Fiji25 Blog 17 - Brian

 

Brian Blog 17- 

We had been living in the village for two weeks already. This is the first time we would be living somewhere else. As we left the village, a crowd of children from the school warmly surrounded our transport, waving goodbye.

We were going on our mid-trip reflection. It is a three-day retreat from our month-long trip in Fiji.

It has been an accepted fact that trees create the oxygen that we need to live. But oceans actually produce most of the worlds oxygen. However, coral reefs now are increasingly under threat. Climate change, ocean acidification, and overfishing all put stress on the coral.

In an effort to learn more about the coral, we were going to go snorkeling. We dove into the salty water and started swimming further out into the ocean. We saw sand, then rocks. Eventually we went across the massive coral reef. The reef was like an ancient city submerged under water, with thousands of houses for the underwater creatures to live in. It was just coral wherever we swam. Each coral was unique, with different colors and shapes. There were ravines that caved down so deep I felt like I could fall into it.

As I swam around, I encountered a graveyard of bleached coral (coral that was dying). A sudden sense of dread swept over me. But that feeling was fleeting. What could I do, I was just one kid, and I was against an entire ocean that was under threat.

We gathered some loose coral fragments from the surrounding sand, years old artifacts just waiting to be revitalized. They would be planted in the coral to eventually grow into vibrant coral again.

I remember our lesson from the GSL class about the tragedy of commons. How one’s selfish actions can distribute the negative consequences among everyone. The fishing and oil corporations have already damaged the reefs and the ocean ecosystem, beyond what seems recoverable by a single group.

But this doesn’t mean it can’t change. There could also be a miracle of commons. One’s actions don’t have to be selfish, to hurt. They can have an even greater potential to help.

As I gingerly placed the coral fragment on the reef, the entire ocean seemed to illuminate for me. Though small, this one action to me was very impactful. It showed to me that even small actions could do good. I could do my part to help the environment. As I resurfaced from my dive, I looked around at the ocean. The sun illuminated waves shone like the surface of a crystal blue gem.

As we arrived back to our village, I gained a newfound respect and understanding for the beautiful ocean that hugged our island of Fiji. We aren’t isolated in a void of water and waves. Beneath the surface, just like our village, there is a beautiful ecosystem where billions of animals thrive.