Today I want to take a look close to home.

As a scientist, and as a marine ecologist I think I have chosen a career path that is quite ‘sustainable’ - doing things for the greater good.
Sometimes I still think that one day I am going to change the world.....


but really, is science all for the greater goods? And could we do it better?

I have been thinking a lot about this lately , there is so much repeating , everyone so close and attached to their little experiment (or model) , afraid to let go and yet simultaneously trying to find the bigger picture in order to get their science published in some high impact journal..
I assume the scientists amongst my readers are probably nodding , while I might have lost some of you already..

High impact journals? Science published ? Experiments ? Models? (No, not talking about the likes of Naomi Campbell here, but more like those scary climate predictions...).
To summarise quickly for the non-academic out there in order to make it into a science career and advance one has to prove him/herself by conducting experiments, (or make models) and write them up into manuscripts which then get sent to journals (mostly discipline specific) where they undergo a peer review before being published. Journals are ranked according to their impact, which is given by their readership and how often they are cited. This results in each scientist also having a number (a rank, an index) which depends on the number of papers published, the impact of the journals and the number of times they were cited (people please correct me if I am wrong..) .
And to me this contributes to make sfience less sustainable than it should be.
Why!?

Because:

1. everyone is concentrated into making so called ‘high impact’ research, that often we forget what is really important. Sometimes we try to focus into finding results which are of world wide importance whereas maybe some important things are location specific - and would still be important to find out!
   
2. At the same time Everyone is so focused on their little experiment and are so preciouswith their findings thatninstead of collaborating into finding something bigger multiple people are working on very similar topics and very similar systems in a very small and limited way.
   
3. Funding is often country specific or at least location specific
   
4. Conferences are too topic specific and are of a format made to impress others with your findings rather than find collaborations and see long lost firends in a big party. Do we need to pass it as work and science ?
   
5. ‘Mobility’ is still somewhat limited between countries with same/similar social status.

So what do I suggest?

Well.. here is my list
Please tell me if I am wrong, where I am wrong and if you have other ideas

1. Start valuing scientific quality with objective markers. Scientific integrity and scientific methodology should be rewarded more highly than the ability of story telling. Let’s leave the story telling for the newspapers and magazines, and keep the science scientific
   
2. Make an international nonprofit science money fund. That way there are no vested interest. Best science proposal get the money.
   
3. Value scientific collaborations for topics that need to be investigated with a cross boarder approach, yet similarly don’t forget to fund this ever important location specific approaches. Maybe a place is experiencing more draughtband in turns some species are disappearing? Importan5 to know. Is it affecting the local economy? In my opinion this is also something important to know, although not on a global scale...
   
4. all of this can only come if institutions go back to be public and move away from business models. Universities and research centres alike should have an open policy
   
5. An ultimately I would suggest that values of scientific integrity should be taught, and teaching future generation of scientists should come from passion and not as a duty.this means that institutions should lessen the burden on professors of paperwork and administrative tasks, and leave them with more time to inspire

I have recently read an accusation: that many of the lifestyle / ethical / zero waste bloggers are in reality a bunch of hypocrites


While I believe this to be (for the most part) unfounded, it got me thinking


I like to reassure you that, personally, I only write about things that I truly deeply believe in and I do myself pursue.
That said, a zero waste lifestyle is a journey and, while I am doing my best I am also sure that I have not arrived yet. And that I have still some guilty pleasures..


So I will be honest with you and open up about one of my habits that is bad for the planet and what do I do to offset it as much as possible..


Travelling!
And especially flying, which is really not a very sustainable practice
Yes, I do fly a lot- I am probably on a plane at least once a month. If not twice..
Living away from home means I often go back and see my family (I miss them, do you blame me?). I also lived in many places, which is good but means having friends scattered around which I like to visit from time to time...
I am also a researcher and that means travelling for conferences. And I love travelling and exploring, I believe it enlarges the mind and widens perspectives, so I try to have a big trip at least once a year..
combine all of this and what you get is a lot of travelling
And a lot of flying


So how do I make myself feel a little bit better about it? by trying to offset my travels as much as possible. How? 


Well first of all if possible not to fly and to take a train I will do that. I like trains more anyway. But that’s not always a possibility.

1. take public transport to and from airport (that's why I love Schiphol!)
2. Fly with a responsible company
3. Buy the carbon offset
4. Travel light
5. Don’t buy take away things at the airport and use a refillable water bottle
6. Don’t waste food on flights (either say no, or eat what you get)
7. Take away trash to recycle
8. No magazines or disposable reading /entertainment

Do you have any more advice for me?


What do you think? Should bloggers be more open?
I will keep questioning my habits, so you might hear more of my ‘faults’ soon...

Great news for environmentalists and animalists alike : people are eating less meat and embracing more plant based products in their diets.
Great for animals, as less production means better welfare. Great for the planet as we reduce emissions. Great for health as we reduce saturated fats..


So it seems like it is great news and I should leave it at that.

But I would like to dig deeper instead and ask this question : what are we replacing meat with?
And the answer is not fresh produces and pulses (which to me are the base of healthy meat free diets). The correct answer is: artificial and processed meat substitutes.
So what are the problems with these products ?


A) they are processed, and contain way too many ingredients some of which you don’t need. And the processing will require industries which are also not great for the environment


B) proteins have been extracted - so instead of eating whole soya beans you eat something that has been extracted following heavy processing . And you may only get part of what nature intended..


C) other processes to create things like Quorn involve making a fungus - making new foods which are not necessarily safe (they are maybe too new to fully understand their complications)


D) they often contain hidden fats, and those fats may be terrible for the environment


E) cultivation of soy requires s lot of water and land - which also brings to deforestation


Basically, what I am saying is that while eating less meat is a good thing we shouldn’t try to substitute it for something similar but instead try and cook from scratch as much as possible with basic and simple whole ingredients...

 Other Parties Letter here

We included a presentation I prepared to the Regional Director, a Mr. Sahaan who was on property and asked him to contact us so we could sit and discuss the matter.

We also included a copy of the Regulation of Surfing Areas Decree (which states that Warwick authorized a possibly Illegal activity)



We asked him to contact us so we could sit and discuss the matter. 
It is 11:58pm, 1st November, 2018 now as I type this, we have not heard anything from the Warwick however the Associated Dive Shop has contacted us with a SHOCKING EMAIL



(We are now seeking Legal Advice… ) We now have an issue of job security in the diving industry for expats and local marine scientists and Dive Professionals. (How will this be addressed in the future?- Anyone?) Who do we count on to report such PADI dive shops?) 
The Only people who care to engage and raise this issue are members of the public and ocean advocates from all around the world therefore your opinion and support will decide our next PLAN of ACTION. 
We already are working on a way to ensure that the tourism industry is not affected by the emotion and detrimental social media posts already online by concerned guests by ensuring them that we will work on a way to ensure that this will never happen in any other resort but WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT! 
I am only 1 person and now have the support of WWF, Baby Pandas South Pacific and passionate advocates around the world. If you would like to support this cause, please support Ocean Guardians Fiji on FB https://www.facebook.com/oceanguardiansfiji/ and oceanguardiansfiji on instagram https://www.instagram.com/oceanguardiansfiji/ to help with the cause. Every bit of "talanoa" around this matter would help. 
Vinaka with high hopes and crossed fingers, Anastasha Savura