A public lecture in Lancaster will examine why the world’s oceans are changing at an unprecedented pace and what this means for the future of marine life. The event, titled The Future of the World’s Ocean, will take place at 7pm on Tuesday, 12 May 2026, at the Faraday Lecture Theatre at Lancaster University.
The talk is being organised by Litfest and the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Lancaster University. It will feature Dr Helen Scales, a marine biologist and lecturer at Cambridge University, who serves as a scientific advisor to the marine conservation charity Sea Changers.
Dr Scales will draw on her book, What the Wild Sea Can Be, to discuss how global ocean heat content has reached record levels for the ninth year in a row as of 2025. Her presentation will address the challenges facing marine ecosystems, with recent data indicating that approximately 60 per cent of these environments have already been degraded or are being used unsustainably. Research also shows that marine life is experiencing a decline of 7.2 per cent for every tenth of a degree of ocean warming per decade.
Following the presentation, Dr John Childs from the Lancaster Environment Centre will lead a Q&A session with Dr Scales. Dr Childs specialises in the study of deep-sea mining and the political ecology of the ocean.
The event is part of an annual series aimed at bringing environmental topics to the local community. Those wishing to attend can register for free through The Dukes website.
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