![](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/4ec3224d-5df5-4865-98ff-cda7ef485dc0/MichaelConathan%2CColinFoord%2CSwatiThiyagarajanFoster%2CBartonSeaverspeaking16.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&q=80&rect=1062%2C570%2C4489%2C2529&w=800)
The Ocean is a Climate Superhero
Setup
Though the ocean covers more than two-thirds of our planet, produces roughly half of the oxygen we breathe, and has sequestered over 40% of the carbon dioxide emitted since the dawn of the industrial revolution, its contributions to ameliorating the global climate crisis are regularly overlooked; the full text of the Paris Climate Accord includes the word “ocean” exactly once. We tend to think of the warming, acidifying, rising ocean as a victim of climate change when in fact it’s poised to be a hero, with natural systems that help undo the damage human activity has caused.
- 2022 Climate
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