It’s been a long while since I wrote anything here. Even though I understand that it’s an on and off relationship, I miss sitting down and penning my thoughts on random topics in the area of marine conservation.

A Shift in Lifestyle

Ever since I shifted back to Delhi from Goa, life has been fast. Predictable. Routine. Hectic.

Working in a startup with 12 other folks to build products expediting the adoption of clean energy is turning out to be an interesting, rewarding, focussed, and tiring journey. As a consequence, it becomes tough to take out time for ReefBuilder. Who knew working on your passion project would be sooooo tough (haha i think i did but just wanted to wing it).

My connection with the ocean and the marine community these days pertains to the following:

Finding time around work to get on calls with Indian marine conservationists to understand their work, struggles, and the technology being used by them.

Additionally, an interesting yet trivial insight is that it is easier to connect with Indian conservationists in particular because I can just send them a Whatsapp call on the go instead of committing to a fixed meet where I would have to take out a chunk of time from my super random schedule.

Please do reach out to me if I haven’t talked with you already!

Consuming content on topics including oceans, diving, biodiversity, and ecology. I really enjoy exploring these topics and have found a few good books, blogs, podcasts that I keep revisiting throughout the week. Content recommendations are here:

  • Rewilding the Sea by Charles Clover
  • Marine Conservation News on Mongabay
  • Climate change newsletter by CarbonBrief
  • Marine Ecology Lectures by James Douglass on Youtube
  • OceanX channel on Youtube
  • Dive Talk channel on Youtube

Checking up my Terra.do Slack to ensure that I respond to any and all queries that have found their way to me along with ensuring that the oceans channel stays alive and thriving 🌊

A Problematic Cycle

Shifting from an idyllic life in Goa to my current hustle culture embrace (no shade haha) is also helping me realise a couple of other things.

One of them being that there isn’t enough time to think about yourself, introspect, and enjoy life slowly in the day. You wake up, work, exercise, consume content to heighten satisfaction, and sleep. For about 5-6 days, this is what the schedule looks like.

Becoming busy, one ends up avoiding any kind of distressing content. Be it news about Gaza, the growing Islamophobia in India, or the slow death of our oceans and planet. One wants to maximise their satisfaction in a very small amount of time. Thus, we only have bandwidth for “Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives”.

The “out of sight, out of mind” saying about oceans hits so much more here. In my daily conversations, I either end up discussing work progress, ranting about a work problem, or sharing life updates while getting the same from my friends and family.

On the days that I have a holiday, I am usually super tired to do anything more than relax at home, watch movies, read books, and exercise. The absolute basics.

Throughout the week, there is no way I am coming in touch with anyone who knows or cares enough about marine life. There is no ocean or water body to even connect with and explore. How then do city folks like me actually get aware, understand, empathise, and start caring about something so real and important but so distant?

How does one care about a dying star?

How does one understand the importance of that one cuttlefish?

How does one learn to not throw their beer can into the sea?

How does one learn to not throw their beer can into the sea?

How does one vicariously experience the pain of a hunted whale?

Wicked problems. So many of them.

Tough solutions. So little of them.

Till next time :)) Hopefully soon!