As the title suggests, I’m more of a pessimist. In my life, a glass half full is a glass half empty most of the time, and while this might sound rather sad, it has served me well throughout my life. Being prepared for the worst certainly has its advantages. 

When it comes to my first column, the initial plan was to write about a science communication topic. But, following the events of the past few days, it quickly took on a very different tone. 

Just a couple of days ago, on 20 January, Donald Trump was officially sworn in as the 47th US president. Shortly after, a shocking – but sadly not unexpected – list of changes to existing immigration and climate change policies has sparked news headlines around the globe. 

While my first instinct was to shout at my husband, urging him to leave civilisation with me and our dog to live off the land on a remote Scottish island to watch the world end from there, instead, my job at Oceanographic turned me into an optimist pretty quickly.

As a science communicator and editor who works with amazing people and organisations dedicated to protecting our blue planet and finding solutions to combat climate change on a daily basis, I decided to look to them for advice instead (and not listen to my dark thoughts). From the very start, it has been Oceanographic’s top priority to foster change through reporting on positive stories and showcasing the beauty of the ocean realm. That’s why I have decided to explain why I don’t fear the next few years – and hope that you will join me. 

First of all, I want to remind you of the good happening in the world today. I’m sure you are aware of the many amazing organisations, individuals, and businesses working hard to conserve the oceans in all corners of the world, from citizen scientists photographing whales to build up a database of individuals, to large-scale kelp restoration projects and ambitious deep-sea research programmes. Just recently, I had the pleasure of interviewing filmmaker and photographer Shawn Heinrichs about the first documented courtship behaviour between an Oceanic manta ray and a reef manta ray – yet another reminder of how little we know about the ocean and its inhabitants and how much there is left to explore. New species – like the supergiant ‘sea bug’ that looks like Darth Vader – are being discovered on a regular basis, and new conservation successes are being recorded as we speak. 

Secondly, I think to have a true impact on this world, we need to begin putting our money where our mouths are. We aren’t powerless, and have immense power with our spending as individuals. Which bank are we trusting our savings with? Which food and products do we buy in the supermarket? And what political motives do our car producers have? These are all questions we should ask each other to dig a little deeper. 

Speaking of money… A major topic that really fills me with hope for the next few years is the emerging blue economy. While it has been relatively hard to invest in the blue economy as an individual in recent years, the blue economy and blue finance have significantly grown, rendering it easier to invest in causes and companies that we believe in. For one, new Blue Economy ETFs are now available. And, just this week, a press release landed in my inbox announcing that Standard Chartered, an UK-based financial institution, had joined #BackBlue, an Ocean Finance Commitment which aims to ensure a regenerating and sustainable ocean has a seat at the table in finance and insurance decisions.

The announcement, made in Davos, comes as the The Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (ORRAA) and the World Economic Forum’s Ocean Action Agenda are working together to encourage more organisations to join this Commitment. According to the press release, 2025 will be a pivotal year for securing the health and vitality of the world’s ocean with France and Costa Rica hosting the UN Ocean Conference in Nice in June and the Blue Economy and Finance Forum, a special event focused on driving ideation and collaboration amongst blue economy stakeholders, taking place immediately before.