The ocean is vital for producing about half the oxygen we breathe and capturing excess heat from human-induced global warming.
But climate change is making the ocean hotter, more acidic and less inhabitable for sea life. The heat is also causing sea levels to rise through water molecule expansion and melting ice caps.
A survey conducted by World Athletics in 2023 showed that 77% of athletes believe climate change has negatively affected athletics. Health impacts could include heat exhaustion, dehydration and breathing difficulties.
Then there’s pollution. Plastic is expected to outweigh all the fish in the sea by 2050, according to the Center for Biological Diversity.
Protect where we play
So now, star athletes, artists and organizations from Florida and across the country are hoping to rally their fans to advocate for what they’re calling the planet’s MVP: the ocean.
It’s part of a multi-year initiative by the nonprofit Ocean Conservancy called Protect Where We Play.
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The goal is to protect spaces like sporting and concert venues, along with playgrounds.
Jenna DiPaolo, chief brand and communications officer for Ocean Conservancy, said she thinks Americans have been hesitant to step up for two reasons.
"It can be politically scary to do that, and no one that they trust has asked them to do something specific," she said.
So, they're having "hometown heroes" form Team Ocean to do the asking.
Eco-Mermaid in Miami
One of those hometown heroes is Estonian competitive swimmer Merle Liivand, who lives in Miami.
She's won multiple world championships, holds a handful of Guinness World Records and was given the title of Lady by the Sovereign and Royal House of Cappadocia in Spain.
Liivand is internationally known as an "eco-mermaid" because of her environmental work.
“My biggest concern is microplastic on athletes’ gut health and how do you perform when your gut health is struggling with microplastic in your blood system," she said.
Liivand once picked up 35 pounds of trash while swimming over 30 miles in a mermaid mono-fin.
But it’s not just swimming through garbage that motivated her to join her fellow athletes for Team Ocean. It’s also the fish gasping for oxygen that she’s witnessed during red tide events.
Plus, over the past few years, Liivand said she's had to change her ocean swimming practice every time June comes around.
"You start feeling the ocean getting hot, and then end of the June, you can't even swim after 8 a.m. because then you might feel that you're getting a heart attack," she said.
Team Ocean
Team Ocean plans to raise awareness around pollution and heat through social media and at popular events, like the World Cup next year and the 2028 Olympic Games.
The first four celebrity Team Ocean captains include WNBA All-Star and Olympic champion Napheesa Collier, offensive tackle for the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals Kelvin Beachum, Cincinnati Reds pitcher Brent Suter and gold medal-winning track and field Paralympian Ezra Frech.
Liivand said she feels excited and inspired that she’s not alone in advocating anymore.
“Wow, there are more people like me. And it gives you confidence to actually … practice and train harder because you know you're part of the team, you're part of the relay,” she said. “And you kind of want to like be even better in this world and perform better and know that our voices are actually heard, not just pushed underwater.”
This story was originally published by WUSF and shared in partnership with the Florida Climate Reporting Network, a multi-newsroom initiative founded by the Miami Herald, the Sun-Sentinel, The Palm Beach Post, the Orlando Sentinel, WLRN Public Media and the Tampa Bay Times.
