Asked about deep-sea mining, Allan Tuara sees a similar mindset. "The thought of how much money we're going to make, how rich we're going to be, makes us debt blinded. They have showed us the fancy equipment. 'We can do this, we can suck this out, the dirt will settle down,' is what they say. But if you miss, that's it, there's not going back down there to put it all . We might destroy the sea life. And without that sea life down there, what would happen? We don't know. We don't know what would happen, it has never been done before. We'll never know until the damage is done. And then it's too late. That's my thinking on it. I mean: surely, if, ìf we can invent something better... maybe in a few years time, solar might be the way to go... rather than destroy the planet?"

From: Meeting Mangaia's ancestors

Occasionnally you may find Peia Patai in the fishermen's shed at Avana's harbour, cleaning the fish he's catched or having drinks with other people from the sea. Peia's a seasoned fishermen himself. He knows the ins and outs of the ocean as if they share one and the same body. He's very concerned about the sea's fate. "Yes, I have concerns," he says, "especially with the thoughts of seabed mining, that our governments are trying to. (...) My job is to protect the ocean so that the kids of tomorrow will enjoy it. I've seen the changes of being a fisherman all my life, that the fish are slowly disappearing. So we cannot blame our government all the time. But we can encourage everyone to protect that ocean or that important part of it. So yes, there are things that I'm not happy with. But I'm just going to continue what I need to do and open my mouth and say what is needed to be said?" Q. What is your concern then, we ask, about deep-sea mining? Peia Patai: "My concern is, if it's down there, leave it alone. We don't really know what are the damages. According to them, they have 90 to 95% proof that everything's gonna be okay. But, I mean, maybe if we give enough time that we will understand more about the effects and what will happen. So there are some points that I might go against of what our politicians are doing." Q. We call our project A seat for the sea. And we are wondering, does the sea have a say in this? Or does the sea have a voice? Or can the sea express itself? Do you have a feeling that sometimes the sea talks to you? Peia Patai: "It always, always does. You can actually see that. We look at it and we think: Oh, she's so beautiful. But in actual fact, you know, she wants us to understand that she is suffering. She has an unheard voice. The voice is us. We have to open our mouth. The whales cannot talk, we can talk. Dolphins cannot talk but we can. If we conserve it, it will be enough for everybody later, because it's our food basket. Don't be fooled by her look. Because she is suffering with what we do today. So we are the voice. If we keep quiet, then we're not doing a favor for our ocean. We have to be loud in what we need to do and what we need to say."

From: The sea if suffering

Marine ecologist Sarah Vanden Eede works at the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Belgium as the Oceans & Fisheries Policy Officer. She advocates for North Sea nature (network of marine protected areas and efficient marine spatial planning); for sustainable fishing techniques and a moratorium on deep-sea mining.

From: The ocean is one large ecosystem