Abstract
Marine mammals as indicators of Ocean Health provide a powerful narrative for inter-, multi- and transdisciplinary research. Collaborating researchers from the global north and south from various disciplines define and position OceanHealth as a transdisciplinary discourse among existing disciplines and propose a new solution-focused knowledge field, Ocean Health Science. This systemic approach advocates transformative thinking with the goal to heal and nurture our global Ocean and the potential for big science, encouraging the global community to take a shared stewardship responsibility.
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Introduction
Increasingly, marine scientists have voiced that a new narrative for the Ocean is required, because ‘the Ocean is too big to ignore’1. A review of the multiple, cumulative anthropogenic impacts on marine mammals as indicators of Ocean Health in the Anthropocene2 has highlighted the increasing complexity of the problem of our ailing Ocean - and that we are running out of time to act. In the Anthropocene, in which humans are the driving force of almost everything that happens in nature, it stands to reason that science can no longer be confined to its idealised role of merely ‘describing and understanding nature’. Indeed, although historically science has always claimed objectivity, its achievements and effects have significantly altered our relationship with nature by exploiting its natural resources and reinforcing social, economic and gender hierarchies3. Historically, this has been in service of the aims and agendas of the Global North at the expense of the South, its peoples and its ecosystems4,5. However, the urgency of the climate crisis underlines the fact that this must change and highlights the need to reframe our science in service of fundamentally altering our relationship with the planet to achieve effective international partnerships based on planetary stewardship rather than resource extraction6.
The term stewardship is deliberately chosen. For although it has a rich and diverse set of meanings, it speaks not only to secular responsibilities of maintenance and nurturing based on an understanding of justice and the inherent value of nature7, but also has a place in Christian, Muslim and other faith traditions8,9. Scholars have also linked the term to theories of good governance and ethics10. We stress here that stewardship requires more than sustainability and present it as indicating a duty of care, not only for the oceans and their inhabitants, but in consequence, for all earth’s inhabitants, human and non-human.
The planetary nature of the challenge facing humankind demands a global-scale solution that transcends national boundaries and cultural divides11. Therefore, we propose a new transdisciplinary knowledge field in the Anthropocene to address our triple planetary crises of biodiversity loss, excess waste and pollution and climate change. Such a discipline is required to alter the way we approach the climate problem in our current state of planetary emergency12. We propose that the narrative needs to rapidly shift focus to cleaning up, healing and nurturing the Ocean, thereby aiding in restoring Ocean Health and, in consequence, a wider planetary ecology. We argue that marine mammals, as highly visible, charismatic and revered ocean species, are powerful advocates for this process2.
The groundwork for such a transformation is already being laid. Inter- and multidisciplinary collaborations have been increasing in marine mammal research in recent years. Multidisciplinary interventions with free-swimming cetaceans are on the increase: for example, the veterinary intervention to assist a free-ranging, chronically ill 3-year-old female killer whale (Orcinus orca) from an endangered population in the Pacific North West in an effort to save a reproductively contributing member of this population13. Another highly publicised example of multidisciplinary work is the vaquita CPR (Conservation Protection Recovery) project and international rescue mission for critically endangered vaquitas (Phocoena sinus) in the upper Gulf of California, Mexico14. In addition, there has been a surge in research on various aspects of the health of wild, free-ranging marine mammals15,16,17, aiding in the recognition of marine mammals as indicators of Ocean Health for both retrospective and proactive screening at local and global scales18,19,20. Marine mammals are vital indicators of Ocean Health, because they reflect changes in ecosystem dynamics and environmental conditions through various biological and behavioural markers. Following Plön et al.2, our study builds on the framework that marine mammals provide insights into Ocean Health through indicators, such as population health, accumulation of chemical pollutants, microplastic exposure and responses to climate change. By integrating these indicators, we aim to explore how marine mammals can lead to transdisciplinary engagements by offering a long-term, ecosystem-wide perspective on Ocean Health with implications to human health and climate change mitigation.
The need for the creation of a transdisciplinary approach
Using multi-disciplinary teams of experts to solve a common problem in marine mammal science will likely prompt increased interdisciplinary research over time. While both encompass interactive ways to conduct research, there are subtle differences: Interdisciplinarity analyses, synthesises and harmonises links between disciplines into a coordinated and coherent whole through the transfer of methods from one discipline to another, thereby transferring knowledge across disciplines21,22. Multidisciplinarity, on the other hand, draws on knowledge from different disciplines, thereby studying a research topic in not just one discipline, but in several at the same time21,23. This results in the enrichment of any topic by incorporating the perspectives of several disciplines. In both approaches, disciplinary boundaries are crossed, but the overall goal remains within the framework of disciplinary research23. Transdisciplinary approaches, on the other hand, are aimed at breaking completely new ground. Transdisciplinarity concerns what is at the same time between disciplines, across disciplines and beyond all disciplines23. Its goal is to understand the present world, with an imperative to unite knowledge23. In transdisciplinary research, investigators step outside the boundaries of their known areas of enquiry to create a unique intellectual space22 with the goal to blend different perspectives to understand scientific questions and problems in their complexity, rather than just addressing pieces of them, thus adopting a systemic approach. To successfully achieve transdisciplinarity, investigators must communicate well by sharing knowledge and vocabulary, as well as agree on research design and analyses24. All team members must mutually respect what the other brings to the table by putting idiosyncratic disciplinary agendas aside and by valuing individual contributions in the effort to address multifaceted problems and find solutions. Thus, an aptitude for empathy is a prerequisite for this concept, which is inherently democratic.
Furthering the idea of Ocean Health
Halpern et al.25 introduce the Ocean Health Index (OHI), a transdisciplinary method to assess and monitor the health of human-ocean systems through ten goals encompassing ecological, social and economic dimensions. This transparent, comprehensive and quantitative framework aids decision-making across sectors by helping policymakers balance trade-offs, improve resource management and foster sustainable development at both local and global levels. Since its launch in 2012, the OHI has been updated annually to evaluate global Ocean Health. The OHI emphasises a multi- and transdisciplinary approach by integrating ecological, social and economic factors to assess and sustain the benefits that oceans provide, making it relevant to ocean governance and policy studies26. Similarly, Hills and Maharaj27 stress the importance of transdisciplinarity to achieve transformative ocean governance aligned with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and SDG (Sustainable Development Goal 14). Their study analyses development-financed projects in Pacific Small Island Developing States and proposes a framework that integrates participation and multi-knowledge systems (Mode 2 research) to promote sustainable and transformational ocean investments. This approach is essential for addressing urgent ocean challenges and enhancing the effectiveness of international development funding.
Using marine mammals as indicators of Ocean Health
The increasing cumulative impacts on marine mammal populations globally2 highlight the importance and opportunity of such an approach for finding solutions. Concern about the health of marine mammals and their ecosystems is not new28,29,30,31,32,33. Yet to date, the focus has predominantly been on describing threats and declining populations/extinctions14,34,35 and assessing ‘allowable harm limits’36 or levels of impact below ‘acceptable thresholds’37.
Marine mammals serve as crucial indicators of Ocean Health due to their ecological roles and sensitivity to environmental changes. Coastal small cetaceans in particular are exposed to a variety of anthropogenic stressors38, leading to increasing numbers of their populations being of conservation concern39 as they integrate the effects of these various stressors into their systems. They bioaccumulate pollutants, like heavy metals and microplastics, providing insights into pollution levels. Monitoring their health, including disease and reproductive success, reflects the ecosystem’s well-being. As apex predators, shifts in their populations and changes in behaviour indicate changes in prey availability and habitat quality. Marine mammals also respond to climate change, with altered migration and feeding patterns, signalling environmental shifts. Additionally, their long lifespans provide long-term ecological records. These indicators support conservation and management strategies, linking marine and human health and climate change mitigation. However, due to the increasing complexity of these issues, solutions may only be found if different disciplines and their respective approaches and knowledge are engaged and interact.
The need for the creation of a transdisciplinary discourse on OceanHealth and a new knowledge field—Ocean Health Science—as ways to govern the Anthropocene
A transdisciplinary discourse on OceanHealth is aimed at changing perspectives and prompting entities to re-think their respective approaches and conduct (Fig. 1), e.g. translate processes and/or knowledge from one field to another and, in doing so, find new ways, which may be healing and nurturing. This also means the co-production of knowledge, i.e. integrating knowledge of stakeholders and experts outside of academia, merging knowledge from science and practice40. Through this process a new knowledge field, Ocean Health Science, will be generated, with the aim to be mutually beneficial as well as nurturing and healing, thereby going beyond sustainability (Fig. 1).
From an inter-/multidisciplinary approach (e.g. between veterinary medicine, veterinary pathology and marine mammal biology) to a transdisciplinary discourse (OceanHealth) and towards a new knowledge field for the Anthropocene (Ocean Health Science), communicated, for example, via museums. Orange arrows highlight the modes of thinking that are characterising the different approaches.
Innovative contributions of this kind can lead to the development of new terminology, innovative concepts and new knowledge. Transdisciplinarity, therefore, presents a unique way of working. In addition, using the narrative of marine mammals as indicators of Ocean Health2, would combine both the empirical and the complex systemic perspectives of Ocean Health41. Since the concept of Ocean Health is, in its most general form, a way of translating complex system behaviour into a widely and intuitively comprehensible explanation, it would deliver explanations for a society that can justify the management of human pressures that act on the holistic condition of our Ocean41.
Bridging the social and political sciences with the marine sciences
From a social science perspective, a transdisciplinary discourse on OceanHealth offers a new mode of governance. OceanHealth, in the context of climate change, is a discourse of earth stewardship42. How do we manage the present, mitigate risk and best use the opportunities of the future? And what sense of purpose or rationale enables us to facilitate the balance between the two, between today and tomorrow?
Comprehending whales and dolphins as indicators of Ocean Health helps us to recognise and realise the interconnectedness and interdependence of life on our planet. It demands attention to the impact of current practices, but also to recovery structures. The latter is particularly lacking in current climate change debates. Even if CO2 emissions were to stop overnight, it would take generations to recover from the damage already inflicted43 - even without considering the further impact of possible tipping points.
The discourse of OceanHealth is a transdisciplinary discourse, both of what is and what could and should be done. It is a discourse in which marine scientists meet with social and political scientists, historians, engineers, as well as artists, activists and educators. It is a discourse that transcends the disciplinary limitations of science as traditionally and historically conceived.
The discourse of OceanHealth has the metamodern44,45,46,47 potential to recognise and realise systemic wisdom practices, which are formed and informed by diverse spiritual and indigenous wisdom traditions that are mirrors to the prevalent sense of agency and relation we have with the living world48. It combines scientific rigour with normative traditions that go beyond the critical school49,50,51, anchored in humanistic psychology52,53,54,55. It can be described as an experience-based, relationship-oriented, co-created, co-facilitated process of enquiry, learning and understanding, embedded in epistemic humility, trusting our human potential and humanity and realising the existentiality of love56,57. It has the potential to lead to life-serving governance and change.
Navigating change in social systems is crucial to overcoming our contemporary challenges58. Meeting this challenge is required to build resilience in the face of the ever multiplying, bigger and longer crises humanity is facing. Once we have reached a shared understanding of OceanHealth and a collective capacity to agree on the duties demanded by a shared sense of stewardship, we shall be in a position to facilitate the change we want to see in the world - the change that realises viability beyond survival. With this change in perspective, seeing with new eyes, our perception changes of what is and what could be. If we can reach this collective systemic mind shift, our perception reveals an entirely different world full of new possibilities.
The Ocean is the world’s ‘biggest employer’—the gross domestic product (GDP) derived from the Ocean amounts to $2.5 trillion, or five per cent of the world’s total GDP; it supports the livelihoods of more than three billion people, and is a source of food for over 2.6 billion people59. Recognising its global importance, the United Nations (UN) has worked since 2017 towards legal protection of the Ocean to avoid Ocean plunder59 and launched the ‘United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development’ in 2021 to help expand scientific knowledge and address the issues impacting the Ocean. However, while some policies are in place to address the various factors that impact Ocean Health60,61,62,63, the urgency of the matter requires more drastic measures.
So, if our new collective goal were to pursue OceanHealth, innovative and fresh creative thinking needs to be applied to change our current course in an effort to not only implement sustainable practices, but rather go beyond sustainability and implement healing and nurturing ones. In the short term, the fastest way to facilitate the rapid change needed is to address industry. In parallel, change should be initiated with civil society and governments as it takes social movements to make policies, which are, in turn, made by governments; however, these processes take longer. In this respect, a combination of the UN Decade of Ocean Science and the UN Decade of Restoration would catalyse thinking and action towards OceanHealth and Ocean Health Science. Furthermore, education and awareness are the foundation to initiate both industrial and societal change.
Learning from the creation of other research areas: Aeroecology as a model
The developing science of Aeroecology has recognised that the study of the air space as a habitat for many species has provided important insights into the ecology, evolution and conservation of many of the world’s bird, bat, insect and plant species64. Similarly, the dialogue on OceanHealth is based on the premise that we need to focus on the health of the system, which in turn has implications for marine mammal health, human health and our climate (see ref. 2). As current multiple cumulative effects on cetacean populations go beyond the ‘usual’ areas of human-wildlife conflict, they could be considered a welfare issue65. For example, chemical pollution and affluent from agriculture, mining, medical waste and microplastics not only have an impact on cetaceans, but also on fish and seafood and thus on human health and recreation. Since this affects rivers and inland waters as much as coastal ocean areas, synergies from law, engineering, agriculture, mining, medicine, pharmaceuticals, philosophy and social sciences may be required to provide possible solutions. If we can make significant steps towards addressing the state of the world’s Ocean, in the process, we shall have made significant steps to address our impact upon the planet.
Positioning OceanHealth and Ocean Health Science
Several disciplines and/or concepts exist that explore different aspects of a ‘healthy Ocean’ environment to varying degrees. Thus, in an effort to position both OceanHealth and Ocean Health Science, we present a short overview here.
There are three different approaches: the anthropocentric approach, the geological/earth systems approach and the ecological/veterinary approach, which aim to operate at different levels (Fig. 2). At the inter-/multidisciplinary level, Planetary Health and Ocean and Human Health (OHH) are two concepts which use an anthropocentric approach. Planetary Health is concerned with safeguarding human health and the natural systems that underpin it, with the central aim to minimise the negative environmental and human health impacts of food system dynamics to reduce the threat of infectious disease and promote healthy and sustainable diets and nutrition for humans66. Thus, Planetary Health recognises that the health of human populations is tied to Earth’s natural systems and biodiversity, but does so in an anthropocentric manner of a healthy planet providing sufficient and high-value nutrition to people, without acknowledging the inherent values of ecological systems and biodiversity66,67,68,69. OHH encompasses an interdisciplinary research field comprising natural and social sciences and human health practitioners and focuses on the relationships between the quality of aquatic systems and human health70,71, again from an anthropocentric perspective.
Different disciplines from Conservation Medicine to Ocean Health Science—see text for definitions.
The concept of Earth Stewardship is positioned at the interdisciplinary level and originates from the geological/earth systems approach. This concept is defined as ‘science that facilitates the active shaping of trajectories of social-ecological change at local-to-global scales to enhance ecosystem resilience and human well-being’72,73. It works under the premise that the knowledge needed to inform stewardship requires an interdisciplinary science that draws on the observations, skills and creativity of a wide range of natural and social scientists, practitioners and civil society. It is expected that new questions and solutions will emerge when these groups work together to formulate the issues, design the research and co-produce the observations, knowledge and concepts that form the basis for solutions72,73.
The ecological/veterinary approach involves both the inter-/multidisciplinary level as well as the transdisciplinary level (Fig. 2). At the inter-/multidisciplinary level, Conservation Medicine examines the interactions between pathogens and disease and their linkages with the synergies that occur between species and ecosystems. Thus, it focuses on the study of the ecological context of health and the remediation of ecological health problems28,29,74,75,76. Over time, this interdisciplinary approach has developed into the One Health concept, which seeks to improve health and well-being through the prevention of risks and the mitigation of effects of crises that originate at the interface between humans, other animals and their various environments77. This concept recognises the deep linkages that exist between human, other animal and ecosystem health and aims at ‘a coordinated, collaborative, interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral approach’ to address the wide-ranging risks at the animal–human–ecosystem interface, primarily addressing the management of disease threats to humans and other animals77. Currently, the One Health field comprises mostly veterinarians and public health practitioners, even though the disciplinary diversity is growing77. Thus, the field typically focuses on subjects relating to the relationship between human and animal health, such as nutrition, food safety, communicable diseases and antimicrobial resistance77. However, while the One Health concept appears prevalent in terrestrial contexts, it remains somewhat neglected in marine systems. Recent efforts have suggested using Aquatic One Health as an inter- and/or multidisciplinary framework to guide research and conservation efforts by studying the intersection of marine wildlife health, public health and our Ocean78.
At the transdisciplinary level, EcoHealth has emerged out of Conservation Medicine and recognises the interdependence of the health of humans, wildlife and ecosystems, positioning itself at the interface between ecological and health sciences79. The International Association of Ecology and Health (IAEH) has characterised EcoHealth as striving for the ‘sustainable health of people, animals and ecosystems’ (IAEH ratified constitution 2008, www.ecohealth.net). It attempts to do so through transdisciplinary action research, which encourages discovery and understanding and promotes problem-solving by drawing on different types of knowledge from various disciplines in natural science, social science, health science and the humanities (IAEH ratified constitution 2008, www.ecohealth.net).
In the progression from Conservation Medicine74 via One Health77 and EcoHealth79 to Planetary Health80 and Ocean and Human Health (OHH70,71), it seems that marine aspects of One Health have often been overlooked or misconceived; perhaps because we humans are terrestrial beings after all. However, the ideas around whales and dolphins as indicators of Ocean Health, in combination with discussions around Earth Stewardship Science72,73 led to our conceptualisation of developing the narrative on marine mammals as indicators of Ocean Health (see refs. 2, 38). In this context, we use the term ‘OceanHealth’ to identify the transdisciplinary dialogue on Ocean Health and ‘Ocean Health Science’ as a new field of knowledge in the Anthropocene to promote the integrity of the Ocean system, thus facilitating the restoration of the health of marine mammals and marine mammal populations and, implicitly, the ecosystems they live in.
Although marine mammals have been used previously as ‘sentinels’, which provide early warning of existing or emerging health hazards from the Ocean environment32,81, the indicator concept is more suitable when changing the narrative to a holistic, systemic discourse as it highlights the cause and effect (direct link) between human behaviour and environmental state82. In addition, marine mammals integrate the numerous factors of anthropogenic impacts on our Ocean due to their capacity to indicate or respond to changes in ecosystem structure and function that would otherwise be difficult to observe directly2,83,84,85. The power of this approach is that most indicators do not account for interactions86 as marine mammals do. In this context, marine mammals can thus be considered ‘composite indicators’ as they combine multiple indicators across multiple scales2,86,87,88. Using marine mammals as composite indicators would produce measurable outcomes, particularly using the recently proposed approach of a health index (HI) for stranded marine tetrapods89. This quantitative measure of an animal’s health enables the evaluation of spatial and temporal variations in health status and the identification of more subtle impacts on species or populations, thus providing an objective assessment of the health of wildlife populations and assisting in the identification of potential threats. With this standardised methodology, such an approach would also be scaleable.
However, measuring progress toward Ocean Health requires not only indicators, but also the monitoring and data necessary to inform those indicators86. In this context, we define Ocean Health as the ‘condition and integrity of the Ocean system’ to supply the ecosystem provisions necessary for climate change mitigation (sensu90,91), particularly for transdisciplinary contexts, including knowledge and perspectives across the natural and social sciences, like humanities, arts and engineering.
OceanHealth
The power of OceanHealth as a transdisciplinary discourse in the Anthropocene (Fig. 2) lies in the education and communication about the complexity and connectivity of our current planetary challenges. This process is central to the rapid societal changes (including changes in belief systems) required to turn our thinking around and to start re-thinking the trajectory we are currently on42. A transdisciplinary discourse of OceanHealth will facilitate societal change by using marine mammals as an inspiration to move towards healing and nurturing our Ocean - thus presenting a juxtaposition to terms with negative associations like ‘climate change’ and thereby providing hope (Fig. 2).
We work on the premise that in our information age, a large part of the solutions required for climate protection and climate change mitigation may already exist but may require cross-disciplinary engagement to be discovered, made visible and implemented. Thus, one of the fundamental assumptions for OceanHealth is that we change our work within pre-defined disciplines and reach out across disciplines to harness and connect existing knowledge, thereby creating new knowledge that may help us solve our current problems together. It requires a culture of cross-learning and forward-thinking with the aim of working towards solutions, which can only be achieved in a transdisciplinary context. This kind of transdisciplinarity is necessary to mobilise all parts of society: to combine the knowledge, motivation and action to tackle our global issues (see ref. 92). In this context, the science and knowledge about marine mammals and their current conservation status aid in creating a narrative that serves as an inspiration and entry point into interconnected knowledge exchanges and knowledge creation. By combining our intellectual and emotional insights, we can inspire transformative thoughts and actions in new, creative ways and, as a result, affect wide-ranging and long-lasting change in our collective relationship with the Ocean92. OceanHealth practitioners would form the middle/in-between people that create the trust and connectedness required to move into a space of new, creative thinking.
However, such an approach also needs to be considered as separate from conventional academic culture; research that promotes transdisciplinarity and the greater good needs to be rewarded, while conventional measures of research productivity are still applied72.
Ocean Health Science
As much as earth system scientists have been driven by the notion of the Anthropocene to develop Earth Stewardship Science, our increasing awareness about the role of the Ocean and all its natural inhabitants in our planetary life support system should be central to the thinking and development of Ocean Health Science. Traditional ways of scientific conduct have aimed to ‘make sense’ of nature through documenting, describing and cataloguing. However, looking at the current demise of Ocean ecosystems93,94 and the decline of species38, this way of working has, so far, not prevented us from coming to this point. So, if humans are now at the centre of influencing all natural processes on earth (i.e. the Anthropocene), and science is something that needs to benefit society, it follows that we need to do things fundamentally different to reverse the current trend. This thinking also opens the space for a new, much-needed, fresh approach to knowledge creation in the Anthropocene. We propose Ocean Health Science as a new branch of knowledge to put the focus on research and practice concerned with healing and rebuilding the Ocean and Ocean life. The increasing complexity we observe in the declining conservation status of whales and dolphins39,95 requires a systems concept and a systemic way of working: it should be integrative and inclusive, work with democratic principles towards finding solutions through co-creation, co-design, co-development and co-learning processes in a way that includes contributors from both the global North and South under the fundamental values declared under the UN. This approach will allow a path towards a common, global goal with all contributing to achieving Ocean Health. Ocean Health Science, as a new transdisciplinary knowledge field, will focus on turning current industrial processes that are harmful to marine mammal health, and therefore Ocean Health, into processes that are not only less harmful, but rather contribute towards making the Ocean healthy again (Fig. 3). As a number of industries are central to contributing to the multiple cumulative stressors on marine mammals, such as fishing, shipping, coastal/harbour construction, agriculture, mining, wastewater treatment, waste management, oil and gas exploration, tourism and, e.g. the plastic, chemical and pharmaceutical industry (Fig. 3), a transdisciplinary discourse and approach including an array of different disciplines (Fig. 1) should yield solutions that contribute to creating sustainable and/or healing industrial processes that result in healthy marine mammal populations and ecosystems, which in turn assist in climate change mitigation and thus human survival and prosperity (Fig. 3).
A new transdisciplinary knowledge field Ocean Health Science.
In our rapidly changing world, scientists increasingly recognise that advancing our understanding of the cumulative impacts of multiple stressors is critical—and that we can only do this with an interdisciplinary approach96. As scientific knowledge plays a role in both the construction of and solutions to environmental issues97, the primary role of scientists in navigating the Anthropocene would be to harness and pool existing knowledge to find solutions and design programmes that not only alleviate/mitigate and remove stressors, but which restore and heal. While it is recognised that we need to continue to develop statistically acceptable and measurable indicators, it is also clear that we do have sufficient information and knowledge to start acting now98 to reverse biodiversity loss as a result of development99.
Addressing the urgency of the situation
The three concepts of disciplinary, multi- and interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research imply the involvement of multiple disciplines to varying degrees on the same continuum (Fig. 4). The value of continued disciplinary research, i.e. the specialisation of academic disciplines with each one having its own concepts, definitions and methodological protocols for the study of its precisely defined domain of competence advancing individual fields21 is important and necessary and should not be neglected (see Fig. 4). However, due to the scale and complexity of the problem at hand and the urgency of the situation39,95, disciplinary as well as inter- and multidisciplinary research may simply take too long to achieve the required outcomes (Fig. 4), and increasing demand exists for cross-cutting discussions and knowledge sharing (i.e. transdisciplinarity) and should be developed in parallel.
The various modes of ‘doing science’ with associated timelines.
In this respect, Ocean Health Science addresses the emergency situation we are currently in (Fig. 4) by integrating diverse research fields in a co-creation, co-design, co-development and co-production process with the aim to preserve and restore the integrity of the complex and varying Ocean ecosystems that sustain plant, animal and human health, thereby assisting in climate change mitigation (Fig. 5). It takes into consideration the need to transcend all kinds of existing boundaries and embraces the need to defragment our thinking. Recognising the need to build science capacity and capability through new and innovative ways of thinking, training, mobilisation of resources, sharing of information and infrastructure and exchange of experts100, Ocean Health Science aims to start a dialogue across disciplines, nations and institutions, thereby functioning as a ‘seed of the good Anthropocene’101. Ocean Health Science will therefore implement the radical collaboration required to provide the connectedness between humans, the terrestrial realm and the Ocean.
Definition of the ideal Ocean Health state for marine mammals as indicators of the overall Ocean system.
A global approach
In this respect, we advocate for a new international transdisciplinary programme of large-scale science on Ocean Health to turn things around. Recent perspectives on how to operationalise research on Ocean Health and work towards a global system102,103 could conceptually be integrated with information on marine mammal health. Such an initiative would facilitate the creation of more interconnections, as has been advocated by other colleagues promoting transdisciplinary research into Ocean Health under the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science70,100,103,104 and would assist in the societal transformation required to change our current trajectory at a rapid pace (Fig. 4).
The need for transdisciplinarity to engage in public education and communication
As societal awareness grows that the drastic improvement in human health and society over the past decades and centuries has largely come at the cost of ecosystem integrity, data on recent and historical changes to multiple biophysical global indicators show a decline in environmental quality and ecosystem integrity101. However, as ‘scare’ scenarios can be counterproductive for policy and societal change, particularly when resources are insufficient or unavailable105, discussions about a bleak future run the risk of becoming self-fulfilling because people base their actions on what they believe about society and their future101,106. Environmental anxiety appears to have become part of the daily working lives of many people, most of all, natural scientists and biologists107. The climate crisis is taking its toll not just on the environment, but also on our collective mental health. But as much as ‘climate change’ and ‘climate crisis’ have become punch words dominating our current thinking, OceanHealth could represent the new Zeitgeist going forward. As environmental anxiety and desperation to communicate the urgency of our situation grows, natural scientists also need to learn to communicate the facts in a new language and change the narrative in order to transcend disciplines and start talking in more personal, emotive and intuitive terms, which can transcend religious, cultural and even language barriers. An essential aspect of transdisciplinarity (both a transdisciplinary discourse as well as transdisciplinary knowledge creation) is a common language and understanding100. Marine mammals as sympathy bearers have a unique way of illustrating the demise and complexity of the problem, thus (hopefully) bringing individuals, organisations and industries on board that have previously shied away from engaging in such a discourse100.
Educational efforts, such as UNESCO’s Ocean Literacy programme, have made inroads into understanding the interconnectedness between humans and the Ocean, as the Ocean is essential to the existence of human life on earth (Principle 6 of the Ocean Literacy Guide; http://oceanliteracy.wp2.coexploration.org). This highlights the importance of a healthy Ocean for human well-being and how critical this discourse is to society. What started as a collaboration between Ocean educators, Ocean scientists and Ocean policymakers in the USA to develop a guide to Ocean literacy for schools (2004) has now gone global, reaching Canada, South America, the UK, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. Based on the original seven principles and forty-four related concepts, the International Oceanographic Commission (IOC) has created an Ocean Literacy For and With All campaign (https://en.unesco.org/news/ocean-literacy-all), which is included in the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030).
In addition, natural history museums are inherently transdisciplinary; large, national museums are global hubs of information that hold records of spatial and temporal change expressed through historical and contemporary collections, cataloguing, investigation and analysis. Through public exhibitions, publications, digital outreach and learning activities, they can help communicate ideas of change, acting as change agents. They can provide audiences with tools to help their understanding of the interconnectedness of things, the importance of cause and effect and how their life affects our planet, our Ocean and ultimately, the survival of our species on this planet.
In the 1960s and 70 s, an explosion in nature documentary filmmaking brought the natural world into our homes. Our television screens became windows to the deep Ocean and led to a fascination with and growth in the study of natural sciences. The 1980s and 90 s saw growing public concern with environmental degradation, pollution, habitat loss and climate change. Research was increasingly focused on identifying problems and collecting data to help inform conservation and secure the planet’s future. Science demanded long-term datasets, and developments in new analytical techniques began to be applied to museum research collections. These collections, which had traditionally been used for evolutionary, anatomical and taxonomic work, were recognised as containing invaluable time series with key information locked within the tissues of museum specimens. In the 21st century, we are using museum research collections to support fieldwork and generate data that can be used as evidence to help define and understand the effects of the Anthropocene.
In January 2020, the Natural History Museum (NHM) in London, UK, published its new strategy: A Planetary Emergency: Our Response108. It recognises that the present emergency is indiscriminate and all-consuming: the effects of exploiting the Earth’s resources in an unsustainable way means the world is changing fast. To respond to such an unprecedented emergency, we need to look beyond the traditional divisions of our work, enabling synergistic collaboration and cooperation. The installation of the blue whale skeleton named Hope as the new central display of the NHM in 2017 is deeply symbolic in this respect. Hope represents the near extinction of a species due to human exploitation—and the ability to reverse this decline when nations work together across international borders. It’s an inspiring sight and a powerful statement, supporting the growing global awareness of the need for a healthy Ocean and the species that live there, from the smallest to the largest creatures. The interconnectedness of terrestrial and marine ecosystems is without question, as summarised by the eminent biologist and campaigner Sylvia Earle: ‘No water, no life. No blue, no green’.
Conclusion: everyone can contribute
Building on Plön et al.2, who position marine mammals as indicators of Ocean Health in the Anthropocene and highlight the importance of long-term monitoring and global collaboration to address ecosystem integrity and potential ecological tipping points, we expand this by integrating biological tracers and advanced technological frameworks to enhance monitoring and mitigation. Our findings establish critical baselines and stress the need for coordinated action to restore and nurture marine ecosystems. Additionally, our study advances Ocean Health Science towards sustainability and beyond and highlights Ocean Health as a powerful narrative for inter-, multi- and transdisciplinary research, promoting a solution-focused culture of knowledge sharing.
As a proof of concept for OceanHealth, this manuscript was compiled by marine biology MSc students from the global South (University of Cape Town, South Africa) and senior colleagues from the global North (Germany, Switzerland, UK, US) from various disciplines, such as marine mammal science, environmental sciences, history, palaeontology, engineering sciences, social sciences, political sciences and education. It resulted in a vision for the future.
Our work emphasises the importance of diverse perspectives from scientists from the global North and South in establishing Ocean Health Science as a transdisciplinary field. Contributions from the different disciplines of marine biology, social sciences, political sciences, engineering, history and education create a holistic narrative that uses marine mammals as indicators of Ocean Health. This collaborative approach integrates empirical evidence and policy insights and combines our emotional and rational sides to inspire societal change. By emphasising the healing and care of the Ocean, it goes beyond the conventional sustainability discourse. This unifying vision advocates for large-scale ‘big science’ initiatives, interdisciplinary dialogue and public engagement to rapidly address planetary crises and promote a healthier, sustainable and positive future for all.
In this way, no single perspective can fully resolve interconnected challenges. By integrating diverse regional and disciplinary insights, the narrative promotes knowledge transfer, harmonisation of local and global solutions and a unified vision for large-scale, equitable OceanHealth initiatives. In this context, scientists from the Global South can provide insights, e.g. on direct environmental impacts and indigenous knowledge, while scientists from the Global North can contribute access to, e.g. resources, policy expertise and research infrastructure, creating a globally integrative approach to Ocean Health. We develop a narrative that bridges disciplinary silos by combining empirical evidence with emotionally compelling stories, using marine mammals as both scientific indicators and symbolic figures to appeal to different audiences. By incorporating historical, political and philosophical concepts, such as empathy and interconnectedness, the ocean is seen as an ecological and socio-cultural entity critical to human survival, fostering systemic change and collaboration under the UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).
Our vision has the potential for ‘big science’. The purpose of ‘big science’ is to address a societal need, and it is often a combination of fundamental and applied research109,110. Thus, multidisciplinary collaboration with a common goal (i.e. Ocean Health) is required to work at multiple spatial scales: locally, nationally and globally109,110. Big science is characterised by developing and using new or large-scale technologies, sustained funding from governments or international organisations and new infrastructures109,110.
We require an integrated and collaborative approach for the creation and nurture of Ocean Health - an inclusive knowledge field where everyone can contribute. To support the development of the relationships critical for effective interdisciplinary collaboration, a knowledgeable and trusted intermediary between the professions should be advocated111—a global network of Ocean Health Science institutes to provide the operational framework in which different stakeholders in OceanHealth and Ocean Health Science cooperate and collaborate to achieve Ocean Health. Interdisciplinary teams require a unified task and shared goals and values to enable the development of personal relationships based on a foundation of trust and respect to be successful111. McCauley112 advocates that the future Ocean needs to be planned. However, if we want to achieve fast-paced systemic change (Fig. 6), we need to go a step beyond that. Big science, through sustained investments in new technology and science and the development of the necessary physical infrastructures and operational networks, will help make the transformations needed to address the global goal of Ocean Health. However, this is a shared leadership responsibility we all must willingly accept-science and politics, UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), fisheries and naval industries, raw materials prospection and offshore wind farm operators, among others. Thinking big science will help us make that leap into the future. Notable examples of ‘big science’ since the Second World War have included man’s exploration of space, the Human Genome Project and, in the marine sciences, the Census for Marine Life. Since Ocean Health Science incorporates aspects of all of these - the human spirit of exploration and pushing new frontiers, an interest in furthering and ensuring our health and a fascination for the biodiversity of the Ocean - there is no reason why OceanHealth and Ocean Health Science would not be a good vision for a happy and positive future in the Anthropocene, using the available knowledge in our information age to pursue ‘the Science We Have for the Ocean We Need’ (as an appropriate adaptation for the current slogan of the UN Ocean Decade: ‘the Science We Need for the Ocean We Want’). Solutions are within our grasp if we dare to think big, boldly and creatively111.
Systems change to create a ‘wave of change’.
Data availability
No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.
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Acknowledgements
SP would like to thank the directors, staff and fellows of the Institutes of Advanced Study (STIAS, HWK) and philosophy (FIPH), which supported various aspects of this work; without their support, feedback and collegiality this work would not have been possible.Funding support was provided by the Department of Environmental Sciences, MGU, University of Basel, Switzerland, and the Department for the History of Science, Technology & Medicine, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA.
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Plön, S., Andra, K., Auditore, LM. et al. Towards sustainability and beyond with Ocean Health Science. npj biodivers 4, 23 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s44185-025-00091-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44185-025-00091-9
