Reduce Trash at Your July 4th Bash
It’s time for the great American barbecues, picnics and parties that—along with patriotic music and fireworks—create great Independence Day memories. Food, drink, décor and fireworks can mean a lot of trash—trash that of...
Reduce Trash at Your July 4th Bash
Earlier this month, Ocean Conservancy marked an exciting new chapter in its 40-year history. The staff celebrated our former President and CEO Vikki Spruill’s 16 years of service to ocean conservation as she embarked on...
Ocean Conservancy Wants to Hear from You
A quiet victim went unseen in many of the images of oil-soaked animals publicized during the BP oil disaster. While many of us were moved by the plight of animals caught up in this man-made disaster, we should also be co...
Wetlands: Going, Going, Gone?
Earlier this month, Ocean Conservancy launched the Trash-Free Challenge to start a movement to reduce the trash we all create. We set out with a simple goal: If we could get 10,000 people to go trash-free for one month,...
How do you live trash-free?
Like a zombie, the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico just won’t seem to really die. Estimates for the size of this year’s dead zone, an area of water so deprived of oxygen that it can’t support life, were just released by...
The UnDead Zone
As I stand along the Santa Cruz shore gazing at the vast Pacific Ocean, all looks well. But a silent, unseen threat looms. We knew ocean acidification was a problem in the Pacific Northwest, where highly corrosive seaw...
Ocean Acidification This Way Comes: A Wake-Up Call for California
One of my happiest family memories comes from a trip when my son was six years old. We arrived at a popular bay on the big island of Hawaii known for its plentiful green sea turtles. I’ll never forget the look on his sma...
Tips for Watching Wildlife: Keeping the “Wild” in the Experience
As George Leonard wrote recently, planning for a stormier, warmer ocean is a daunting but important task. That’s already a reality for those of us living on the Gulf Coast, where sea level rise (compounded by coastal ero...
How the Ocean Helps Keep Carbon Out of the Atmosphere
Suddenly out of the deep blue water appears a whale shark directly beneath me. The gentle giant moved gracefully to the surface of the water and began feeding next to me. I had been snorkeling off the coast of Tofo in Mo...
The Difference Between Whale Sharks and Baleen Whales
TRUE: One of the rarest sharks is called a megamouth shark. TRUE: Some sharks can increase their size by swallowing large amounts of water. FALSE: Like dolphins, sharks do not have scales. Sharks are covered with small,...