Seaweeds and seagrasses dominate the shallow underwater coastlines of cooler coastlines. These dense and highly productive habitats provide shelter, food and home for thousands of other species. Despite their importance, these underwater habitats are declining at fast rates, and a lack of public awareness underpins a general lack of protection. ‘Operation Crayweed’ and ‘Operation Posidonia’ are two projects based in Sydney (Australia) that combine science, storytelling and community engagement to restore seaweed and seagrass species and raise awareness about the importance of these marine habitats. ‘Crayweed’ (Phyllospora comosa) is a large seaweed that disappeared from the Sydney metropolitan coastline over 30 years ago as a result of sewage pollution. Operation Crayweed has developed a method to reintroduce self-sustaining populations of crayweed and has successfully reversed local extinction for the species. This good-news restoration success story was then used to engage local communities via short films, podcasts, art-meets-science projects and community plantings. ‘Posidonia’ (Posidonia australis) is a slow-growing seagrass that is declining rapidly in eastern Australia, where it is classified as endangered. Boat moorings that scour the seafloor and remove marine vegetation are one of its major threats. Operation Posidonia enlists local communities to collect seagrass shoots that become naturally detached following storms. These shoots are then planted in old boat mooring scars in a way that avoids damaging existing meadows while also engaging communities and increasing stewardship. High levels of hands-on engagement from the public in both Operation Crayweed and Operation Posidonia, in combination with high media interest, have led to rising levels of philanthropic and government funding for both restoration projects. These solutions-focused projects demonstrate the effectiveness of combining science, communication and community engagement to shift perceptions around the importance of underwater ecosystems and our capacity to drive positive change.  

Primary Presenter: Adriana Verges, UNSW Sydney (a.verges@unsw.edu.au)

Authors:

Adriana Vergés, UNSW Sydney, School of Biological, Earth & Environmental Sciences  (a.verges@unsw.edu.au)