Aquarium of the Pacific: Blue Hope

Introduction

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Spring 2016  

Students in this Spring 2016 Designmatters studio “Blue Hope” targeted ways they could integrate art with science to create engaging interactive exhibits for visitors of the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach that would stress the urgency of marine defaunation and possible mass extinction of ocean life while encouraging behavior that could mitigate and reverse this potential ecological collapse

Project Overview

Transdisciplinary students worked in teams to create interactive exhibit items and platforms that could be implemented onsite in a new exhibition at the Aquarium of the Pacific, Vanishing Animals.

Marine defaunation – animal loss in the global ocean – is a complex issue; the challenge was to create exhibits that would present the science in relatable terms without sacrificing the facts, and explain succinctly what extinction truly means, ultimately creating calls for urgent action to counter this potential collapse.

To better understand marine defaunation and human impact on both terrestrial and marine life, students were required to read a study published in the January 2015 edition of Science Magazine (Marine defaunation: Animal Loss in the Global Ocean). This paper delivered hard, scientific data that was meant to be translated by students into accessible and engaging information for Aquarium-goers.

Students had access to the aquarium grounds and personnel as they observed aquarium visitors’ behavior patterns, gathered and analyzed scientific data for ideation, distilling the raw information into an engaging presentation that would be accessible to a wide range of users.

In addition, guest speakers helped inform students by providing insights and experience: Douglas McCauley, Assistant Professor in the Department of Ecology Evolution and Marine Biology at UC Santa Barbara, presented scientific facts behind the research on marine defaunation; and Dr. Lucy Jones, Former Science Advisor for Risk Reduction at the US Geological Survey discussed methods on telling effective stories using scientific data.

Background

As long as humans have been a force on the planet, they have altered their environment for survival, changing, using and even depleting resources throughout mankind’s evolution from hunter/gatherers to urban dwellers. Landscapes have been changed as well as the wildlife that inhabits those environments. In the last 500 years, 500 species of land animals have gone extinct, while there have only been 15 recorded marine extinctions.

The main author of a recent research paper on marine conservation, Douglas J. McCauley, Assistant Professor of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology at UC Santa Barbara, compares terrestrial and marine defaunation and outlines how wildlife populations have been badly damaged by human activities throughout time. As technology improved human hunting tools, as well as shelter and transportation systems, animal species have been adversely affected through habitat loss, pollution and other factors.

Marine life is in a relatively better condition that animal life on land; however, as humans with improved technologies turn to the oceans for food, energy sources and raw materials, there could be a potential mass marine life extinction in the coming years. Currently, coral reefs are dying, overfishing is problematic, plastic waste is abundant and oceanic ‘dead zones’ have been created by runoffs in agricultural fertilizers.

McCauley’s visual timeline of the ecological devastation on land and sea documents the alarming rate of extinction for land animals which could be replicated for marine life by humans who are quickly changing aquatic environments.

Lessons learned in land development and use throughout history can be the impetus for discovering intelligent and viable ways for managing growth of human interaction in marine environments. The challenge is not to stop ocean exploitation, but to use the resources of the ocean in a responsible way that will protect and sustain marine life.

About the Aquarium of the Pacific

With a mission to instill a sense of wonder, respect and stewardship for the ocean and ocean life, the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific was founded in 1998 and is the fourth most-attended aquarium in the nation. It displays more than 11,000 animals in more than 50 exhibits that represent the diversity of the Pacific Ocean.

Each year, the aquarium welcomes 1.6 million visitors who enjoy and learn about marine life both onsite and through virtual experiences.

The aquarium openly embraces the latest scientific research to present important topics and issues facing the planet and ocean life through its exhibitions, educational programs, hands-on activities and lectures from leading scientists from around the world.

Research and Project Development

Aquarium visitors come mainly for fun and enjoyment, so presenting dense and heavy topics such as marine defaunation is a challenge. Tapping into human’s natural curiosity and allowing guests to take on the role of scientist is an effective way to engage guests and to explore difficult but important issues.

For this class, research was multi-layered. First, students gathered information about how audiences respond and participate with interactive displays. Students also needed to incorporate scientific data into their ideation; McCauley presented a brief overview of his findings and research which gave the students a foundation for ideas and a jumping off point for new explorations as they collected and examined other scientific papers on extinction and marine defaunation.

Additionally, Dr. Lucy Jones, Former Science Advisor for Risk Reduction at the US Geological Survey, ran a mini-workshop session on the challenges of science communication and how to effectively use science in storytelling. Jones explained that science works in the details and advocated that students use consistent messaging and visual reinforcement; encourage discussion about the topic; and create a consensus on the findings. Even when there is depressing information, offer reasons to not give up and ways to act.

Students distilled information and ideation into their prototypes, choosing interfaces and creating experiences that would get the message across simply but effectively while presenting engaging and rewarding moments.

At the mid-term presentation, Aquarium of the Pacific President and CEO Jerry Schubel, along with Tom Bowman, a consultant who often works with the aquarium on exhibition design, gave candid feedback on student projects explaining the pros and cons to each team, and offering insights and suggestions for refining their exhibits.