It's the final day of the course, and we'd like to wrap it up by shedding some light on the themes we've discussed so far in the context of India, South Asia, and the Global South as a whole. It is important to understand their regional relevance because ocean protection is not a stand-alone issue for one country.

We begin by looking at one of India's growing threats towards our ocean: coastal development.

Urban Development in Mumbai and its Effect on Coastal Communities | Urbanet

[Commentary] Why is marine conservation still an uncharted zone?

India’s coastal regions are home to nearly 17 crore people, yet marine conservation remains an uncharted zone here.

The five maritime countries of the South Asia region include: Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. These have extensive river deltas and diverse marine and coastal habitats that support some of the richest concentrations of biodiversity in the world and encompass globally significant mangrove, seagrass, and coral reef areas. Read more about the challenges pertaining to the region:

A Marine Ecological Crisis in South Asia | Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative

Managing Marine and Coastal Protected Areas - A TOOLKIT for South Asia

Further, due to the rapid warming of the Indian ocean, the cyclones in South Asia impact nearly a third of the global population, making it indispensable for the global community to reimagine the protection of coastal commons in this area:

There Is a Need to Reimagine the Way We Think About Our Coastal Commons - The Wire Science

Lastly, we talk about the Global South, which is a dynamic term often used to describe a group of countries and communities where global inequalities in wealth, access to resources and life expectancy persist in comparison to the 'Global North'; the regions where wealth and power are concentrated.

As we know, plastic waste is a threat to the ocean. The current discussions around it blame the plastic tide on consumers in the Global South. However, here's an opinion on how that perpetuates inequality, nationally and internationally:

Plastic in the oceans is not the fault of the Global South

That's all. Congrats! You've made it through the entire course! Think about at least one of the following questions and share your perspective on with us on our LinkedIn community!

Discussion Questions:

1. Having read the last opinion piece, how do you think we can best integrate climate-conscious behavioural changes (for eg. eliminating individual plastic usage) while also holding those responsible for the issue accountable for their actions hereon?
2. Reflecting on the themes that we discussed this past week, does understanding them in a regional context give a better picture of the issues at stake? What are your thoughts on the future global conversations around the ocean being more region-specific and localized?

Additional (optional) resources on related topics that may interest you:

• "Rising sea levels require new styles of oceanic research and writing in the humanities, that speak simultaneously to environmental and decolonial themes." Explore Oceanic Humanities for The Global South, a collaborative project based on the intersections of ocean, art and the South:

Global South | Oceanic Humanities for the Global South | Gauteng