By Leona Ritter von Stein. The problem of plastic pollution in the marine environment has become quite popular over the last few years, thanks to many great people out there, who have opened their eyes and hearts, and raised their voices to increase awareness. NGOs, private initiatives and even politics have taken action and reached…
Interview with Raquel Gaião Silva – Winner of the GBIF’s 2018 Young Researchers’ Award
By Nuri Max Steinmann. Raquel Gaião Silva is a recent MSc graduate in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation from Portugal and just won the 2018 Young Researchers’ Award, which is assigned by the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF). She was awarded for her thesis project about the impact of climate change on the distribution of marine…
Interview: How Jammy is fighting plastic pollution in the Philippines
By Nuri Max Steinmann. Jammy grew up on the island of Bohol, located in the Philippine archipelago. The growing problem of plastic, polluting the famous beaches of her island, motivated her to start the campaign Plastic Free Bohol. Her dedication and will to make a difference start to pay off. Hi Jammy! You are from…
Sciaena – Oceans | Conservation | Awareness
By Nicolas Blanc. Science is sometimes seen with a certain degree of skepticism by the general public. Scientists often lack the tools (or willingness) to properly communicate about their research outside conferences and peer-reviewed papers, which leads to an increasingly isolated scientific community, and to no real contact between the general public and science. Furthermore,…
Interview: Marine Conservationist and Storyteller Tom Vierus
By Nuri M. Steinmann. Tom Vierus is a photographer, filmmaker, and marine biologist. While being involved with photography for more than ten years, Tom’s background as a marine biologist is a strong asset in storytelling and allows him to approach assignments with a deep understanding. Besides his strong interest in science and particularly shark ecology…
Marine litter in Portugal: Addressing a global concern with local action
By João Frias. The Associação Portuguesa de Lixo Marinho (APLM) is a Portuguese non-profit non-governmental organisation whose mission is to reduce the impacts of litter in marine, coastal and estuarine ecosystems, while at the same time promoting outreach, awareness and co-responsibility activities based on values of sustainable consumption, citizenship, solidarity and environmental protection, using…
The Black Fish – Working For The Oceans
By Valeska Diemel. The Black Fish is an international organisation that works to end illegal overfishing. Our approach brings together people and the benefits of modern technology to protect the oceans through enforcement of environmental regulations. The Black Fish was founded in Amsterdam in 2010 by a group of young conservationists who set out to…
The Turtles of São Tomé Island
By Ruben Perez Perez. On the forgotten island of São Tomé, sea turtles have been considered a prized food and jewels source since humans landed on the beaches of the archipelago back in the 15th century. These threats have led to a decline of sea turtle population in the region, reaching critical levels. However, in the…
The power of citizen science to protect the mangrove crab in Brazil
By Laura McBride. Often in the pursuit of conserving a species comes the clash between those trying to protect it and those who survive off it. However, a new smartphone app, the brain child of Dr Karen Diele (Edinburgh Napier University/St Abbs Marine Station) and her colleague Dr Anders Schmidt (Federal University of Southern Brazil)…
A spongy success story from Zanzibar
By Nuri M. Steinmann. Christian Vaterlaus and Connie Sacchi from Switzerland wanted to start over and begin a new life. They have done so in a quite bizarre way: They became sponge farmers. In Zanzibar they try to battle poverty, provide sustainable jobs and raise awareness for local marine conservation issues by cultivating sponges. It’s…
