How The New England Aquarium Seeks To Urge Visitors To Act On Climate Change
Sandbags hold back water at the entrance to the Aquarium MBTA station during the March 2 nor’easter. Photo by Robin Lubbock for WBUR
The irony was hard to miss.
The Aquarium MBTA station was closed due to flooding, and the aquarium itself, nearby on Boston’s Central Wharf, was closed out of caution for its visitors.
The early March nor’easter and near-record high tides pushed floodwaters into the state’s low-lying coastal areas — in Boston, and in places like Quincy and Scituate — raising questions about the region’s climate preparedness, and offering a vivid glimpse of the havoc higher sea levels and more severe storms are likely to bring.
Meanwhile, inside the New England Aquarium (NEAQ) itself, climate change is a central aspect of the programming. In recent years, the aquarium has increased its focus on climate change education, using research-tested language to speak directly about the issue. And it urges visitors to take up the cause of emissions reductions.