Walter Munk quotes:

Fresh water is like a fossil fuel; we should not waste it.

I am involved in making measurements in polar oceans, and they are changing more than anything else. I think we have to be prepared for major changes associated with the melting of floating ice and the melting of the Greenland glacier.

More and more students are playing it safe and not taking any risks. You might not succeed, but that's just part of the game.

People have to realize that the air we breathe and the water we drink come from the ocean and will go back to the ocean one way or another, no matter how far away we may be from it. It's a perpetual cycle.

We have to work together to do a better job than we did in the last few generations.

The amount of water on the planet does not change, only its quality.

It's important that you work on things that you care about and do a good job and not be too worried about consequences. Don't be afraid to get involved.

People should treat the oceans like we do anything else that we care about - with consideration, with care, and affection. That's it. For that we must educate.

There is no question that a very large number of people have to move; you cannot live where the water comes over you. I have not heard one suggestion on how we are going to move one hundred million people out of low-lying areas and what countries would be willing to accept them.

This is going to be a difficult few hundred years. No matter what we do, we have to give up some of the advantages of the wealthy Western nations and help out people who are less fortunate. That is the key. I think we can do it if we have more compassion for one another.

We have to have more consideration for people who have lesser means than we do. It is a problem of survival.

We must have the hope to be able to succeed.

We still have hope; it is what keeps us going.

What do we expect the climate to do? How will it affect people? And how can we protect people from hardship? We should be willing to face the facts that things may not go very well.