Life has evolved on our planet for several billion years. We and all other forms of life that currently inhabit our planet are surviving descendants of ancient ancestral organisms, shaped by evolution and natural selection and the changing geology of mother Earth. We are all survivors who have adapted to huge changes to the environment throughout these billions of years, while millions and millions of other organisms including our evolutionary ancestors have gone extinct. Evolution of intelligent brains has allowed us to develop (a) science which grounds us in reality and helps us understand the universe and (b) advanced technology to make our lives better and further help our scientific explorations. Ironically, these byproducts of our intelligence are also sowing the seeds of destruction in our planet within a miniscule period relative to biological and geological timeframes. The big question is are we also intelligent and capable enough to alter this tide?

It is individuals such as Professor Drew Harvell, a marine biologist at Cornell, that give me some hope in this bleak situation. Listening to her, and watching the documentary “Fragile Legacy” that she has helped produce, was awe-inspiring. Over 150 years ago, Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka captured the intricate beauty of numerous marine invertebrates in the form of exquisite glass pieces. These beautiful yet fragile pieces were purchased by Cornell in the late 19th century. With the advent of underwater filming, the Blaschka glass pieces fell into disuse. Until fifty years ago when over 500 glass pieces were recovered, many of which have been and are being painstakingly restored. Professor Harvell and marine filmmaker David Brown went on a quest to film living examples of these Blaschka models. Some of these marine invertebrates have been around for over 500 million years, qualifying them as quite robust life forms. Yet, numerous such organisms are dwindling and going extinct since the Blaschka’s created their glasswork. Increasing concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that is getting absorbed in the oceans making them more acidic, global warming, overfishing, and many other human-related effects are wreaking havoc on biodiversity of the oceans. The documentary captures the beauty of these creatures, both bringing them to life in film and capturing their struggle. The most memorable quote from the documentary juxtaposes the Blaschka pieces with their living counterparts: “as complex and delicate as the glass models are, the living things they represent, ecosystems these organisms are part of, are infinitely more so!” Who among us is going to take on the difficult task of restoring these living counterparts? As irreplaceable as the glass replicas are, the species they represent are infinitely more precious to the ecosystem our life depends on, and if lost, we will likely never be able to bring these species back to life!