5 Things You Can Do To Help Celebrate Worlds Ocean Day & National Ocean Month!

Take the Seafood Pledge for Worlds Ocean Day!

Today is World Oceans Day and on behalf of the world’s oceans and the Sea Turtle Restoration Project, I want to acknowledge the hard work these fine folks are doing and ask your support to help protect sea turtles and our precious oceans for all of us. Please join me and my fellow cruisers and help any way you can!

June is worth celebrating!

President Obama recently signed proclamations designating June as Great Outdoors Month and National Oceans Month.

“Both proclamations are an exceptional recognition for the value of our nation’s waterways and reinforce the vital role fishing and boating play in strengthening the U.S. economy and providing a means for Americans to ‘explore, play and grow together,” the National Marine Manufacturers Association said in a statement.

In his proclamation of Great Outdoors Month, Obama says, “This month, let each of us resolve to protect our great outdoors; discover their wonders; and share them with our friends, our neighbors, and our children.”  You can Read the proclamation Here.

West Marine Grants $30K to non-profits who protect marine habitats

In honor of World Oceans Day, West Marine, the largest specialty retailer of boating supplies and accessories, today announced the recipients of their annual Marine Conservation Grants program.  Grants for a total amount of $30,000 are being awarded to non-profit organizations throughout the U.S. who are working to “improve and protect marine habitat,” which is part of West Marine’s mission.  This year’s grant recipients are located in Florida, North Carolina, New Jersey, Maryland and California. For more info and a list of the recipients, go to Conservation Grants.

Here’s a few things you can do…

to participate in World Oceans Day and to help celebrate World Turtle Day on June 16th.

1. Celebrate World Turtle Day June 16 with sea turtle scientists at the Cal Academy Night Life in Golden Gate Park. Pacific leatherback expert Scott Benson will reveal the latest findings about these rare and mysterious sea turtles. Join the Sea Turtle Restoration Project community at a party for the sea turtles at the incredible California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco! If you can help STRP and volunteer, send an email to info@seaturtles.org

2. “I pledge to protect myself against mercury”

   Sadly, capture and drowning in shrimp trawl, swordfish and tuna fishing gear is the leading cause of deaths of sea turtles from human activity. By not eating this fish we can reduce demand for it and the need for more fishing. Much of this fish is also high in mercury. Join the over 1,100 ocean lovers and –  Take the Pledge Here!

3. Visit Your Local Aquarium
   Many aquariums do fantastic research an advocacy for oceans, and the funds they receive from patrons can help them keep afloat, so to speak. Not only that, but you learn so much about local and exotic sealife. It’s hard to visit an aquarium and not walk away with a soft spot for marine ecosystems and fish.
4. Donate to a Favorite Ocean Advocacy Group
   There are a range of nonprofits working to help the ocean, and they need your help. Why not send a little something (or a lot something) to one or a few groups making a difference. I recommend SeaTurles.org, Conservation International, or Save Our Seas, just to name a few.
5. Sign the Care2 “Save Sharks” Petition
   As many as 73 million or more sharks are killed every year for shark fin soup. Around the world populations of these important predators are collapsing and species are going extinct. Many species such as the oceanic white tip and great hammerhead have dropped by 99% in just the last 50 years. They may strike fear in many, but we really do need them in the big picture! Sign Care2’s petition to help save sharks today, and protect this vital species from extinction.

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The Whale…An amazing story!

I just had to share this amazing story with all of you…

Enjoy!

“The Whale… If you read a recent front page story of the San Francisco Chronicle, you would have read about a female humpback whale who had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso, a line tugging in her mouth. A fisherman spotted her just east of the Farallon Islands (outside the Golden Gate) and radioed an environmental group for help. Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so bad off, the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her. They worked for hours with curved knives and eventually freed her. When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles. She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, and nudged them, pushed them gently around as she was thanking them. Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives. The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth said her eyes were following him the whole time, and he will never be the same”

May you, and all those you love, be so blessed and fortunate to be surrounded by people who will help you get untangled from the things that are binding you.

And, may you always know the joy of giving and receiving gratitude.

I pass this on to you, my friends, in the same spirit.

Namaste,

-Nancy

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Angels of the Seas creates conservation contest

Angels of the Seas, a campaign focused on conservation projects, has launched a conservation contest to allow individuals, corporations, conservation groups, grass-roots organizations and tournaments to compete for honors for their efforts in conservation, the company stated in a press release.

Betty Bauman (right), Nancy Birnbaum (bottom) shark huggers!

The founder of Angels of the Seas, Betty Bauman, started the campaign in order to increase the number of conservation projects.

Bauman is founder of the “Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing!” Seminars series held annually thoughout Florida, knows just how important conservation is.

“Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing!”has focused on conservation at the seminars and now, through its parent company’s alliance with the Save Our Seas Foundation (SOSF) we are launching the Angels of the Seas Conservation Initiative, where you can create a conservation or awareness project and be recognized for it. No matter how big or small, every effort counts.

“Right now, especially with the Gulf Oil spill, the nation has become focused on the importance of marine conservation. It’s time for those who make a difference to be recognized with a Nobel-style program,” she stated in the release.

Joining with Save Our Seas Foundation, a non-profit organization supporting conservation, the campaign allows organizations to submit their conservation projects for honors at the Miami Boat Show in February 2011 through Web-based entries into different categories. Organizations, individuals and groups can request an entry form by e-mailing AngelsOfTheSeas@gmail.com.

“We have decided to open this contest to the entire marine industry and organizations, as the more people we have starting conservation projects, the better it is for marine life,”  Bauman stated in the release.

You have until Jan. 15, 2011 to complete your project. There will be two tiers of awards, Interim Honors and Final Awards. Projects that have submitted web pages and have made progress by Oct. 15, 2010 will be eligible for Interim Honors at the Islamorada seminar kickoff event on November 12, and still be eligible for final awards (submit web pages by Jan. 15) made at the Miami Boat Show February 17-21, 2011.

Pick your favorite marine issue and do something about it! It can be as easy as organizing a group to gather litter from the water or writing a web-based educational flier, poster or booklet about conservation that you can also print and distribute.
They have also included conservation education so that individuals can participate, and spread marine stewardship behaviors to communities. There’s even a category for existing conservation groups to compete head-to-head.

This is a call-to-action is aimed at grass-roots levels. In the spirit of conservation, this is open to women’s teams as well as mixed teams.

For details and to enter, go to: Angels of the Seas Conservation Initiative,

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