MUN researcher examines NLers’ attitude to ocean
With bleak reports of fish stocks, and underwater footage from around the province’s coast showing a littered ocean floor, one woman’s research is particularly timely.
Monica Engel’s “People and Ocean” study of marine values asks, “Do we care about the ocean as we care about the land?”
“Historically, people here, I believe, have a deeper connection with the sea because people here depend on the sea for transportation, for food, for income, for recreation, for spiritual reasons,” Engel says. “So, I think it’s a special place to start this kind of research, to see how people who live on a small island in the ocean that depends so deeply on the ocean, how do we relate to the ocean here?”
Engel’s research is receiving national attention, even perking the ears of National Geographic, which just last month awarded her its competitive
Early Career Research Grant that funds scientists in the early stages of their career.
The Brazilian-born Engel is a biologist, but is currently completing her PhD studies in the human dimensions field of geography at Memorial University.
Engel says further understanding of the human-sea relationship is required to guarantee the sustainability of coastal communities and the ocean.
“Without a full understanding of individual and collective behaviours, efforts to conserve the marine biodiversity are likely to fail, as people ultimately hold responsibility for both the causes and solutions to environmental problems.”
The National Geographic grant will help pay for Engel’s research, which involves travelling from Bonavista to Fogo and communities in between, as well as some places on the Avalon Peninsula, asking people of all backgrounds about their relationship with the sea.