by CORANZ researchers
During the spring of 1963, US President John F. Kennedy quietly established a groundbreaking initiative that brought together scientists, educators, and conservationists to protect America’s coastal waters and marine ecosystems decades before environmental protection became a mainstream political priority. Kennedy had grown up sailing the waters off Cape Cod and developed a profound connection to the ocean that shaped his understanding of how human activity impacted natural resources for generations to come. He directed his Secretary of the Interior to create comprehensive studies of marine pollution, overfishing, and coastal development, insisting that economic growth couldn’t come at the expense of destroying the waters that sustained countless communities and species. His administration drafted legislation that would eventually become the foundation for modern marine protection laws, even though he never lived to see these policies fully implemented. Kennedy personally met with fishermen, marine biologists, and coastal community leaders, listening to their concerns about disappearing fish stocks and contaminated waters with genuine interest that went far beyond political calculation.He understood that protecting oceans meant protecting the livelihoods of working families who depended on healthy marine environments, not just preserving abstract ecological concepts. His speeches about conservation emphasized stewardship as a moral obligation to future Americans who deserved to inherit oceans as abundant and beautiful as those he had known in his youth. Kennedy allocated federal funding for marine research facilities and encouraged universities to expand their oceanography programs, recognizing that scientific understanding had to precede effective policy solutions. This lesser known aspect of his presidency revealed a leader who thought in generational terms, planting seeds for environmental movements that would blossom long after his time in office ended. His ocean conservation legacy continues influencing marine policy today, proving that visionary leadership creates ripples across decades.
Footnote: CORANZ researcher comments “Oh for a Minister of Fisheries in New Zealand like JFK, particularly at the present time.”
Footnote: CORANZ researcher comments “Oh for a Minister of Fisheries in New Zealand like JFK, particularly at the present time.”
JFK featured in a very good book “The Quiet Crisis”by Stewart L Udall who was secretary for the interior at the time. On the back cover is a quote by John F Kennedy: – “each generation must deal anew with the raiders, the scramble to use public resources for private profit.”
It is so true with Chris Bishop and Shane Jones paving the way for their corporate mates to raid NZ’s public resources. In return are Bishop and Jones getting political donations or even gifts? Just a question, not a statement.
New Zealand politicians boast as NZ being one of the world’s least corrupt countries. It’s apparently on the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index. But i don’t believe iut’s true.
The inconvenient truth is that corruption in New Zealand is real and it’s getting worse. It’s happening in plain sight, in the corridors of “power”.
“Power’? Politicians aren’t meant to be powerful. they are elected by the public to serve the public interest.
But wealthy coroporate interests buy influence by cunning. Money may not pass hands. But would a corporate “gift” a politician a new car or a house?t
Don’t be naive. Eyes wide open!