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UNESCO World Heritage Site Fernando de Noronha Archipelago Joins Mission Blue Hope Spot Network

[FERNANDO DE NORONHA, BRAZIL] – The Fernando de Noronha Archipelago rises from the Atlantic waters off the northeastern coast of Brazil as a chain of 21 volcanic islands. World-renowned for its crystal-clear waters, abundant marine life, and breathtaking landscapes, the inhabited main island of Fernando de Noronha has become one of Brazil’s most sought-after tourism destinations.
International marine conservation nonprofit Mission Blue is proud to announce the Fernando de Noronha Archipelago as our newest Hope Spot. Fabio Borges, President of Instituto Vida no Oceano and Projeto Tubarões e Raias de Noronha, and Rafaely Ventura, Project Coordinator at Projeto Tamar, are recognized as the Hope Spot Champions.

“Fernando de Noronha is one of the most extraordinary environments in that tropical Atlantic. Its translucent waters and abundant marine life make it a true sanctuary of biodiversity.…

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Abrolhos Hope Spot New Champion Designation Highlights Brazil’s Marine Biodiversity

[ABROLHOS, BRAZIL] – International marine conservation nonprofit Mission Blue is proud to announce new Champions for our Abrolhos Hope Spot. Danieli Marinho Nobre, Senior Conservation Analyst at WWF-Brazil, and Guilherme Fraga Dutra, Executive Secretary of Abrolhos Forever (Abrolhos para Sempre), have been at the forefront of safeguarding this globally significant marine area, working together to catalyze Abrolhos Forever, a conservation collective to protect the region.
“I’m delighted to share wonderful news about one of the most extraordinary places in the ocean, Abrolhos, a Hope Spot that truly lives up to its name,” said Dr. Sylvia Earle, Founder of Mission Blue. “That’s why the creation of the Abrolhos Forever Coalition makes such a vital step in terms of making a difference. The Hope Spot Champions, along with the coalition, are working to catalyze action to build partnerships and of course to ensure that the Abrolhos continues to thrive as a beacon of hope.”…

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Hope Spot Champion Grantee Highlight: Kahaluʻu Bay

Header Image: Identifying Coral Species. Credit: The Kohala Center. 
Hānau ka ʻUkukoʻakoʻa, hānau kāna, he ʻĀkoʻakoʻa, puka 
Born was the coral polyp, born was the coral, came forth  
Article written by: Cindi Punihaole & Kathleen Clark – The Kohala Center.
The Kumulipo, a Hawaiian genesis chant, reveals to us that the coral polyp was the first  being born from the darkness. Koʻa (coral) is the ancestor from which all other life  followed. Koʻa spawning, an ancient process, connects us to the past. This year, as our  team diligently prepared for another opportunity to learn from this sacred process, we  opened ourselves to the limitless wisdom found in the winds, currents, tides, fish, coral,  and limu. Kahaluʻu holds all the answers we seek; it is our kuleana (responsibility) to  listen. …

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Exmouth Gulf Marine Park Declared, Protecting Hope Spot

Cover image: Courtesy of Oceanwise Australia
EXMOUTH GULF, AUSTRALIA – Exmouth Gulf and the Ningaloo Coast form one of Earth’s extraordinary marine ecosystems, home to whales, dugongs, dolphins, turtles, manta rays, sea snakes, and migratory shorebirds. The area is also home to significant Aboriginal cultural heritage, with evidence of continuous connection and stewardship stretching back more than 40,000 years. Its seagrass meadows, mangrove systems, and sheltered waters provide important nursery grounds for marine life and play a vital role in the broader Ningaloo ecosystem.
On September 4, 2025, the Cook Government announced the establishment of a whole-of-gulf marine park, marking a major milestone in conservation for the region. This outcome reflects decades of persistent research and advocacy, outlined in detail in the timeline below.…

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Hope Spot Champion Grantee Highlight: Conserving Coral and Building Community in the Conflict Islands Hope Spot

Header Image: The Conflict Islands. Credit – Conflict Islands Conservation Initiative (CICI).
A tiny and remote atoll off Papua New Guinea holds an extraordinary secret: it is home to more than 400 species of coral. The Conflict Group of Islands, named after the HMS Conflict whose crew first identified them on British navigation charts in the late 19th century, are a chain of 21 privately owned islands in Papua New Guinea. Together, the islands form an atoll, a ring of coral marking the location where a volcanic island once rose out of the waves. Long since eroded and dormant, all that is left of the volcano is a ring of pristine beaches and a central lagoon bursting with incredible marine biodiversity.…

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Mission Blue’s Hope Spot Champions Propel Marine Protected Areas Day into a Worldwide Ocean Conservation Movement

Cover image © Two Oceans Aquarium

MPA Day, held annually on the 1st August, was created in 2021 to help celebrate the importance of MPAs for both people and nature. It was designed as a day to share stories and information about the importance of conserving the ocean. The campaign was initially organized by the Two Oceans Aquarium, co-Champions (along with Cape RADD) of the False Bay Hope Spot in South Africa, with ambitions to take the awareness campaign global. 
This year Mission Blue helped to make this wish a reality by taking the campaign truly global for the first time. With 15 Hope Spots spanning from the chilly shores of Northeast Iceland to the tropical waters of Nusa Penida in Indonesia getting involved.…

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Florida Keys and Ten Thousand Islands Joins Hope Spot Network, Highlighting the Ecological Importance of Safeguarding the Gulf Coast

Featured image: Stephen Frink
(FLORIDA KEYS, USA) –
The Florida Keys and Ten Thousand Islands contain the iconic natural wonders of the Florida Coral Reef, mangrove, and seagrass habitats, as well as being home to Aquarius Reef Base, the world’s only underwater laboratory. This Hope Spot connects the waters of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) with the waters of the National Parks of Everglades, Ten Thousand Islands and Biscayne Bay, forming a bridge between the established Florida Gulf Coast and Coastal Southeast Florida Hope Spots. Combined, this trio of Hope Spots signifies the need to highlight and  protect much of Florida’s coast for the future. 
International marine conservation non-profit Mission Blue has named the Florida Keys and Ten Thousand Islands, which includes Biscayne Bay, a Hope Spot in recognition of the area’s tremendous ecological and economic importance.…

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Kahalu‘u Bay on Hawai‘i’s West Coast Recognized as a Mission Blue Hope Spot

Featured image (c) Bo Pardau
KONA, HAWAI‘I (May 26th, 2022)

On the west coast of the island of Hawai‘i is Kahalu‘u Bay, also known as ‘āina lei ali‘i, lands that adorn the chiefs. It is a wahi pana, a sacred, celebrated, and storied place abundant with cultural and ecological treasures. 
Cindi Punihaole, director of The Kohala Center’s Kahalu‘u Bay Education Center (TKC-KBEC) and Dr. Christine Zalewski, president of Dear Ocean, are working to preserve Kahalu‘u Bay for generations to come. Punihaole describes how her native Hawaiian upbringing shapes her perspective and approach to conservation at Kahalu‘u Bay. “We were taught that taking care of the ʻāina, the land and sea, is your survival. It’s second nature for me to look at what gives us life.”
 
 
International marine conservation nonprofit Mission Blue has named Kahalu‘u Bay a Hope Spot and Punihaole and Zalewski as the Hope Spot Champions.…

Posted in .Homepage, Dr. Sylvia Earle, Featured, mission blue, Partner Stories, Photo of the Day, Uncategorized |

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Kangaroo Island North Coast Hope Spot Highlights Need for Greater Protection

KANGAROO ISLAND, SOUTHERN AUSTRALIA (AUGUST 10TH, 2020)

Kangaroo Island is Australia’s third-largest island, and one of immense biological significance. A plunge beneath Kangaroo Island’s crystalline waves reveals a bursting rainbow of life – lucky divers can spot animals like striped reef fish, radiant sea stars, enigmatic jellyfish, pods of 100 dolphins and several threatened and endangered species. However, not unlike many other marine ecosystems, it faces the threat of ever-growing human interference.
 
 
Kangaroo Island North Coast has been declared a Hope Spot by international marine conservation nonprofit Mission Blue in recognition of the Hope Spot Champions’ goals of increased marine protection for the island’s surrounding waters and the expansion of ecotourism and research tourism in the area. Mission Blue also recognizes the need to protect Kangaroo Island from a proposed timber port project.…

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Great Barrier Reef Legacy: Safeguarding Australia’s National Treasure

Mission Blue is proud to partner with Great Barrier Reef Legacy! 
By: Jenna Rumney

Great Barrier Reef Legacy (GBR Legacy) aims to change the way the Great Barrier Reef is understood and protected by operating the reefs only independent research vessel. Our team consists of marine scientists, educators, tourism operators and media experts with over 90 years of collective reef knowledge and experience. Our ‘floating laboratory’ will provide free access to scientists, an interactive classroom for students, a platform for collaboration between existing environmental organizations, and a multimedia powerhouse to share news from the reef with the rest of the world.
Our mission is to create a groundswell of community connection and passion for coral reefs which is of global significance.…

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