At EarthX 2025, Lawrence Ford, Founder & CEO of Conscious Capital Foundation sits down with Dr. Shelby Thomas for a powerful conversation on purpose, ocean restoration, and why nature isn’t “out there”—it’s our shared foundation. If you care about regenerative solutions, the future of the ocean, and what it looks like to engineer *with* nature (not against it), this full conversation delivers insight, urgency, and real-world action.

Why watch the full conversation?
You’ll hear how disconnection from nature is becoming a defining risk of our time, why coral reefs hold ancient intelligence and modern answers, and how art + engineered reef structures can scale restoration while strengthening communities and local economies.

00:05 Welcome to EarthX 2025 + the “why” question
01:06 Purpose: serving nature and people
01:38 The real threat: disconnection from nature (and each other)
02:54 Art as a bridge back to connection
03:37 “Let’s talk coral” + ocean wisdom and grief
05:29 We are not separate from nature—we depend on it
05:43 What coral can teach us (adaptation, cycles, resilience)
08:11 Co-creating with nature: scaling nature-based solutions
09:27 From beach art to living reefs: the vision
10:01 Restoration that supports ecosystems *and* economies
10:52 Guardians of the Reef: structures, corals, and community action
11:02 How to get involved + invitation to dive in