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3 Million Tons of Cosmetics in the Ocean? The Mayan Riviera Hope Spot Dives into Action

By: Shilpi Chhotray, Mission Blue Communications Strategist

What used to be small fishing villages and an undeveloped coastline, the Mayan Riviera boasts stunning beaches, a diverse portfolio of dive sites for scuba divers, and high-end luxury resorts. The Mayan Riviera is part of the Mesoamerican Reef (MAR), which contains the largest barrier reef in the Western Hemisphere, stretching nearly 700 miles from the northern tip of the Yucatán Peninsula down through the Honduran Bay Islands. Located in the north of the MAR are the coasts of Quintana Roo, which includes popular island destinations like Cozumel and the Banco Chinchorro atoll. The Yucatán Peninsula alone draws in adventure goers from around the world for cave diving in the many cenotes or sinkholes that are unique to this part of the coast (6,000!).
 
There are 11 kinds of marine and coastal wetlands and 16 marine protected areas along the coast, providing homes to more than 3,000 species.…

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Patagonia’s Wild Depths

Vreni Häusserman- 2016 Rolex Award recipient is a German biologist exploring marine life in the Patagonian fjords, located in the south of Chile. 
Vreni Häussermann remembers the exact moment she fell in love with the deserted southern fjords of Chilean Patagonia that she now strives to protect. On a research trip in 1997, she and her research partner and later husband, Günter Försterra, happened upon an unusual landscape of stormy seas and snow-capped mountains. For Häussermann, “it was absolutely obvious that this was the most exciting place in the country to study.”
Not everyone would share her eagerness. Chilean Patagonia is challenging terrain to explore: the maze of fjords, channels and islands (the coast stretches 90,000 km, though the distance from north to south as the crow flies is just 1,500 km) is home to tempestuous winds and intense storms.…

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Citizen Science Supports Protection in the Moreton Bay Hope Spot

By: Shilpi Chhotray, Mission Blue Communications Strategist 

Citizen Science Supports Protection in the Moreton Bay Hope Spot
“The citizen scientists in the Moreton Bay Hope Spot are living proof that the ocean is a big blue magnet that unites people who care. Their important work is benefitting the human and aquatic inhabitants of greater Brisbane by making a strong case for continued protection of this Hope Spot. Thank you to the citizens of Moreton Bay for collaborating and contributing data in the effort to protect and restore the blue heart of the planet. You are great cause for hope!” – Dr. Sylvia Earle
The Moreton Bay community is a model example of how robust citizen science programs help ignite support and ongoing passion for marine protected areas.…

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Pressure Mounts to Save the Cayman Islands Hope Spot

By: Shilpi Chhotray, Mission Blue Communications Strategist 

For the residents of George Town Harbour, observing mammoth cruise ships pass through their glimmering turquoise backyard is not uncommon. From 2000, the small island nation of Grand Cayman has received an influx of tourists from the cruise industry, with a around one million visitors entering the island yearly. By 2015, this number increased to 1.7 million and residents anticipate upwards of 2 million visitors in the coming year.
Recently, the greater George Town Harbour area was selected as one of 14 new Hope Spots around the globe.
Mission Blue’s Founder, legendary Oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle visited the Cayman Islands to see the Hope Spot first-hand. In a recent press release, Dr. Earle stated: “May the George Town Harbour Hope Spot serve as an example to the world, encouraging people to take responsibility and ownership of their environment.…

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Save Cayman and Mission Blue Announce New Partnership

Save Cayman Press Release

On the heels of Sylvia Earle’s visit to the Cayman Islands on November 12th, 2016, local environmental NGO Save Cayman and Mission Blue have announced their new partnership. 
Save Cayman administrators say that they are pleased to be working with the global organization that advocates for protected marine spaces worldwide. Recently, it was announced that the greater George Town Harbour area had been selected as one of 14 new Hope Spots around the globe.
“We are pleased to work with Mission Blue. We hope that this new partnership will enable us to better educate our people and those around the globe about the value that our marine environment holds ecologically, economically, and culturally,” said Morgan Ebanks of Save Cayman.…

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Stress, Starvation and Survival

Coral reefs around the world are dying off due to climate-related changes. How can we ensure these “rainforests of the sea” survive?
By: Dianna Bell, Earthwatch Institute

Underwater Ghost Towns
White ghosts rising from the sea floor. Snow-covered skeletons. Faded rainforests under the sea. Once vibrant and thriving coral reefs are suffering, and dying off at alarming rates.
“It’s devastating,” said Dr. Steve Whalan, one of the scientists on the Earthwatch expedition Helping Endangered Corals in the Cayman Islands. “If you’ve ever spent any time on reefs, they’re absolutely fascinating, remarkable systems visually. It’s awe-inspiring to see some of these systems in place when they’re not degraded. So to see them crash around you is very sad.”
The culprit of this destruction?…

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Smart Business Solutions: St. Vincent and the Grenadines Hope Spot

St. Vincent and the Grenadines was designated a Mission Blue Hope Spot at the IUCN Congress in Hawaii by Dr. Sylvia A. Earle on September 9, 2016. 
By: Shilpi Chhotray, Mission Blue Communications Strategist 

When someone says they are going to St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) you probably think of islands. But the marine environment — the big blue — in this southern Caribbean nation is 70 times greater in area than its land mass! Indeed, SVG is famous across the globe for clear blue waters thriving with marine biodiversity, including myriad species of cetaceans, coral reefs, seagrass, mangroves and, of course, a spectacular variety of fish, invertebrates and more. The cetacean megafauna is particularly diverse in these waters where at least 26 species of cetacean are thought to occur.…

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President of Colombia to Expand Protection in the Malpelo Hope Spot

By: Shilpi Chhotray, Mission Blue Communications Strategist

Over 300 miles off the Pacific coast of Colombia lies Malpelo Island whose clear waters are teeming with colorful marine life. The driving force behind the success of the Malpelo Hope Spot is the community of ocean advocates and citizen scientists promoting its protection. Sandra Bessudo, Marine Biologist and Founder of the Malpelo Foundation, is at the heart of Malpelo and its strongest spokesperson. “When I first started going to Malpelo in 1987 and saw what was happening: anchors in the coral, sharks on the deck of the boat, I thought we must do something“. Since then, she’s worked with divers, scientists, and even multiple Colombian presidents to enforce protection of the island.
On September 9th, Colombia President Juan Manuel Santos pledged to more than double the size of the Malpelo Flora and Fauna Sanctuary.…

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Hope On the Horizon: Cayman Islands

By: Laura Butz

 
Recently, the George Town Harbor in the Cayman Islands was named a Mission Blue Hope Spot- one of fourteen newly designated Hope Spots.  This is incredible news for environmentalists both locally and internationally.  A designated Hope Spot is an area considered to be “critical to the health of the ocean”.  These special areas are recognized by Mission Blue and respectively conservationists around the globe as being in need of protection.  Conservation of these valuable areas will allow for the coral reefs, marine life and fragile ecosystems to rejuvenate and strengthen.  Individually, Hope Spots are beneficial to their specific surrounding habitat.  As part of a collective whole, they play a significant role in contributing to restoring the ocean’s ecosystem and marine life on a global scale. …

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Drawn to the Sea.

Narration By: Claire Paris, Biological Oceanographer and Free Diver 

I have always been drawn to the sea. As a kid, I imagined the magic of the aquatic realm and found comfort underwater, mesmerized by the sounds of waves on the shoals and of my heart beat slowing down.
I am a biological oceanographer and a free diver. The ocean is where I push my mind and my body. I study the earliest days of a fish’s life, what we call its larval stage. All fish, even those that grow to become very large, begin their lives very small. They may be tiny, but we’ve learned they are far from defenseless. They are strong and self sufficient having evolved to survive the pelagic life.…

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