Seagrass to the Rescue: Human-Thalassia-Relations in the Mexican Caribbean

What do you think of when you think of seagrasses? Of their importance to ecosystems? Of carbon sequestration? Of lively underwater worlds? Of underwater meadows swaying gently with the ocean’s currents? Or, of not much at all? Seagrasses tend to be viewed as somewhat boring and characterless underwater plants, but they are quite the opposite! In the Anthropocene, they are both affected by climate change and capable of mitigating its effects. My contribution to the panel “Entanglements in uncertain times: human-plant relations in agrarian life worlds” at SIEF 2023 examined multi-faceted human-seagrass-relations in Mexico and the innovative strategies and practices of marine biologists as they work to stabilize the coast through multispecies interactions.