Great Decisions shifts to IslandWood this week

Film screening of “Ocean Frontiers” prompts shift of venue this week.

With a topic as vast as the world’s oceans, Great Decisions, the multi-part speakers’ series on foreign policy topics, needed a larger venue. This week the discussion moves to IslandWood where participants will get to experience a screening of the documentary “Ocean Frontiers.”

Generations of people have thought and acted as though the world’s oceans were so vast as to be beyond human influence, an exhaustible  source of resources.

An increasing number of citizens, scientists and policymakers however, fear that the rapidly deteriorating conditions of the oceans will profoundly impact human welfare in the not too distant future.

Yet because most of the ocean waters are considered part of the “commons,” it will take global cooperation and policies to not only avert ocean ecosystem collapse, but to govern the increased competition among nations for control over its dwindling resources.

Like climate change, the problem of savings the oceans can seem overwhelming, especially at the individual level. To help citizens grapple with the issues, Great Decisions this week will begin with a screening of the documentary, “Ocean Frontiers,” by Green Fire Productions. The 80-minute film will be in lieu of the usual Foreign Policy Association DVD.

The post-film discussion will be moderated by Karen Anspacher-Meyer, executive director of Green Fire Productions, and Bainbridge Islander James Brennan, marine habitat specialist at the University of Washington and an advisor to Washington Sea Grant. In addition to discussing the issue of ocean stewardship from a local and national perspective, the role of the U.S. in the international arena – including its failure thus far to ratify the United Nation’s Convention on the Law of the Sea – will be addressed.

The event is presented by The Arts & Humanities Council, Kitsap Regional Library and IslandWood

More information about “Ocean Frontiers” and suggested background readings can be found at www.artshum.org (click on “Great Decisions”) and www.krl.org or by calling 842-7901.

Contact Bainbridge Island Review Staff at editor@bainbridgereview.com or 206-842-6613.

Comment on this story.

COMMENTING RULES: We encourage an open exchange of ideas in our online community, but we ask you to follow our guidelines for respecting community standards. In a nutshell, don't say anything you wouldn't want your mother to read. Please see our FAQ if you have questions or concerns about using Facebook to comment.