Why I take action as a scientist.
Do I take action? I didn’t know that. Apparently, you take action when you express your opinion.
Why do I always have to express my opinion? “Just shut up, man! We know already. Yes, the environment, climate change! Jesus, here he goes again.” At home, they do get a bit tired of me sometimes.
But I have a great job. “Are you going on holiday again?”. How many times have I heard that when I travelled to a tropical destination for work.
Being a scientist is a privileged position. You get paid to immerse yourself in something. To read all the knowledge that exists and perhaps contribute a little bit of new knowledge to that ever-expanding universe of knowledge that we as humanity collect. Science is not an opinion, but a process that collects fact-based knowledge. Sometimes mistakes are made, but these are ultimately corrected by colleagues.
That privilege also comes with a certain responsibility. This responsibility is imposed on you when you obtain a doctorate in science. The knowledge you gather is not intended to be used for insider trading, but to contribute to society in a responsible manner. I have been watching the coral reef decline for more than 30 years. This also means explaining what the results of your research mean based on your knowledge. The need is great. Coral reefs are in danger of disappearing (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09439-4).
That is why I am taking action.
Note: The coral in the photograph above this article is almost completely dead.
Erik Meesters. Researcher at Wageningen University and Research, coral ecologist. I have been researching coral around the Dutch Caribbean islands for 30 years.
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