Oceans Touch Every Part of Our Lives. Here’s How Duke Research Is Safeguarding It

How ocean ecosystems help people – and how research helps ecosystems

Duke RESTORE is a Duke University initiative based in the Nicholas School of the Environment working to increase the resilience of both natural and human systems comprising vital habitats like seagrass meadows, salt marshes and mangroves. 

Coral reefs are important for coastal communities. Reefs provide habitat for fish and other organisms that people eat and protect against erosion during hurricanes. But corals are vulnerable to warming seas and bleaching at unprecedented rates. The world has lost about half of its coral reefs in the last 50 years. Researchers in Duke RESTORE are developing climate-smart restoration methods that can predict coral bleaching – when colorful coral turns white - with 90% accuracy, improve coral survivorship and increase planting success of baby corals.  

Seagrasses increase fish production, store carbon and help buffer waves. Restoring seagrasses is essential to helping mitigate climate change and ensure the resiliency of our coastlines. By using native clams, eco-friendly adhesives, low-cost seed production methods and drone technology, Duke RESTORE is working to improve seagrass planting success.

Living shorelines — shorelines reinforced with natural materials — protect coastal homes against storm surges and sea level rise and provide habitat for fish. Duke RESTORE researchers are helping improve the growth of grasses that form the basis of these shorelines. 

Efforts to keep marine life safe

Duke faculty member Doug Nowacek has spent his career studying noise in the ocean, specifically how noise affects marine mammals like whales and dolphins. “All these things humans do in the ocean are noisy – industrial development, shipping, military activity – (and) can have an impact on marine life,” said Nowacek. He said this noise poses three major threats to marine mammals – masking natural sounds, causing hearing damage, and inducing stress. 

Recent research found that humpback whales alter their diving patterns and even stop singing when exposed to vessel noise. Duke is working with industry, governments, academia, NGOs and society to manage ocean noise, critical to keeping marine life safe. 

The importance of small-scale fisheries

Marine and freshwater small-scale fisheries help support the livelihoods of an estimated one out of every 12 people globally, and provide 2.3 billion people with, on average, 20% of their dietary intake across six key nutrients essential for human health.

Duke is a founding partner in the Illuminating Hidden Harvests initiative, a multinational collaboration focused on the contributions of and challenges facing small-scale fisheries.

Duke researchers from the Nicholas School of the Environment and the Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability are working with partners in the Illuminating Hidden Harvests initiative to study the effectiveness of rules that governments around the world have put in place to protect small-scale fisheries.

How to ensure ocean projects are fair

As ocean development accelerates – from offshore wind farms to marine conservation projects – coastal communities often bear disproportionate environmental, economic and social impacts. The Nicholas School of the Environment is a partner on the Ocean Equity Index, a flexible tool designed to assess the extent to which ocean projects and policies recognize relevant stakeholders, include them in decision-making and otherwise treat them fairly. 

Developed by an international team of researchers, the free tool uses 12 criteria to evaluate issues such as human rights, accountability, participation, and the distribution of benefits and harms. By helping decision-makers measure and improve equity, the Ocean Equity Index supports more inclusive, transparent and effective ocean governance while giving communities a tool to hold project leaders accountable.