Ahead of his talk “Oceano futuro e la maggioranza invisibile del pianeta” at the Festival della Mente in Sarzana, Roberto Danovaro spoke to Wired Italia about why the ocean deserves far more attention than it gets. The sea produces about half of the oxygen we breathe and absorbs most of the excess heat from global warming. It also provides a large share of the protein we eat and holds key raw materials and energy resources. Yet barely a fifth of the seafloor has been explored. Exploring and using the deep sea sustainably will take new technologies, from underwater robots to bio-inspired solutions, and real international cooperation. Danovaro calls it a “cultural short-sightedness” that we still spend far less on ocean research than on searching for life on other planets.
