“Santorini’s underwater landscape is like a wonderful theater stage. The set is unique: underwater caves, Posidonia oceanica seagrass meadows, dramatic cliffs and an incredible clarity. However, it is a theater without actors or an audience. Do you know what the local fishermen tell me? ‘We got a sea full of fish from our parents, but are delivering a desert to our children.’”
At the age of 36, Pierre-Yves Cousteau, the youngest son of renowned oceanographer and explorer Jacques-Yves (1910-97), is a frequent visitor to the southeastern Aegean island and knows what he’s talking about. He has built friendships and developed a long-lasting relationship with the islanders, after first spending some significant time here nine years ago while training to be a scuba-diving instructor. He has visited almost yearly ever since, not just to enjoy the natural landscape but also to participate in efforts for its protection. Cousteau has teamed up with a group of locals and friends of Santorini to push for the creation of the first marine park in the Cyclades – in the absence of government support. As a citizen of the world (who says, “I live from a suitcase between Paris and the rest of the planet”), Cousteau fervently supports a transition to a more sustainable model of development, which harnesses the strengths of the local economy.