Big Ocean Business in the Big Apple • Cocos Expedition Report • Live at Depth in the Gulf of Mexico • Big News Coming on World Oceans Day

In this issue... Major gathering at the UN this week... Expedition report from Cocos Island Join us at depth in the Gulf of Mexico Big news coming on World Oceans Day Kicking Off The UN Ocean Conference! June 5th marks the first day of the United Nations Ocean Conference, a major conference energizing efforts to promote ocean sustainability. Dr. Sylvia Earle and Mission Blue are thrilled to be partnering for the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14, life below water. SDG 14 aims to: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development. The Ocean Conference, the first UN conference of its kind, coincides with World Environment Day and World Oceans Day on Thursday (June 8th). Check out the special message from Dr. Sylvia Earle below on why the ocean matters and why we need to protect it! The conference presents an invaluable opportunity for countries, the UN System, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations as well as the private sector, media, and the general public to mobilize urgent and tangible action to reverse the cycle of ocean decline. Mission Blue will be in NYC all week conducting extensive Facebook LIVE interviews with ocean experts about the state of the ocean and what we can collectively do to protect it. Keep an eye on our Facebook page for loads of content coming up! Learn More Cocos Island: A Lesson in Enforcement You don’t need to be a marine biologist to understand why Cocos Island is well worth protecting. While the schools of hammerhead sharks steal the show, the truth is that there are nearly 1,400 marine species identified around Cocos Island with a high degree of endemism. On a single dive, a lucky diver could see multiple species of sharks, mantas, yellowfin tuna, marlin, eels and a profusion of fishes. Good on the Costa Rican government, then, for having created Cocos Island National Park and thus prohibited the entrance of fishing boats within 12 nautical miles around the island. As Mission Blue and our expedition partner Fins Attached cruised back to Puntarenas on the Undersea Hunter vessel, we had time to reflect on the jaw-dropping natural beauty we had witnessed at Cocos Island and the continuing struggle to protect it. The park is officially delineated and, yes, the marine life is thriving there in comparison to many other places on earth. Yet in order for Cocos to bounce back to the health it enjoyed when Dr. Sylvia Earle first dove here in 1972, enhanced enforcement is needed to stem illegal fishing, a practice that still occurs within the boundaries of this precious marine park. Keep Reading Jewels of the Gulf: Deepwater Expedition Join us on June 17th at 11AM Pacific for a Facebook LIVE broadcast from the depths of the Gulf of Mexico. A team of ECOGIG researchers on expedition in the Gulf of Mexico will use a remotely operated vehicle in order to study how deep sea corals and their surrounding ecosystems are continuing to be affected by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The continued monitoring of these ecologically important and beautiful corals - most of which are about 500 years old - is imperative in understanding how oil spills affect deep sea ecosystems. Funding for this expedition is provided by Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative. #jewelsofthegulf Big News Coming on World Oceans Day! Mission Blue inspires action to explore and protect the ocean. Will you join us? Support Mission Blue Shop Mission Blue Nominate a Hope Spot Facebook Twitter Website Pinterest LinkedIn Instagram Copyright © 2017 Mission Blue, All rights reserved. You signed up at an event or online Our mailing address is: Mission Blue P.O. Box 6882 Napa, CA 94581 Add us to your address book