Emily De Sousa on the environment and social media activism
Emily De Sousa is a third year environmental governance student at the University of Guelph, the campaign coordinator for TapIn!, and part of the planning team for Sustainability Week. Recently, De Sousa gave a TED Talk in Kanata, Ont. about a problem she is passionate about: plastic pollution in the oceans. The Ontarion had a chance to connect with De Sousa and learn more about the causes that she is involved with and her TED Talk experience.
Mirali Almaula: What is TapIn!? What sort of things do you do as the TapIn! campaign coordinator?
Emily De Sousa: TapIn! is a campaign that’s aimed at ending the sale of bottled water across campus. The campaign is advocating that access to safe and clean drinking water is a fundamental human right, and that water should never be privatized and sold for profit. The campaign also seeks to combat the world’s looming plastic pollution problem.
MA: You recently had the opportunity to do a TED Talk in Kanata, how did that come about? What did you learn from that process?
EDS: Doing this TED Talk was the best thing I’ve ever done! I submitted an online proposal on a whim back in September. I didn’t really think anything of it, and honestly wasn’t expecting to hear anything back, because I never in a million years thought I could give a TED Talk. I ended up being one of 30 applicants selected to come to an in-person rehearsal in November, and just before Christmas I found out that I was one of the eight finalists chosen to speak at the event on March 1. It was terrifying and so rewarding; it taught me that I am capable of so much more than I thought and that the path to success isn’t linear. Everyone gets where they are in different ways, and as long as you work hard, you can have anything that you want.
MA: Could you share what your TED Talk was about and why this topic matters to you?
EDS: My TED Talk addressed the issue of plastic pollution in the oceans. I have been travelling the world for almost three years now, documenting climate change in different parts of the world through photos and videos in order to raise more awareness about environmental issues. When I became a scuba diver and took my work below the surface, I was shocked at what I found. I’ve dove in places as far away as Hawaii, Florida, Portugal, and the Maldives, and while each of these places faces their own individual issues related to climate change, one thing stood out that was the same across all of them — they were polluted with outrageous amounts of plastic.I’ve swam with sharks that have fishing nets caught up in their fins, sea turtles that have become entangled in plastic rings, and dolphins playing with plastic bags. To me, the issue of plastic stood out more than ocean acidification, coral bleaching, and overfishing, because it’s so simple. And it’s something that everyone can relate to regardless of where you live in the world. I think plastic pollution is the most unnecessary problem facing our oceans, but is the easiest one to fix.
MA: When you first emailed us, you said that you put your TED Talk on YouTube and are “hoping for eight million views to represent the eight million tonnes of plastic that enter our oceans annually.” Why do you feel that this sort of social media activism is so effective in the world today?
EDS: Through my work documenting climate change online, I’ve recognized the true power of digital media and how it often possesses a louder voice than the most credible scientific sources. At the end of the day, only a small percentage of the population is reading a 10-page peer-reviewed journal article about plastic pollution in the oceans, but millions of people are scrolling past a video on Facebook showing a sea turtle in distress after a run-in with a plastic straw. I think social media activism is particularly important with issues related to the oceans as it’s all too easy to forget about what’s out of sight and out of mind, so using social media is a great way to make sure the oceans are always at the forefront of everybody’s mind.