Back in 2008 The Ocean Project tested the term “ocean acidification” (OA) in our market research and found it was nowhere on the public radar. This past spring, we decided to revisit the issue.
Our latest data strongly suggest that now is the time for zoos, aquariums, and museums (ZAMs) to reach out to their visitors on this issue.
Click here to download The Ocean Project’s special report on Ocean Acidification
Even though our research reveals that current awareness of ocean acidification remains low among the public – even among ZAM visitors who generally have higher environmental literacy than non-visitors – it also reveals that ocean acidification is an emerging issue with significant potential for inspiring action. While ocean acidification has generally taken a backseat to larger discussions of climate change and global warming, our research as well as work by The Ocean Conservancy shows that ZAMs can take advantage of the low awareness to define the issue and help address the critical problem of carbon pollution.
This Google Trends graph gives a good snapshot of how recent the conversation about the issue is. Online discussion of ocean acidification was very low until around 2009, and has experienced peaks and valleys since then. In recent years, interest in the issue has risen among the scientific community, but the public has not yet caught up. Though lack of discussion on a serious issue may be frustrating to some, there’s a bright side.
Our research reveals that once the concept of ocean acidification – even the mere mention of the term – is introduced to a respondent, levels of concern about ocean health among respondents spiked significantly. This spike is emphasized when a brief description of OA is read to them. In other words, a basic familiarity with OA dramatically raises a respondent’s awareness and concern about the health of the ocean.
Our latest data strongly suggest that now is the time for zoos, aquariums, and museums (ZAMs) to reach out to their visitors on this issue.
Click here to download The Ocean Project’s special report on Ocean Acidification
Even though our research reveals that current awareness of ocean acidification remains low among the public – even among ZAM visitors who generally have higher environmental literacy than non-visitors – it also reveals that ocean acidification is an emerging issue with significant potential for inspiring action. While ocean acidification has generally taken a backseat to larger discussions of climate change and global warming, our research as well as work by The Ocean Conservancy shows that ZAMs can take advantage of the low awareness to define the issue and help address the critical problem of carbon pollution.
This Google Trends graph gives a good snapshot of how recent the conversation about the issue is. Online discussion of ocean acidification was very low until around 2009, and has experienced peaks and valleys since then. In recent years, interest in the issue has risen among the scientific community, but the public has not yet caught up. Though lack of discussion on a serious issue may be frustrating to some, there’s a bright side.
Our research reveals that once the concept of ocean acidification – even the mere mention of the term – is introduced to a respondent, levels of concern about ocean health among respondents spiked significantly. This spike is emphasized when a brief description of OA is read to them. In other words, a basic familiarity with OA dramatically raises a respondent’s awareness and concern about the health of the ocean.
