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Mozambique and South Africa Unite: Maputaland Hope Spot Showcases Powerful Binational Collaboration for Ocean Protection

Straddling the border between Mozambique’s tropical coast and the subtropical east coast of South Africa are waters vibrant with biodiversity and buzzing with collaboration. Below the surface are more than 1,300 species of fish, including the “living fossil” coelacanth, four different sea turtle species, 50 species of sharks and rays, a large diversity of whales and dolphins, and much more. Up on land, Grant Brokensha, owner of The Bigger Picture Films and South African and Marcos Pereira, Co-Founder and director of Fundação Likhulu and Mozambican are two passionate individuals who have reached across their country’s borders to work together to safeguard their shared blue backyard. 
 
 
International marine conservation non-profit Mission Blue has named Maputaland a Hope Spot with Brokensha and Pereira as its Champions in celebration of their deep commitment to their communities and dedication to fostering a healthy future for both the wildlife and human inhabitants.…

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Inspiration and Hope in Mozambique

In October 2023, Mission Blue was on the ground (and in the water!) at the Inhambane Seascape Hope Spot. Established as a Hope Spot in 2022, the Inhambane Seascape lies along the southern coast of Mozambique. This region is rated as a Globally Outstanding marine conservation area by IUCN, and recognized as a potential world heritage site by UNESCO. It is also described as an important region in Africa for many large, iconic marine megafauna species, like the last viable population of dugongs in the Indian Ocean, humpback dolphins and oceanic manta rays. Five of the world’s seven sea turtle species, including green, leatherbacks, olive ridley, hawksbill, and loggerhead turtles, swim in these waters and nest along the shoreline. The productive waters provide critical habitat for migratory species, as evidenced by the hundreds of humpback whales sighted during our short time in the region. …

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St Helena Island Recognized as Mission Blue Hope Spot

In the middle of the South Atlantic Ocean between Angola and Brazil lies a remote volcanic island of a mighty 47 square miles (121.7 square kilometers). Discovered uninhabited in 1502 by the Portuguese, St Helena Island became a British Overseas Territory in 1659 and is now home to 4,439 residents (2021 Census). Due to its remote geographic location and small population, the island has not suffered the environmental degradation commonly seen in other blue places around the world. Recognizing this, the St Helena National Trust, and local and UK governments are working in tandem to maintain a vibrant and healthy future for both the island’s wildlife and human inhabitants.
 

 
 
International marine conservation non-profit Mission Blue has named St Helena Island a Hope Spot in honor of the island’s ongoing initiatives to manage and monitor its marine environment as well as to grow a sustainable economy.…

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Sink or Swim: Protecting and Restoring Key Mangrove Habitats for Juvenile Shark Species in the Golfo Dulce Hope Spot, Costa Rica

Golfo Dulce is one of only four tropical fjords in the world and is located on the Pacific coast of southern Costa Rica. Its warm, clear waters are home to an impressive array of marine life and play an important role in sustaining a number of critically important ecosystems.
 
 
Mission Blue designated the area a Hope Spot in 2019, in support of establishing official protection from the Costa Rican government to prevent the illegal fishing of scalloped hammerheads (Sphyrna lewini) in the gulf. Research conducted by local conservation organization Misión Tiburón’, suggests that the area is an important nursery ground for the Eastern Tropical Pacific population of the Critically Endangered scalloped hammerhead shark.
 
Ilena Zanella, Hope Spot Champion and Co-founder, Misión Tiburón, says, “To protect migratory species, it is necessary to integrate conservation efforts into every phase of their life cycle.”  …

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Dr. Sylvia Earle: A Hero to Rio de Janeiro’s Ocean

Featured image: © Luciano Candisani
By Aline Aguiar, Champion, Cagarras Islands and Surrounding Waters Hope Spot

In July 2023, Dr. Sylvia Earle visited the Cagarras Islands and Surrounding Waters Hope Spot in Rio de Janeiro for her first dive in Brazilian waters.
Hosted by Ilhas do Rio Project, Dr. Earle’s visit was a quick trip, albeit intense and highly productive. While gaining a closer look at the Cagarras Islands and Surrounding Waters Hope Spot, Dr. Earle attended the Ocean and Climate Conference and went on her first SCUBA dive in Brazil. Dr. Earle’s visit to Rio de Janeiro inspires multiple generations of researchers, environmentalists, and decision-makers to advocate for the ocean.
 
 
After a long flight from the United States’ west coast, “Her Deepness” arrived in Brazil on Sunday, July 23rd, 2023.…

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Verde Island Passage Named a Hope Spot Highlighting Community Reef Monitoring Program

Featured image: Coastal community drone © Joal Ascalon
(VERDE ISLAND PASSAGE, CORAL TRIANGLE, PHILIPPINES)

The Verde Island Passage (VIP) is a major waterway that separates southern Luzon Island from northern Mindoro Island in the Philippines, extending from Lubang Island in the west to Tablas Island in the east. Its 1.14 million hectares of coral reef, mangrove, and seagrass habitats possess a remarkable abundance of marine life, provide livelihoods to millions of people through fishing and ecotourism, serve as a major step commercial shipping channel, and houses significant industrial complexes along part of its shoreline.
Dr. Terrence Gosliner, Senior Curator of Invertebrate Zoology, California Academy of Sciences, and Dr. Wilfredo “Al” Licuanan, Distinguished Full Professor in the Department of Biology and a University Fellow at De La Salle University (DLSU) and their partners are seeking the inclusion of the Verde Island Passage as a National Integrated Protected Area System of the Philippines and declaration as a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area of the International Maritime Organization. …

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Successful Coral Restoration Efforts Celebrated at Newly Declared Ocean Cay Hope Spot in the Bahamas

Ocean Cay is a former industrial island located 22 miles south of Bimini, The Bahamas, and 65 miles southeast of Miami, Florida. Since 2015, through multi-disciplinary and institutional collaborations, the MSC Foundation and MSC Group have restored the island to re-establish its ecological balance after years of destructive activities. The Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve has been recognized by the government of The Bahamas as an area of high biological productivity and biodiversity and as such, has been recommended for ‘Marine Protected Area’ status. The MSC Foundation and its partners are hopeful that their marine conservation work can take the recognition process over the finish line to achieve official protection. 
International marine conservation nonprofit Mission Blue has declared Ocean Cay a Hope Spot and Pierfrancesco Vago, MSC Foundation Board Member and Chair of the Executive Committee – as the Hope Spot Champion in recognition of the Foundation and its partners’ programs to restore the area to its natural state to achieve a balanced ecology that can be maintained for generations to come.…

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My Thoughts on Deep Sea Mining by Dr. Sylvia Earle

Featured image: Bamboo coral, family Isididae on steep rock in the Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone Hope Spot © Dan Jones, ECOMAR Project
If you would like to watch our June 2023 live webinar with Dr. Sylvia Earle on this topic, you can view it on the Mission Blue YouTube channel.
By: Dr. Sylvia Earle

Deep sea mining is much on my mind. Greed, not need, has inspired an amazingly seductive marketing campaign that has generated a dangerous smog in the minds of many who are willing to accept the pitch without considering the harsh economic, environmental and common sense realities involved.
Imagine!  The fate of half of the world is on the chopping block, with authority to decide actions vested in a council of 36 individuals representing the interests of 168 countries and – although most are oblivious to what’s going on – the interests of 8 billion people and all of life on Earth.…

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Recording & Resources: Diving in Deep, Mining the High Seas – A Panel Discussion with Dr. Sylvia Earle

Thank you for joining us for Diving in Deep: Mining the High Seas – A Panel Discussion with Dr. Sylvia Earle on June 20th, 2023! 
To stay up-to-date on future Mission Blue virtual events, bookmark our Events page and subscribe to our monthly newsletter!
In this roundtable discussion, moderator Carl Lundin, Advisor, Mission Blue, guided the conversation with Dr. Sylvia Earle, Dr. Sandor Mulsow, Vasser Seydel, and Sian Owen about deep-sea mining in the high seas, and what we are risking by exploiting this largely unexplored living system.
 

You can also view “Deep Trouble” with Dr. Sylvia Earle and Yo-Yo Ma below:

Our Panelists:
Dr. Sylvia Earle, Founder of Mission Blue and National Geographic Explorer in Residence

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The Northeast “Whale Capital” of Iceland Recognized as Mission Blue Hope Spot

(NORTHEAST ICELAND) –
Mission Blue has named Northeast Iceland a Hope Spot in recognition of the area’s rich diversity of marine life, the brilliantly unique ecosystems they reside in, and the work of Hope Spot Champions Belén García Ovide, Dr. Charla Jean Basran, and Eva Björk Káradóttir to encourage formal protections for them. The Northeast Iceland Hope Spot is being honored on the evening of June 5th at the Explorers Club in New York, New York, as part of World Ocean Week celebrations with Dr. Sylvia Earle. 
 
 
Dr. Earle, Founder of Mission Blue, says, “In this area, just beneath the surface, [there is] a vibrant world of geothermal vents, upwelling currents, nutrient-rich waters, and a place where biodiversity proliferates in a dynamic environment.…

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

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