Could “Finding Nemo” Become a Fantastical Movie?
The opening scene of the movie, Finding Nemo, begins with clownfish hatching in the sea anemone of a coral reef. More specifically the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia, which expands for 1,429 miles and is teeming with more than 9,000 species.
But I must wonder if the natural beauty that exists today will even be here in a matter of decades. The Great Barrier Reef has been on my bucket list since I was a child because of my fascination with the ocean, which stems from spending family reunions on the South Shore of Massachusetts.
In 7th grade, I read about Migaloo, an albino humpback whale that had made many appearances near the Great Barrier Reef. Being an avid whale lover, I became enthralled and immediately wanted to visit this natural wonder. I remember being struck by the colorful beauty of the Great Barrier Reef. It was an entire world that seemed to be as close to the real-life version of Atlantis as we might get—but in my mind, the same ocean that I was swimming in off the coast of Massachusetts was not connected to what was happening off the coast of Australia. I knew time was ticking for the Great Barrier Reef due to coral bleaching leading to the disappearance of reefs and whole marine ecosystems, but I didn’t apply the same severity to what was happening closer to home.
Coral bleaching is the process of corals expelling zooxanthellae, the algae that live in coral. Coral and zooxanthellae share a mutualistic relationship in which the coral provides protection and carbon dioxide for the algae. In return, the zooxanthellae conduct photosynthesis, producing proteins, fats, carbohydrates, and calcium carbonate, which contribute to coral growth. Zooxanthellae also produce pigment which gives coral its color.
However, ocean temperatures are on the rise because of the increased greenhouse gas emissions warming the atmosphere and trapping heat on Earth. The heat is then absorbed by the ocean. This causes coral to be under stress from the increased ocean temperatures, resulting in coral expelling zooxanthellae. Without zooxanthellae to produce photosynthesis, corals become translucent, appearing white. Corals are then more susceptible to diseases or start to die due to a lack of a food source (zooxanthellae), leaving species unable to inhabit these corals. Some of the well-known species that live in reefs include lobsters, clams, sea turtles, octopi, and sharks.
These reefs do not just provide biodiversity but also offer a way of life for several local community members who harvest fish from the reef. We’ve already lost roughly half of the Great Barrier reef, and it may no longer exist by 2050. Globally, 50% of reefs have already died. In the not-too-far future, children may believe Finding Nemo is a fantastical movie that models another planet.
Sometimes, it’s hard to see the effects of the climate crisis living more removed from aspects of nature—such as the Great Barrier Reef. For me, that’s especially true in New York City. But increasingly shifting weather patterns and changes in the climate are becoming more apparent and harder to ignore. In the fall of 2024, the tristate area (New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut) witnessed a drought that caused wildfires in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park and New Jersey. When I walked outside that day, I was shocked at how thickly the smog settled over the city—especially living in the Upper West Side, which seemed far away from the fires.
The air was thick and gray and stayed that way for days—and this wasn’t even close to being as severe as a wildfire in the West. No one is spared from the changing climate and although some populations are impacted disproportionately, more communities are increasingly affected. I am lucky that I have not lost my home to rising sea levels causing displacement, hurricanes, or wildfires that many in LA are going through. The LA wildfires are a reminder that what we take for granted may be gone in an instant, and that we must be empathetic to those continually hit by disasters and who are more vulnerable—such as small island nations, people of lower socioeconomic status, elders, racial and ethnic minorities, people with preexisting health conditions, conflict-prone areas where climate change acts as an exacerbator, and much more.
The disappearance of natural beauty is one way to track and visualize the climate crisis. Of course, I am saddened by the slow death of the Great Barrier Reef and the prospect of not seeing it before it’s too late, but I know coral bleaching represents something much larger. It is a gift that I need to constantly remind myself not to be complacent—complacency will only last so long and it is a disrespect to both the planet and the billions of people who are currently going through devastations and environmental injustices that the entire world population will soon face. Finding Nemo may not be the only movie that no longer makes sense in a matter of a few decades.
RCC National Environment Leadership Fellow — Zoe Tseng – Barnard College
Zoe Tseng is a senior at Barnard College studying political science with a focus on international relations and the environment. Prior to transferring to Barnard, Zoe was a student at Boston University where she initiated a column interviewing professors in the Earth and Environment Department about their climate change research. At Columbia, she writes for the Science Review and Political Review on environmental policy and emerging climate solutions. She also interns at the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law.
