Regions with long-term conservation projects increase people’s environmental awareness by up to 20%. This is revealed by an unprecedented study prepared by the Maré de Ciência Program, at the Federal University of São Paulo (Unifesp) in partnership with Rede Biomar, which brings together five main marine conservation projects (Albatross, Humpback Whale, Living Coral, Rotator Dolphin and Brazilian Meros).
The study was carried out in May this year with 1,803 people, 1,501 of whom were knowledgeable about at least one of the five Biomar Network projects and a control group, made up of 302 people who were not familiar with any of the network’s activities. The interviewees are residents of coastal municipalities and were selected randomly.
The data collected indicates that long-term projects with at least two decades of operation increase people’s perception of their connection with the ocean by more than 10%, reaching 20% in some cases. The results reinforce that continuous investments in environmental education and community awareness have a direct and lasting effect on individuals’ social and environmental behavior.
Impact
Other numbers indicate that the perception of how the ocean impacts people’s lives is 11% higher among those who know about Biomar Network projects; 88% of people who know about the projects say they seek information about the ocean, a number 23% higher than the group without contact with the initiatives; 87% of those interviewed said they felt motivated to contribute to conservation, while in the control group it was only 13%.
Furthermore, 82% of those consulted were willing to change habits for the good of the ocean, with 47% declaring themselves extremely willing, which means almost double the control group. More than 90% of interviewees linked to Rede Biomar say they are willing to act as agents of change or disseminate marine conservation projects, 12% above the control group.
Strategic planning
The research is part of the Biomar Network’s strategic planning for the United Nations (UN) Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, which will extend until 2030.
“One of the axes of this planning is awareness, that is, promoting an increase in people’s awareness of the importance of marine conservation and how we can change people’s behavior in this sense”, Tatiana Neves, founder of the Albatroz Project, member of Rede Biomar, told Agência Brasil.
To determine whether the planning was being effective, Rede Biomar partnered with the Maré de Ciência Program, aiming to understand the impact of the actions on the public. “It was very pioneering research,” said Tatiana.
He added that “for us [o levantamento] It was very important because it not only shows us how we are making an impact, but also guides us on the strategies we should adopt to improve our actions to achieve this goal. So, for us it was a turning point.”
Mobilization
According to Tatiana, the research makes it clear that the overwhelming majority of people who know about the Network’s projects “are informed, interested, go look for it. And this, for us, is very important because it reflects in a mobilization of people who want to contribute in some way to conservation.
“The data is very encouraging and shows that most people know the importance of the ocean and are concerned about the impacts of human activity on the seas. It means that our message is working, that it is reaching the public”, he emphasizes.
Ronaldo Christofoletti, coordinator of the Maré da Ciência Program, at Unifesp, understands that the result of the survey shows the importance of long-term education. “Education is a process that takes time. It doesn’t happen overnight. So, when you have a network with projects that have been in the territory for more than 20 years, some for more than 30 years, people in these regions are already showing an improvement in their knowledge”, he argues.
Challenges
The founder of Projeto Albatroz indicated that the challenge that now arises is to convert this concern into practical engagement, thinking about how this research can help as a future strategy. Tatiana assesses that this will be a second stage. The study carried out with the Maré de Ciência Program was the first action. Other surveys will be carried out halfway through and at the end of the ocean decade, in 2030.
But with the results of this first research, Biomar Network’s actions will be aimed at helping people work on activities that contribute to ocean conservation.
“For me, it was quite clear that people still lack clarity about what to do. They want to do something but, often, engagement is low. They don’t know which actions are really effective or possible in their daily lives”, explained Tatiana.
Examples of positive actions are reducing the consumption of single-use plastic, looking for more sustainable products, participating in cleaning efforts or joint efforts that result in collective action in favor of the environment. “For me, the research reflected this and the Albatross Project is now starting to look for ways to show people the way,” said Tatiana.
Adaptations
Ronaldo Christofoletti suggests that strategies have to be adapted to different segments of the population that do not have knowledge or education. In other words, there has to be adaptation to all populations, whether adaptations in terms of age, language, content, regional.
“We need this knowledge to have meaning in these people’s daily lives and to be accessible to them. So, we have to really map all groups, including those who have less knowledge or no knowledge about the topic. It’s a process in which we talk from the bottom up and not from the top down”, he assesses.
He clarifies that this is an awareness process built with those people or that community, to understand “what is the reality in which they live, what they know, what they can contribute, what their doubts are and, then, we gradually expand the conversation on the topic”.
Attitudes
Tatiana Neves assures that what makes it difficult for people to take action in favor of environmental conservation is that, often, they have a certain distance from individual responsibility, believing that it is up to the government to solve it.
He emphasizes that “this ends up creating a feeling of impotence and lack of connection with the problem”. She believes that large companies and governments must engage in the fight to raise public awareness and invest in this process.”
He highlighted that the research shows the importance of long-term investment in environmental education. “That’s key for me,” he explains. She argued that sponsorships must be long-term, just as Petrobras does with Rede Biomar, so that there is, in fact, a change in vision, behavior, and public understanding of the importance of ocean conservation and how people can get involved in this effort.
Blue CV
For Ronaldo Christofoletti, the study came to confirm the importance of investing, valuing, recognizing the role of education in the country and thinking about each person’s behavior, including in an election year, “so that we can demand [no sentido de] that our politicians present answers to climate change. This is the duty of every citizen and every voter. But we also want to know about species conservation.”
Therefore, Christofoletti points out that there are a series of actions that go from the level of individuals, of community, to reaching governments that are important.
Public policies are essential, according to him, to increase public awareness. “We need policies not only for the environment, but for what we call oceanic culture, which is how people understand their relationship with the environment, in this case, with the ocean.”
He referred to the Blue Curriculum, a public policy that Brazil is developing, and which is Ocean Education integrated into the Brazilian school curriculum. This is a pioneering policy that teaches about the importance of the oceans for training citizens and professionals who are more aware of sustainability and climate and will be applied in all education systems.
“I say the environment as a whole because, although we call it oceanic culture, taking into account that 70% of the planet is water, ocean, terrestrial environments, such as the Amazon, Caatinga, the Cerrado, the Pantanal, [eles] they have a direct relationship with the ocean too. So, when we talk about the ocean, we are talking about all of nature, all biomes. And the Blue Curriculum does this, including with this perspective on climate change”.
Strengthening policies
Christofoletti also said that strengthening public policies such as this project and those of the Biomar Network, sponsored by Petrobras, is essential at all municipal, state and federal levels, aiming for greater population engagement.
In the analysis of the Maré de Ciência coordinator, there are several stages in this process. One is knowledge, but it also requires looking at emotions, so that they lead to attitudes, to engagement.
“Essentially, everyone needs to change their behavior in relation to the environment and marine conservation. Then we begin to have the necessary transformation of individuals”, he says.
He believes that this should be included in schools from the earliest years, including nursery school. “At all ages, at all levels. From kindergarten, primary one and two, technical, secondary, higher education inclusive.”
Biomar Network
Created in 2007, the Biomar Network operates in an integrated manner in scientific research, biodiversity conservation and environmental education along the Brazilian coast. Focusing on key species and strategic ecosystems, the network’s projects combine scientific, community and educational actions, showing that longevity and continuity are fundamental differentiators to strengthen environmental awareness and form new generations of oceanic citizens.
The Maré de Ciência Program, from the Federal University of São Paulo (Unifesp), is a national and international reference initiative dedicated to the popularization of science, ocean education and sustainability. Created in 2012, the program develops research, communication and social engagement actions that bring society closer to the ocean and science, promoting a culture of environmental responsibility and oceanic citizenship.
The program connects schools, communities, universities, public managers and the productive sector to co-produce knowledge and strengthen public policies aimed at marine conservation and climate resilience.
