As an oceans scientist I’m cheered by our leaders gathering today at the United Nations to sign the international agreement on global climate action. More people grow concerned about the future each year as they experience first-hand the impacts of climate change, from extreme flooding to more intense wildfires, to drought, and sea-level rise. The signing of the agreement, known as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) is a blueprint for global climate action, and a signal that our leaders are taking the crisis seriously and are poised to act.

The future of ocean health depends on world leaders keeping their climate promises. In fact, the oceans are the only ecosystem on earth suffering from two independent impacts of rising carbon dioxide pollution: global warming and ocean acidification.