The symposium ‘Oh! Is for Oceans’ took place at Messums West on 5 October 2024 in partnership with Ocean Rising (an alliance connecting the ocean with culture) is dedicated to the understanding of our oceans with leading scientists and experts giving a series of presentations on a range of topics and the latest discoveries. A particular focus will be on art as interlocutor, visualising complex research and refining our understanding of beauty.
Ocean Rising work with collaborators from all cultural spheres who lead and inspire Ocean awareness-raising interventions in their area of expertise in creative and innovative ways. Each activity increases Ocean awareness in that cultural sector and seeds more interventions. They offer partners access to some of the world’s best marine scientists, incredible underwater imagery, brand exposure, introductions to supporters and, where appropriate, experiences at sea aboard cutting-edge science expeditions. By working together, ripples of Ocean awareness turn into waves.
Symposium Schedule
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
10:00: Arrival and coffee
10:25: Welcome: Johnny Messum (Director, Messums ORG)
10:30: Keynote speaker: Lisa Blair – Sailor Activist
11:15 – Coffee
Morning Session: SCIENCE
11:45 Ocean Rising Oliver Steeds, Chief Executive, Nekton / Director, Ocean Census
12:05 Professor Heather Koldewey (Lead of the Bertarelli Foundation’s Marine Science Programme)
12:25 Dr Helen Scales (Writer, Broadcaster, Oceanographer).
12:45: Panel discussion (Chaired by Oliver Steeds, Chief Executive, Nekton
13:00 – 14:30: LUNCH
Lunch session: ART
14:30: Artists and the Ocean Dr Carlie Wiener (Director of Schmidt Ocean Institute’s Artist-at-Sea programme)
14:50: A new coral vision – Tom Dixon OBE (Designer and entrepreneur)
15:10: Mella Shaw (Ceramic Artist, work focused on the overuse of marine sonar)
15:30: Brodie Neill (Award-winning Artist, practice highlights issues of Ocean plastics)
15:50: BREAK
Afternoon session: INSPIRATION
16:15: Archeology and discovery David Mearns (Marine Archaeologist and Shipwreck Expert)
16:45: Audience Panel Q&A
17:00 Ends
We were delighted to welcome Lisa Blair, an Australian solo sailor who holds multiple world records as keynote speaker at the symposium. She is also an advocate for awareness of climate change, which she promotes through her Climate Action Now project. Lisa has written and published Facing Fear a book about her first attempt at circumnavigating Antarctica solo on her yacht Climate Action Now. On May 25th 2022, Lisa Blair became the fastest person in the world to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around Antarctica. A challenge that only two others have undertaken taking 10 days off the original record.
During Blair’s second circumnavigation of Antarctica, her yacht Climate Action Now was equipped with several scientific devices such as an Ocean Pack Race Research Unit, which measures CO2, salinity levels, temperature and barometric pressure. She also collected samples to be used to study the level of microplastics in the water, and has been working in partnership with the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) and Integrated Marine Observing System (IMOS) to study those samples.
