Carlson Lecture — The Ocean Carbon Sink: Facts, Fictions, and Opportunities
New England Aquarium, Simons Theatre, 1 Central Wharf, Boston, MA
Admission: Free with registration
The Lorenz Center is pleased to present the 2026 John H. Carlson Lecture, in partnership with the New England Aquarium and the Lowell Institute. FEATURING Dr. Marina Lévy Oceanographer and Senior Scientist at the French National Centre for Scientific Research, LOCEAN–IPSL Sorbonne Université Can whales help mitigate human-induced climate change? What about mangroves, kelp forests, or the trillions of microscopic organisms drifting through the ocean and capturing carbon through photosynthesis? The ocean absorbs about a quarter of the CO₂ we emit, so it seems natural to imagine that ocean life is doing the work much as forests do on land. But the real story is more complex. Join oceanographer Marina Lévy on an exploration of the ocean’s extraordinary carbon machine. From forests on land to underwater forests, from microscopic phytoplankton to the web of marine life and the global ocean circulation, we will follow carbon through the ocean to discover what actually makes it one of the planet’s great carbon sinks and why that matters as the ocean warms and its circulation changes. And if we understand how this remarkable machine works, could we help it absorb even more CO₂? We will…