Our oceans cover two-thirds of what my grandfather called our water planet, and the part of the ocean that falls under the jurisdiction of the United States covers an area larger than the country itself.

Los Angeles is a microcosm of the United States. If L.A. falls, the country falls.

We have a lot of Brazilians in the United States. It doesn't mean we're traitors to our country.

Our oceans are facing innumerable threats - from overfishing and pollution to ocean acidification and invasive species - yet we haven't had a blueprint for its use and development, incredible as that seems.

In parts of the United States, there are cast iron water pipes that date back to the late 1800s and have an average life expectancy of about 120 years. Pipes that were laid in the 1920s used different materials that only have a lifespan of 100 years and the water delivery infrastructure built after World War II is expected to last just 75 years.

The United States is a superpower whose influence reaches across oceans and beyond borders.