SEACOLOGY E-NEWS UPDATE

Project Updates

PHILIPPINES, Barangay Manamoc, Municipality of Cuyo, Northeastern Palawan
Solar power supply systems for schools and health centers in support of a 267-acre marine protected area
Last month Seacology’s Senior Program Officer, Karen Peterson, traveled to the Philippines and visited Manamoc (right). She reported that the community is very happy with the solar installation and that our project partner, the Andres Soriano Foundation, is executing the project efficiently and effectively. Karen and Seacology’s Philippines Field Representative, Ferdie Marcelo, toured the community hall, elementary school office and library, medical clinic, and high school. Solar panels have been installed on these buildings (left) to power computers and printers, fans, lights, and a defibrillator for the medical clinic. Karen reported that compact fluorescent lights are installed in each building. Karen and Ferdie also toured the village’s mangrove lagoon and visited the marine protected area.
Full Project Description

VANUATU, Port Olry Village, Espiritu Santo
Construction of a community hall in exchange for the creation of a 42-acre terrestrial reserve on two islands for a duration of 20 years
Vanuatu Field Representative, Kevin Tari, and a Seacology Germany board member, Andreas Steffens, visited Port Olry last month. They report that the community center is finished except for painting and it will be completed and opened in October. The group saw some flying foxes during their visit and the local community reports fish returning to the waters in the marine protected area.
Full Project Description

Seacology Germany Launches Landmark Contract to Support Carbon Offset Projects

Taking a course in driving safety is mandatory for Germans in order to keep their driver’s licenses current, so driving safety schools are located throughout the country. A new state-of-the-art facility near Berlin, the Linthe driving safety center (above), attracts 50,000 drivers per year. Seacology’s fledgling European affiliate, Seacology Germany, recently signed a contract with Linthe to offset the carbon emissions that occur during these important driving tests. Philipp Dressel (managing director of the General German Automobile Association driving safety center) and Peter Pistor (president of Seacology Germany) signed the contract on July 11, 2008.

For each completed training session, Linthe donates 1.60 Euro to Seacology’s environmental fund. This year the donation will fund the project in Manamoc, Philippines that Karen visited last month.

We are very grateful to Seacology Germany and the General German Automobile Association (Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club) for their commitment to the carbon offset program, and to all of the people involved in making this innovative transaction possible.

Seacology’s Carbon Offset Fund

As you know from either reading about global warming or perhaps from seeing "An Inconvenient Truth," global warming is a serious threat to the earth’s environment. If you’d like to do something tangible about this environmental challenge, you can offset your own car’s emissions. Seacology now offers a program where, for $40.00, you will receive a special sticker for your automobile (above).

One hundred percent of your donation will go to Seacology’s Carbon Offset Fund, which supports island projects dedicated to renewable energy or reforestation, to offset greenhouse gases caused by fossil fuels. In particular, carbon emissions present an acute threat to coral reefs which can only survive in limited temperature ranges and are damaged by additional infusions of fresh water created by melting ice caps. Instructions for acquiring one of Seacology’s carbon offset stickers can be found on our website.

Seacology Welcomes New Field Representative for French Polynesia

Seacology is pleased to announce that Teurumeriariki Hinano Teavai-Murphy has just been retained as our field representative for French Polynesia. Hinano, who is fluent in Tahitian, English and French, is the associate director of the UC Berkeley Gump Research Station on the island of Moorea. She is responsible for creating and overseeing the cultural and environmental outreach programs of the Atitia Center. Hinano is also president of Te Pu Atitia, a local nonprofit organization with the dual purposes of preserving the environment and Polynesian culture of French Polynesia. Prior to that she was the special advisor to the Minister of Education with particular focus on Tahitian language programs. Seacology is excited to be working with Hinano and looks forward to launching many programs in French Polynesia in the coming years.

Seacology and Undercurrent

Many Seacology supporters who are divers should know about Undercurrent, another nonprofit organization. Undercurrent is a monthly publication that is akin to the Consumer Reports of dive travel. It gives unbiased reviews of dive shops and liveaboards and has related articles about dive safety and dive equipment. Additionally, once a year it publishes a book containing thousands of divers’ comments about dive sites and dive operations throughout the world. Seacology consults Undercurrent before planning any dive trip, which is one of many reasons our trips are so successful. Visit www.undercurrent.org for more information.

Save the Date

Tuesday, September 9: Seacology Reception, New York City
Thursday, October 2: Seacology Prize Ceremony, San Francisco
The recipient: Ómar Ragnarsson, Television Journalist and Editor, Icelandic National Broadcasting System. Through his reporting and independent filming, Ómar Ragnarsson has worked to raise public awareness of massive dam projects being undertaken by Alcoa Aluminum in the remote interior of Iceland. Economic benefits to the country are few, and the environmental devastation of simultaneously filling four major dams threatens to destroy vast areas of pristine wilderness. He remains a hero for the environment as public opposition of the dams continues.
Saturday, October 4: Seacology Reception, Los Angeles
Wednesday, October 15: Seacology Reception, London
Saturday and Sunday, October 25-26: Marin’s Glorious Glass Pumpkin Harvest, San Rafael

More details to follow.

Upcoming Seacology Travel
Red Sea, November 10 - 19

This Fall Seacology will be cruising the Southern Red Sea aboard the Royal Evolution (right), with seven full days of diving opportunities. Trip participants will visit Wadi El Gemal (Valley of the Camels) National Park to see Seacology’s project installing mooring buoys to protect coral reefs. The Red Sea’s large variety of healthy coral and its frequent shark sightings are just two of the reasons that the Red Sea is one of the most popular dive destinations in the world. Please contact Seacology if you are interested in joining this fantastic trip. More details can be found on our website. Please note that divers must have logged at least 50 dives to participate in this expedition.

Seacology Around the Web

Seacology Joins Two New Online Networks: Changents & Twitter!

Seacology's Island Environment Blog