A good deal of research is done on the ways that the general public might view any given environmental or animal issue. But, rarer, are surveys of conservationists, scientists, and others who may have a more direct bearing on decisions and policy making. In this study, researchers wanted to get a sense of how conservationists and scientists view the oceans. And they specifically wanted to know how their definitions might relate to the concept of wilderness.

The researchers’ aims sound rather philosophical. But, in fact, they have many practical implications. This is because the concept of wilderness is crucial to how land-based conservation policies are thought of and enacted. Interestingly, “no consensus-based, widely held definition has been codified in law or policy anywhere in the world explicitly for what constitutes ‘wilderness’ in ocean and coastal waters (Barr, 2008).” Without a definition of wilderness, the oceans remain an ambiguous zone. And they could easily be seen as just a repository for resources that we can exploit for our own ends, forever.

Until now, very little research had been done on oceans and “wilderness.” And so, in an attempt to begin to form an accurate definition, researchers conducted a survey to better understand and codify the attitudes of scientists and conservationists about the oceans and wilderness. The study starts by noting that concepts of wilderness are actually quite fluid. And it notes that the concepts vary from country to country and region to region.

During a three-month survey of more than 250 people, the researchers asked respondents about the relevance of wilderness to coastal and ocean waters. They also asked about wilderness qualities and attributes that may be applicable and relevant to ocean uses; about the potential compatibility of such uses with wilderness; about perceptions of respondents regarding “use” and “non-use”; about wilderness values; and about demographic information.

The researchers found that 76% of respondents said they had visited a place in the ocean they would consider to be “wilderness.” And, consistent with one previous study, the researchers found that respondents think wilderness exists both above and below the water’s surface. Interestingly, and similar to how we see land-based wilderness, there were six factors that more than 80% of respondents said were extremely or very important in defining ocean wilderness. These were as follows:

• “amount of boat traffic” (81.8%)
•  “amount of noise” (81.8%)
•  “number of human-made structures” (86.2%)
•  “‘naturalness’ of the area” (82.2%)
•  “opportunities for solitude” (85.0%)
•  “opportunities for preserving ecosystems and biodiversity” (86.3%)

Though one survey does not make for a definitive answer, “the relative clarity of perspective and overall lack of equivocation of the respondents’ preferences” gives the researchers a good idea of how we can extend the idea of “wilderness lands” to “wilderness waters.”

For conservation advocates, especially those concerned with the oceans, this type of research offers an important base. The views of conservationists and scientists are extremely important as their viewpoints can have a disproportionate amount of sway in policy circles. And getting a sense of the mind frames of these groups as they relate to the oceans can help to inform how advocates communicate their messages and do their work.