On World Ocean Day in Galveston, Xavier Cortada delivered a stirring call to action, challenging environmentalists to rethink how they communicate the climate crisis. Addressing a dedicated audience of local conservationists and residents, Cortada emphasized that traditional methods, such as brochures and pamphlets, often fail to engage those outside of the environmental “choir”. Drawing on his experience with “The Underwater” project in Miami, he urged advocates to move beyond their professional silos and find more human-centric, interdisciplinary ways, such as the arts, to convey the life-sustaining importance of our oceans.

Cortada spoke passionately about the “climate catastrophe” facing low-lying coastal communities, where sea-level rise, flooding, and subsidence threaten both unique ecologies and human cultures. He warned that unless organizations work together to address the urgency of the moment and engage the broader public and voters, the catastrophic decline of coastal regions and global ecosystems will continue unabated.