Hello, fellow Climate Action Families!
My name is Ruby, and I work for CAF doing graphic design, social media, and outreach. But today I wanted to share with you a story of an adventure I got to go on this last month in none other than Antarctica. I had the privilege of joining some family on an expedition to the Antarctic Peninsula, South Georgia Island, and the Falkland/ Malvinas Islands. Aboard the ship was the amazing national geographic photographer Ami Vitali, who led photography workshops and lectures on the art of storytelling. She was such an amazing soul to get to know. If you don’t already follow her, I recommend checking her and her nonprofit, Vital Impacts, as she uses her talent with photography to spread awareness on many environmental issues.
We also could participate in citizen science programs while on board! During our voyage, we worked with onboard scientist specialists to participate in bird surveys, cloud observations, whale identification, snow algae, and so much more! Polar Latitudes did a phenomenal job providing a conformable voyage and being very aware of our environmental impacts as visitors to this extremely fragile environment. Between every landing we did on our trip, we had to do biosecurity checks where crew members helped us clean our gear to ensure no dirt, seeds, hair, etc., from previous landings would be transferred when we moved sites. We also had to be super careful when on land to keep a safe distance (15 feet) from all wildlife out of respect for them and to prevent the spread of avian flu.
We saw so much wildlife, including six species of penguin, three species of seals, Orca, Fin whales, humpback whales, and dolphins! As well as so many kinds of seabirds. I feel so incredibly lucky to have witnessed this incredible and vast place, to see icebergs bigger than football fields, and to get to do a polar plunge into ANTARCTIC WATER (wild, I know). However, these environments are so incredibly fragile and learning how to protect them is of the utmost importance, as I’m sure many of you know. If you are interested in learning more about programs that can help, here is some of the information/ organizations they shared with us on board.
IAATO is a member organization founded in 1991 to advocate and promote the practice of safe and environmentally responsible private-sector travel to the Antarctic. Antarctic Ambassadors is a collaboration of people who care passionately about Antarctica & protecting its unique landscape. The Polar Citizen Science Collective creates opportunities for research and public education through citizen science, leveraging the reach of polar travelers to enhance understanding and protection of the polar regions; including things you can do at home! The ocean surrounding the Falkland Islands is threatened by open-pen farming and the introduction of carnivorous fish to Falkland waters. Salmon Free Falklands aim to protect these areas from inappropriate development but cannot achieve their goals alone.
Here you see the citizen science program sampling water, Me with thousands of King penguins in a giant colony, a very cute fur seal, and a Rockhopper penguin with an egg ( personal highlight for me)!
