Sydney Coast Hope Spot
(c) Nick Dawkins
Dr. Sylvia Earle introduced the concept of Hope Spots in her 2009 TED talk on her mission to create a wave of support from the grass roots for ocean conservation. What makes Hope Spots special is that it’s the only global platform for recognising places in the marine world that comes from the global community. In the end, the shared goal of a Hope Spot is to create a wave of support for ocean conservation that leaders and policy makers can’t ignore.
National Geographic Society Explorer-in-Residence Dr. Sylvia Earle, billed “First Hero for the Planet” by Time Magazine is an oceanographer, explorer, author and lecturer who has led over 100 expeditions and logged over 7,000 hours underwater.
She is the founder of the Sylvia Earle Alliance/Mission Blue, a TED Prize winner and the subject of the Emmy® Award Winning Netflix documentary Mission Blue. Formerly Chief Scientist of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and has a record solo dive to 1,000 meters and nine saturation dives including leading the first team of female aquanauts during the Tektite Project. She has been awarded more than 100 national and international honours.
Dr. Sylvia A. Earle — Her Deepness
The Sydney Coast Hope Spot
The Ocean Lovers Festival has secured a Hope Spot for the Sydney Coast region including the famous Sydney Harbour. Bestowed in 2019, this achievement recognises the optimism and desire of the Sydney community to clean our ocean backyard and protect its precious species for all to enjoy and for the future. As a major metropolis perched on the edge of this marine paradise, the community has already achieved amazing outcomes to clean up, restore and recognise our ocean asset. Led by scientists, citizens and engaged businesses we are on the path already to restoring a pristine environment and the Festival was able to showcase two amazing collaborative local ocean projects at the 2019 Festival.
Championed by Festival founder Anita Kolni in partnership with Underwater Earth.“It is a dream come true not just for our festival, but for all our Sydney ocean lovers to have the support of Mission Blue to recognise Sydney’s cherished coastline on the international stage with a Hope Spot.” Festival founder Anita Kolni.
A dive into Sydney’s striking blue waters will reveal more than 600 species of vibrantly coloured fish including the weedy seadragon and the Eastern blue devilfish – magnificent species found nowhere else in the world. Sydney is also on the humpback and Southern right whale migration routes with historic Southern right whale calving grounds in Sydney Harbour. Sydney Harbour is also home to the last mainland colony of little penguins on the New South Wales coast, who only grow to 33cm and are the smallest penguins on Earth!
The Sydney Coast Hope Spot is an investment into the future that can ensure we pass a healthy legacy on to the next generation. The solution includes reducing our carbon footprint, rejecting single-use plastic and promoting responsible development policy in Sydney.
Sydney’s coastal waters are the pride and joy of the region and perhaps one of the Australia's greatest assets with more than 13 million visitors flocking to our beaches every year to enjoy our glowing sun and inspiring marine life.
The treasures of the Sydney coast need to be preserved, and with the public’s involvement and support, we can ensure a healthy future for Sydney’s marine ecosystem and of the rest of the world’s oceans, as well.
Final word from Dr. Sylvia Earle
“I'm haunted by the thought of what Ray Anderson calls "tomorrow's child," asking why we didn't do something on our watch to save sharks and bluefin tuna and squids and coral reefs and the living ocean while there still was time. Well, now is that time. I hope for your help to explore and protect the wild ocean in ways that will restore the health and, in so doing, secure hope for humankind. Health to the ocean means health for us. The Sydney Coast Hope Spot is a guiding light in our mission to ignite global support for a network of marine protected areas. Let’s get to work!”
- Dr. Sylvia Earle
(c) Mike Scotland
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