Mission Blue Galapagos Voyage
A Galapagos sea-voyage of 100 people, including Sylvia Earle, 30 of the world’s leading marine scientists, Leonardo DiCaprio, Edward Norton, Glenn Close, Elizabeth Banks, Steve Case, Ted Waitt, Bill Joy, Jackson Browne, Damien Rice, Chevy Chase, and Jean-Michel Cousteau, turned into an epic event that will have significant impact on global efforts to save our oceans. It began with Sylvia Earle’s “one wish to change the world”, and it happened because the individuals and organizations on board chose to engage in a process of emergent collaboration. All of the participants were asked to consider becoming an “Idea champion” by proposing an idea around which a group could form to plan specific action for the oceans. They ended up with eight ambitious ideas and funds to begin implementation:
$1m – complete a package to protect the waters around Galapagos Islands
$1.1m – launch a plan to protect the Sargasso Sea
$2.5m – see the Sargasso Sea plan through to success
$350k – boost ocean exposure in schools
$3.25m – commence a campaign to end fishing subsidies
$10m – kickstart a new partnership to fund longer-term ocean projects
These commitments were not pre-planned, but emerged organically from the discussions on board. The quality of these discussions was boosted by the fact that each of the idea champions had extensive experience of oceans work, and often had an organization in place already working on their chosen issue. Participating organizations, included WildAid, Conservation International, Oceana, National Geographic, the Nature Conservancy, NRDC, and IUCN. By bringing together leading marine scientists, and philanthropists, and thoughtful celebrities, the goal was to boost understanding of, and passion for, the oceans. Real change with real people dreaming big and then acting to make those dreams possible.
Canoe Plants and Awa
`Awa is one of the canoe plants brought by the earliest Polynesian voyagers to Hawaii. `Awa (Piper methysticum) is a hardy plant growing 4 to 12 feet tall, and recognized by its large, heart-shaped leaves that grow up to 12 inches wide, with prominent curved veins. The flower is an inconspicuous narrow yellow-green spike. The root is thick, soft wooded, and needs to mature for 2 to 3 years before achieving the desired potency.
‘Awa grows well at low elevations where there is constant moisture and partial sun, and the Polynesian settlers planted it in various, wet, shady valleys at elevations of 150 to 1,500 feet. There are at least 18 known varieties of in the Hawaiian Islands – the most popular strains being the Mahakea, Mo’i, and Nene varieties. Commonly called kava, its active ingredients are called kavalactones, and is primarily consumed to sedate or relax without disrupting mental clarity. Spiritual leaders used `awa ceremonially as an offering of gratitude to the divine, visitors of high rank, and at special events and festivals. In early Hawaii the chiefs and priests were the principal users of `awa, and the ali’i coveted the sacred kava they called Mo’i which had a strong cerebral effect. It was so revered that no one but royalty could ever experience it. Special cups (`apu `awa) were made from coconut shells and reserved for the ceremony of `awa drinking.
Some varieties were preferred for medicinal uses. To prepare, the root was washed clean, chopped into small pieces, and then pounded with water to create a suspension of kavalactones. This pulp was then mixed with water or the juice of niu (coconut) and squeezed to extract the active ingredients from the ‘awa root. It was used principally as a sedative to induce relaxation and sleep. Those who perform strenuous work – farmers, fishermen, hunters, and paddlers – especially appreciated its properties as a relief for stiffness, tenseness, and muscle fatigue. As a medicine, the roots, leaves, stems, and bark were used for general debility, chills, colds, headaches, lung and other respiratory diseases such as asthma, diabetes, congestion of the urinary tract, as well as for rheumatism. The plant was also used during teething, weaning, and to make feverish or restless young children go to sleep.
Hawaiian Shells and Pacific Jewelry
From the high mountain valleys of New Guinea to the low coral atolls of Hawaii and the remotest specks of Micronesia and Polynesia, the diversity of local cultures was expressed in language, song, dance, mythology, religion, family, costume, architecture, canoe design, and village life. Many of these cultures were in contact with each other, sharing their ideas through exchange, trade, warfare, and marriage. Others were more isolated, especially when long distance ocean voyaging declined. Living on the coasts, they had developed shell working techniques by forming fish hooks, and adze blades. With these techniques they produced shell arm rings, Cone shell discs, and shell beads to become the earliest known examples of Pacific Jewelry. Their shell, stone, wood, and fibre techniques became more and more sophisticated, forming a foundation for future cultures. Jewelry and personal ornaments of whale tooth pendants, bone necklaces, and drilled shell pendants underwent gradual changes for each Polynesian group.
Most Pacific peoples believe in a vital spiritual energy. The materials as well as the designs they wore focused this energy and helped give them control over its power. Within each Pacific culture there was diversity in design. By nature of the materials available, most of their patterns were geometric. Key values of balance, symmetry, reciprocity, growth and replication symbolized their beliefs for future generations. Both consciously and unconsciously, these designs reinforced the values in their daily lives. Traditional jewelry in the Pacific served many more purposes than simple decoration. Pacific peoples decorated and enhanced their bodies to convey a wide range of messages to their fellows and to the outside world. Jewelry served to enhance self esteem and social position, provide physical and symbolic protection, and display wealth, status, rank, and leadership.
Dogs Saving Endangered Species
The Rosy wolfsnail is a cannibal snail that was first introduced to Hawaii in 1955 to eradicate the Giant African snail. (But, as with most all ‘introduced’ species, there is a ‘however’.) However, the Rosy wolfsnail traveled to higher elevations in the mountains of Oahu, and began feeding upon the endangered Achatinella, commonly known as the Oahu tree snail (kahuli). It began eating whole populations of the small snail, causing near extinction within the first year. The rosy wolfsnail has a light brown elongated shell and a light grey, or brown body, with long tentacles that almost touch the ground. This species is a voracious predator, hunting and eating other snails and slugs, and ingesting them whole.
The Army Natural Resource Program is conducting a pilot program to stabilize the population of the endangered Oahu tree snail in eight locations across the Waianae Mountains, where each location includes around 300 snails. Enter Wicket, a 6-year-old Black Labrador Retriever mix, trained by Working Dogs for Conservation, that trains scent-detection dogs to track the scents of endangered or invasive plants and animals. Wicket’s job is sniffing through some of Oahu’s most beautiful forests looking for the Euglandina rosea (Rosy wolfsnail).
Working dogs like Wicket use their keen sense of smell to detect endangered animals and plants around the world. Locating these snails can be difficult because the Rosy wolfsnail doesn’t give off a strong smell, and the search is complicated by other factors like rotting material, moisture, mold, and other smells. Once the dogs find their target smell, they are taught to sit and are rewarded, linking the smell with the reward. Wicket’s reward of choice is her ball, and throughout her training she has successfully located 422 Rosy wolfsnails. Researchers were finding fewer and fewer endangered Achatinella, and if it were not for their efforts in this pilot study, as well as the efforts of dogs like Wicket, a whole population of Oahu tree snails will be gone. Photo by Kayla Overton.
Mission Blue
Mission Blue started with a wish by Sylvia Earle. “I wish you would use all means at your disposal – films, expeditions, the web, more – to ignite public support for a global network of marine protected areas, hope spots large enough to save and restore the ocean, the blue heart of the planet.” Simply put… Mission Blue’s purpose is to explore and care for the ocean. Healthy corals are the heart of a healthy ocean, and marine protected areas can help corals recover from any damage that has occurred. Mission Blue is committed to inspiring change in public awareness for marine protected areas worldwide, ranging from the deepest ocean to sunlit reefs, and from the seamounts of the high seas to coastal seagrass meadows. These Hope Spots don’t just benefit marine life, they benefit humans too.
Hope Spots are special places that are critical to the health of the ocean, Earth’s blue heart. Some of these Hope Spots are already protected, while others are important enough that it is imperative that they be protected. About 12% of the land around the world is now under some form of protection (as national parks, world heritage sites, monuments, etc.), while less than one percent of the ocean is protected in any way. Mission Blue is committed to changing this. Marine protected areas maintain healthy biodiversity, provide a carbon sink, generate life-giving oxygen, preserve critical habitat, and allow low-impact activities like ecotourism to thrive. They are good for the ocean, which means they are good for us.
The Mission Blue team has embarked on a series of expeditions to further this vision and shed light on these ocean Hope Spots. One was a sea voyage to the Galapagos Islands in April 2010, gathering some of the world’s most renowned ocean experts – marine scientists, deep sea explorers, technology innovators, policy makers, business leaders, environmentalists, activists, and artists – for an epic adventure into the blue.
Earth Day And Coastal Restoration
Senator Gaylord Nelson said about Earth Day, “Increasingly, we have come to understand that the wealth of the nation is in its air, water, soil, forests, minerals, lakes, oceans, scenic beauty, wildlife habitats, and biodiversity. That’s the whole economy. That’s where all the economic activity and all the jobs come from.”
He understood that the environment and the economy are inseparable, and the first Earth Day became a catalyst for change. It accelerated passage of the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the forming of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Environmental Protection Agency. In 2009, The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was signed into law providing NOAA with funds to invest in coastal habitat restoration projects.
From North Carolina to Seattle, from New England to Hawaii, the projects are creating and supporting jobs for Americans who are building oyster reefs, restoring coral reefs and wetlands, taking down obsolete dams to restore fish passage, and removing abandoned fishing gear that harms fish and mammals in our coastal waters. Salmon, migratory birds, and turtles are among a wide variety of threatened and endangered species that will be better off because of this restoration work. And we will be better off also. Restored saltmarshes, river bays, and lakes increase opportunities for Americans to enjoy walking, hiking, canoeing, fishing, bird watching, and spending time with families.
This interactive web-based map shows NOAA Recovery Act Projects.
