Ocean Ecology

Who are We?

Ocean Ecology carries out community-based, independent, scientific research. Based out of Prince Rupert, we combine in-depth knowledge of the west coast marine environment with scientific expertise in the fields of biology, chemistry, and oceanography. We use low-cost, appropriate technology for oceanographic sampling and data collection, thus providing remote communities with the opportunity to gather detailed information about the marine environment. Using our knowledge of computer mapping and modelling techniques, we can analyse and visualize this data to create a greater understanding of our oceanic world.

Our Guiding Principles

Ocean Ecology is guided by the following principles:

• Sustainability - we recognize that sustainability is a balance between the environment, economic development, social development, and community prosperity. We are committed to a sustainable future, and to working with our communities to achieve this future. We actively support the concept of a steady state economy where population is stabilized and resource consumption and waste production are maintained within the environment’s capacity to regenerate resources and assimilate waste.
  
  
• Conservation - it is our goal to reduce our carbon-footprint and our impact on the environment.
  
  
• Right Livelihood - we live by the principles of right livelihood. The term Right Livelihood originates in Buddhism, and means that practitioners ought not to engage in trades or occupations which, either directly or indirectly, result in harm for other living beings. To practice right livelihood, we have to find a way to earn our living without transgressing our ideals. Right livelihood applies our time, energy, and other gifts toward something that enhances, preserves, or restores some aspect of the commonwealth, and the money (or other gift) that comes in return does not in its earning cause harm to nature and people. Right livelihood also means finding fulfillment and enjoyment in our work. And finally, knowing when "enough is enough" is crucial to right livelihood, as it allows us to find happiness in what we have, keeps our ecological footprint small, and prevents us from constantly being driven to aquire more.
  
  
• Openness - we apply the concepts of Open Science to our work. Open Science is the belief that scientific research, data and dissemination should be made accessible to all levels of an inquiring society, amateur or professional. It includes:
  
  
  • Transparency in methodology and collection of data.
  • Availability and re-use of scientific data.
  • Public accessibility to scientific communication.
  • Using social media to facilitate scientific collaboration.
  
  Open Science incorporates the principles of Open Source (making all source code necessary to reproduce the scientific calculations available), Open Data (making primary scientific data available to anyone without restrictions from copyright, patents, or other mechanisms of control), Open Notebook (making the entire record of a research project available as it is recorded), and Open Access (releasing scientific findings in ways that are accessible to all potential users without any barriers).


• Localism - we believe that our community can benefit by increased localism. Localism is about building communities that are more healthy and sustainable. The creation of local, self-reliant, community economies can, in turn, enhance environmental sustainability. The "relocalization strategy" promotes the building of societies based on the local production of food, energy and goods, and the local development of currency, governance and culture. The main goals of relocalization are to increase community energy security, to strengthen local economies, and to improve environmental conditions and social equity.
  
  
• Quality - we are dedicated to providing high quality scientific research which is innovative, effective, and relevant.
  
  
• Professional Responsibility - our professional ethics are founded upon integrity, competence, and a responsibility to provide sound management and conservation of biological resources.
  
  

"There are good things to see in tidepools and there are exciting and interesting thoughts to be generated from the seeing. Every new eye applied to the peep hole which looks out at the world may fish in some new beauty and some new pattern, and the world of the human mind must be enriched by such fishing."
     John Steinbeck, in the forward from Between Pacific Tides