that’s useful for others. COLOR, AND ONLY with strategy, research, communication and policy. care about Caribbean cultures and communities— gether. This is starting to happen on plastics with 19 PERCENT The spectrum of projects that we’ve worked on my dad was Jamaican. More women in the space are a NextWave roundtable coordinated by Lonely Do you see individuals being given false choices? has been really broad. From understanding how concerned about how climate change is impacting Whale, bringing together Dell, HP, GM, Ikea, Her- One study recently examined the amount of WERE WOMEN. to reduce waste along the seafood supply chain, women, for example. Women are disproportion- man Miller—all these companies from all these dif- energy needed to produce reusable bags that SOURCE: MEDIA MATTERS to doing a really rigorous assessment of plastics in ately impacted by the effects of climate change. That ferent sectors, all thinking about how to shift their have become popular, for instance. the ocean. One arts foundation has a marine lab in research is happening because women are leading it. supply chains away from virgin plastic. Fashion is This idea that we need to buy new stuff to be more Jamaica, an art space in Venice and a yacht taking People with different lives and experiences will one of the most polluting industries on the planet. environmentally responsible is another sort of red scientists and artists to remote locations—all this ask different questions. If you have a panel full of How do we change that? What are we going to do herring. We already have everything we need. Basi- really cool stuff. How can they leverage all that to white men, you just don’t have all the ideas in the about the automobile industry? Talk and figure it cally, every piece of plastic that we’ve ever created start to shift policy and create political and cultural room. It’s not about feminism and equality. It’s out together. still exists on this planet. And only about 9 percent change? It’s really been a gift to get to work on such more, do we want to solve this crazy problem or The challenge of the competitive market is that is recycled. That’s insane. A literal metric ton of plas- a fascinating portfolio of approaches. not? If we do, we’re going to need a lot more brain there’s no incentive for doing that—except to tic goes into the ocean every four seconds globally. power coming at these challenges from all angles. maintain a planet that’s suitable for the life that we This is an addiction of our species that’s totally out The organization is still young, but are there Social media allows more women to build their currently have on it. Coral reefs will be gone within of control. accomplishments you can point to? own platforms. Yet women are not the ones asked to 20 to 30 years unless something dramatic shifts— I refuse swag at all these events now. I don’t need We worked with the Bezos Family Foundation be on TV to talk about their work and share their in- an entire ecosystem erased from the planet that a another water bottle. I don’t need another tote bag. designing and managing a small grants program— sights. That is still overwhelmingly white men. There billion people depend on for their livelihoods and this is Jeff’s parents’ foundation, Mike and Jackie. was a study by Media Matters: In 2018, it was 91 per- nutrition, just gone. You founded Ocean Collectiv as a result of your They focus on education and this year their theme cent white people and 9 percent people of color who So that’s where we’re at. And I just really hope experience with the Blue Halo Initiative. Can you is the ocean. We identified and vetted small local were on the news to talk about climate change. Only that people start to do their homework and think preston golson is a talk about that, and what inspiration you took conservation groups all over the world doing ocean 19 percent were women. Director with Brunswick super big about how they can be a part of the mas- from it? conservation and education with a social justice ele- There is also this really wonderful solidarity be- and a former CIA analyst sive structural changes that are going to be needed I’ve always known that ocean conservation was a ment. From teaching black kids to swim in South tween these women. The fact that I actually know and spokesperson. to get to where we need to be. And not buy land complicated problem and inherently multidisci- Africa to mounting a festival in Peru with fishing vil- Katharine Wilkinson and Katharine Hayhoe and liz dahan is a Director in New Zealand so they can hunker down in the with the firm’s Business plinary. That’s actually what drew me to the field; it lages, to the Billion Oyster Project and their annual Kate Marvel from NASA Goddard Institute for & Society practice. apocalypse by themselves. Like, that’s really irre- wasn’t just my obsession with octopuses, although science fair here in New York City. And the list goes Space Studies and Rhiana Gunn-Wright who’s the Both are based in the sponsible. Maybe less effort going to other planets there’s that as well. But— on. They’re just really impressive groups. Anything I policy lead on the Green New Deal, and all of these Washington, DC office. and more effort fixing this one.u

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