Algae

About:

If we don't know what the sea is hiding, how can we protect it?

Treating the sea as a resource is personal for me. The images of numerous beach vacations with my lifeguard's dad are filled with a detailed observation of the environment. Children’s activities allowed me to experience the sea landscape with the fullness of my senses: the touch and the texture of algae taken straight from the water, catching tiny shrimps into plastic cups, sitting on heated stones. When I come back to the beach these days, I’m noticing unpleasant changes, such as the disappearance of the bladderwrack species. Throughout my life, I’ve witnessed the degradation of what I consider home.

The Baltic Sea is a habitat for various creatures: crabs, shrimps, clams, sea grass, algae, sponges. Marine biodiversity creates a fascinating, unique ecosystem that requires our attention and protection. One of the strategies is thinking about the sea in terms of a material resource. If we don't know what the sea is hiding, how can we protect it? I will show you by creating biodegradable materials of Baltic origin. You will experience three different species in use: the red macroalgae Furcellaria lumbricalis, seagrass and shells from clam Rangia cuneata. It’s a continuation of my bioplastic research, this time the goal is to create the material fully from local sources.

The most important thing is to understand the threats of the Baltic ecosystem. These include human interference with the coastline, overexploitation of resources, eutrophication and toxic pollution, invasions of non-native species and climate change. I believe that treating the Baltic Sea as a resource can increase care for its welfare. Otherwise, we will only have memories left.

[1] eutrophication means revitalizing the marine environment. It is currently the greatest challenge for the Baltic Sea. The concept that should be translated literally as "a lot of food" (from the Greek words "eu" and "tropy"), does not mean a positive phenomenon. On the contrary. The sea, affected by eutrophication due to its excess, is dying out (source: WWF).