With 2022 coming to an end, we want to thank all of our donors, travelers, and partners for helping us continue our work to deepen the connections between people and nature to build a more oceanic society. Together we achieved many noteworthy accomplishments as we worked to connect people to the ocean and build a movement dedicated to solving the key ocean problems of our time. Our achievements in 2022 are summarized below.
As the end of the year approaches, we ask you to please consider making a tax-deductible donation to our ocean conservation work—with your support, we can continue these important programs in 2023 and beyond. And, thanks to the generosity of two of our long-time supporters, your donations will be matched 1:1 through December 31, 2022. Your end-of-year donation will go directly toward our ocean conservation programs, including efforts to fight plastic pollution, save sea turtles, study whales, improve access to ocean experiences in San Francisco, and engage people worldwide in ocean conservation action.
Critter Scholars Program
Our Critter Scholars Program provides life-changing ocean experiences to underserved student groups in the San Francisco Bay Area.
8 Free Educational Cruises Provided
331 Students and Educators Served
89% of Students Experienced the Ocean from a Boat for the First Time
100% of Participating Teachers Reported High Satisfaction
We provided 8 free educational cruises for 331 students and teachers from underserved Bay Area communities 2022.
Launched in 2017, Oceanic Society’s Critters Scholars Program gives life-changing, free-of-charge educational boat cruises to underserved Bay Area student groups. We were thrilled to be able to lead 8 Critter Scholars Program cruises for 285 students and 46 teachers from 6 different Bay Area schools. 89% of participating students experienced the ocean from a boat for the first time, and 100% of teachers reported high satisfaction with the program (read more). We are seeking additional funding to continue and expand this program in 2023.
Sea Turtle Conservation
We support and strengthen local sea turtle conservation programs worldwide, because sea turtles are powerful flagships for ocean conservation.
300,000+ Data Points Mapped
18 Small Grants Awarded
16 Articles Published
50,000+ People Reached Online
We published the 17th annual State of the World’s Sea Turtles Report and provided 18 small grants for sea turtle conservation in 2022. © Tui de Roy / Roving Tortoise Photos
Our State of the World’s Sea Turtles Program is a global effort to study and protect sea turtles and their habitats, and to leverage the amazing charisma of sea turtles to drive ocean conservation action. In 2022 we published the 17th volume of the award-winning State of the World’s Sea Turtles (SWOT) Report, which is distributed free-of-charge to research and conservation programs worldwide. For the report, we produced a special feature on hawksbill turtles, plus a range of articles about important sea turtle conservation topics; our digital articles reached more than 50,000 people online.
We also awarded 18 small grants to high-priority sea turtle research and conservation projects in Antigua, Argentina, Costa Rica, Kenya, Madagascar, Mexico, Venezuela, West Africa, and the United States. Since 2006, SWOT’s small grants have helped field-based partners around the world to realize an array of important research and conservation goals. To date, 141 grants have been awarded to 116 applicants in more than 56 countries and territories.
Blue Habits Program
We’re using cutting edge behavioral science to go beyond simply ‘raising awareness’ to motivate and sustain ocean-friendly behaviors that positively impact ocean health.
15+ Million People Reached Online
10 Coastal Cleanups Completed
5,000+ Pounds of Trash Cleaned from the Environment
6 Community Events Hosted
We led and supported more than 10 coastal cleanups in 2022 that removed more than 2.5 tons of marine litter from oceans and coasts worldwide. © Paddling Palau
In 2022, our Blue Habits program engaged thousands of people worldwide in actions that support healthy oceans, ranging from fighting plastic pollution to making sustainable seafood choices and reducing carbon footprint. We continued to develop and support our Blue Habits community, including through 6 in-person events that brought together ocean-lovers to learn about our oceans and take action to protect them.
This year, we also launched the Global Ocean Cleanup, a worldwide campaign to fight ocean plastic pollution that brought together 8 organizations, 400+ volunteers, 7 art competition judges, and multiple corporate partners. Together, we cleaned 4,598 pounds of trash from critical ocean habitats in 5 countries and 3 U.S states and transformed the waste into beautiful artwork to inspire change. Our associated digital campaign reached more than 15 million people with behavior science-backed messaging around plastic pollution.
Conservation Travel
We lead global nature travel programs and California whale watching tours that support ocean conservation through our unique non-profit model.
$311,733 Generated for Conservation
892 Travelers Served
52 Whale Flukes Photographed
77 Educational Trips Provided
1 Expedition Impact Fund Grant Awarded
50,000+ Pounds of Trash Removed through our New Traveler Plastic Pollution Offset Program
1 New Short Film Exploring Sustainable Tourism
We provided educational nature travel experiences for 892 travelers in 2022 and enjoyed many wonderful wildlife sightings such as these killer whales seen near the Farallon Islands. Our travel programs generated $311,773 for ocean conservation, and supported the removal of more than 50,000 pounds (25 tons) of trash from Kenya’s coast through our new Traveler Plastic Offset Program
With some new health and safety precautions, our whale watching and international trips served 892 travelers who participated in 77 educational travel experiences. Our expeditions and whale watching tours generated $311,773 for ocean conservation work by Oceanic Society and our partners worldwide.
The COVID pandemic brought dramatic changes to the way we live, and many people are looking to create a new and better version of their “normal” life. For those who love to travel, this can mean a new or renewed commitment to assure that our travel has a positive impact on the places we visit. For ocean lovers and conservationists like us, the obvious question to ask is: How can tourism support healthy oceans? Thankfully, that is a question that Oceanic Society and our partners have been working to answer since 1969 through our groundbreaking whale watching and nature travel programs. In our short video, launched in May 2022, we explored this question by examining our past, present, and future travel programs in Belize, a country to which we have been leading tours for more than 30 years.
This year we also proudly launched our new Traveler Plastic Pollution Offset Program in partnership with Watamu Marine Association in Kenya. Through the program, we are funding the removal of an average of 200 pounds of marine litter from the environment for each traveler who joins one of our international nature expeditions. With more than 250 international travelers joining us in the first year of the program, we have already sponsored the removal of more than 50,000 pounds (25 tons) of trash!
We are grateful to all of our supporters, travelers, and community members for contributing to our success this year—thank you all!
You can help us keep our ocean conservation programs going strong in 2023 with an end of year donation! Thanks to the generosity of two of our long-time supporters, your donations will be matched 1:1 through December 31, 2022 up to $25,000.
