Around the globe attention is drawn to our seas for the United Nations celebration of World Oceans Day on June 8. In New England, this also occurs on the doorstep of summer, as boats across the country are making their way back into the water after a long, cold winter. One seaside community in Massachusetts … Read more
The actions and voices of young people across the globe are providing hope for the future of our oceans and waterways. Through Sailors for the Sea’s Clean Regattas program, youth sailors have stepped up to become leaders for environmental stewardship in their local communities. Emma Janson, a volunteer Skipper for Sailors for the Sea, shares her … Read more
Cleaning products are necessary for dissolving and removing dirt, grime, allergens and germs. However, most cleaning products are not made to be directly released into our waterways. Ingredients in certain cleaners can damage fish tissues or persist in the environment and enter the food chain. Some products also contain phosphorous and nitrogen, which can put excess nutrients into the water causing algal blooms which can be harmful to coral reefs and coastal ecosystems. Instead, many cleaning products are created to go through wastewater treatment facilities, where the … Read more
The first day of spring is right around the corner and now is a good time to start thinking about springtime prep before taking your boat out of storage. Check out these 5 reminders to help keep our oceans and waterways healthy before setting sail on the first voyage of the season. Uncovering Did you … Read more
With the vaccine becoming more readily available, and a year’s worth of masking, social distancing and sanitizing under our belts, the world is ready to return to some sense of normalcy. In the northern hemisphere, many of us are gearing up for summer sailing events. We know these regattas will look different than before the … Read more
Liz Clark is a passionate conservationist, sailor, surfer and author of Swell: A Sailing Surfer’s Voyage of Awakening, a memoir which details her time sailing in the open sea while developing a profound connection to the earth and committing to a life of sustainability. Liz learned to sail at seven years old in San Diego, … Read more
Beneath your hull is an underwater world full of beautiful, crucial ecosystems, including seagrass meadows. Generally growing in shallow coastal waterways, seagrasses are found across the globe from the tropics to the Arctic. Healthy seagrass beds have a wide range of positive impacts for our waterways. The dense underwater meadows provide spawning and nursery habitats, areas of refuge, and feeding grounds for many fish and invertebrates. Marine animals, including green sea … Read more
Sailors for the Sea’s Clean Regattas program is the world’s leading sustainability certification for all on-the-water events. Since the program’s inception in 2006, more than 2,600 events with 715,000 sailors and attendees have participated in Clean Regattas in 40 countries across the globe. Based on feedback from dedicated Clean Regattas organizers and volunteers, we have … Read more
2020 was a challenging year for events all around the world, with many regattas cancelled or postponed to future dates. New Zealand’s relatively remote location and strict lockdown guidelines set in place at the beginning of the pandemic have allowed sailing in the country to resume, just as summer began in the Southern Hemisphere. The … Read more
Once a year, an underwater blizzard with billions of colorful flakes occurs in coral reef ecosystems. This natural phenomenon is called coral spawning. Corals are essential to our oceans, but they can’t move around the seafloor to find mates. Instead hard corals reproduce by releasing their eggs and sperm into the water. Based on cues from the lunar cycle and … Read more
