Behind the Design: Endangered Coral Reefs
One design that we’ve chosen to print on our line of upcycled clothing, is of a piece of coral with the words, “Let Me Live”. This graphic carries a very important message that we’d love to discuss here, and share the inspiration behind creating it.
Living close to the ocean has given us daily appreciation for its wonders, and having the opportunity to dive and snorkel here in Costa Rica and see the diverse life underneath the surface has been a life-changing experience. We are constantly heartbroken to find trash and plastics washing up on the shore, and have even seen a sea turtle swimming with a piece of plastic in its mouth that he surely mistook for a shiny sardine. These small first-hand examples make the larger reality of human’s negative impact on the sea much harder to ignore or discount. Which is why when we read about how global warming is effecting ocean temperatures and killing corals, we understood the severity of this event and were devastated.
Tropical coral reefs are the most diverse marine ecosystems on earth, giving shelter to thousands of animal species. Currently, coral reefs are facing multiple stresses caused by pollution, overfishing, and climate change; all direct effects of human activity and industrialization. Last year was particularly devastating to large portions of the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, where bleaching of the well-known reef has occurred in greater areas than ever before. Because this is such a popular reef that almost everyone has at least seen photos of, this brought the effects of climate change to the attention of many concerned nature-lovers around the world. Once again, so much beautiful natural life will be lost due to the choices humans have made this last century to overproduce, carelessly dispose of waste, and upset the balance of the Earth for monetary gain.
The graphic we made gives a voice to the corals, asking humans to please, “let me live”. Please, be more aware of your impact on the world by limiting what you consume and consider all life on the planet. If not for all of the ocean creatures, land animals and plant life, for the future of humanity, who will not be able to survive without the health of all these living organisms. Everything is connected in a delicate balance here on Earth, and we will not survive our own destruction if we don’t change our ways today.
Head over to our Shop to find a unique upcycled tee or tank with the “Let Me Live” graphic hand screened on it.
Also, see some of the below before and after photos to get an idea of what is happening. Each photo links to more information on the topic and more photos of the corals.
