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Welcome to the CMSF monthly newsletter!
This July we are showcasing our recent work with the recreational angling community, season highlights from the Blue Whales and Blue Skies Program and welcoming new staff, interns, and board members!
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Letter from the Executive Director | |
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
Last month California’s Ocean Protection Council (OPC) released a draft decision-making framework for achieving 30x30 conservation goals, which aims to conserve 30% of California’s lands and coastal waters by 2030. This initiative emphasizes protecting and restoring biodiversity, climate change mitigation, and expanding access to nature.
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CMSF supports the state in these 30x30 goals, and as highlighted below, we continue to engage with the angling community to ensure resource users understand the core benefits of California’s marine protected area network and future conservation goals.
We also share the exciting results from the 2023 Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies season, which saw a record 33 global shipping companies reduce ship speeds off the California coast to 10 knots or less in vessel speed reductions zones between San Francisco and LA/Long Beach.
We couldn’t do any of this work without our incredible staff and Board which, as we highlight below, continues to grow to support several critical conservation projects.
Your support is vital to our mission, and we are excited to continue our journey towards preserving California’s rich coastal biodiversity together
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Robert Mazurek
Executive Director
California Marine Sanctuary Foundation
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Marine Conservation in California | |
Connecting with Recreational Anglers
Our team attended 4 major fishing shows in Southern California, directly connecting with over 2,100 anglers about marine conservation initiatives in California. Topics discussed spanned marine protected areas, 30x30, and opportunities for involvement. An overwhelming majority of interactions were positive, with only 35 negative comments made over the estimated 120 hours of exhibiting. All materials were distributed at these outreach events, with only a handful of CDFW brochures left over. We hope to attend again next year and continue to build relationships with this important user group.
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Stacey Lydon, Jenny Selgrath and Katelyn Sprofera at the West Coast Outdoors and Sportfishing Show in Ventura, CA. | |
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Seeking Feedback to Help Manage California's Marine Protected Area (MPA) Network | At its February 2024 meeting, the California Fish and Game Commission (CFGC) referred 20 petitions with over 80 unique requests to amend marine protected area regulations to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) for review, evaluation, and recommendation. Feedback Opportunity: The CFGC has requested public feedback on the draft proposed binning of petitions! | | | |
Blue Whales and Blue Skies Program | |
2023 Season Results
Summer is here and so are the 2023 Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies Season results! In 2023, Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies achieved the highest participation and cooperation levels since its inception in 2014. Of the 462,500 nautical miles of ocean transited by all the ships in the vessel speed reduction (VSR) zones off California, nearly 375,437 nautical miles or 81% were at 10 knots or less, equivalent to traversing the circumference of the Earth more than 15 times. This means more miles were traveled in VSR zones at 10 knots or less reducing impacts on whales, coastal communities, and the planet.
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Ambassador Program
In 2023, ten companies demonstrated their commitment to more sustainable shipping in the Protecting Blue Whales and Blue Skies Ambassadors Program by shipping with our award-winning shipping companies. Ambassadors are in a variety of industries spanning from coffee to consumer goods, united by their commitment to sustainable shipping. Ports, freight forwarders, and logistics companies have also joined. Ambassadors include Nomad Goods, Peak Design, Summit Coffee, Way Basics, Santa Cruz Bicycles, Who Gives a Crap, Sonos, The Block Logistics, the Port of Hueneme, and JAS Worldwide.
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Welcome Aboard, New Staff and Interns | |
Rebecca Tucker,
Corporate Engagement Director,
Blue Whales Blue Skies Program
On June 18th, Rebecca Tucker joined the California Marine Sanctuary Foundation as the Corporate Engagement Director for the Blue Whales Blue Skies Program. She will advance our Corporate Ambassador effort to engage more of the companies shipping with BWBS enrolled carriers. Rebecca has more than a decade of business development experience with a particular focus on renewable energy development and financing, sustainable building and environmental management.
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Previously, Rebecca served as co-chair of the Environmental Social Governance (ESG) group for the law firm Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck. Drawing on her background in environmental science and corporate environmental management, Rebecca provided guidance on natural resources issues and strategic opportunities that come with a broadened risk management approach. Rebecca also led the business development efforts for the firm’s Natural Resources practice, including for the Energy and Cannabis & Industrial Hemp groups.
Rebecca was also a director at a commercial solar financing company, where she managed business relationships for the firm’s partners and led strategy and project due diligence. She was also a vice president of investor relations and business development at a solar development and O&M company in Hawaii. Prior to that, she worked in business development and international markets at Clipper Windpower developing utility-scale wind projects in the United States as well as Central Europe.
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CSU COAST Interns Korina Rodeo and Jasmin Nguyen!
Through the California State University (CSU) system, the Council on Ocean Affairs, Science & Technology (COAST) program partners with federal, state, and non-profit organizations to support college students with paid summer internships geared toward careers in marine policy, ecology, policy, and technology. Korina and Jasmin, who both attend San Diego State University (SDSU), will be joining the CMSF Water Quality Team as interns this summer.
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CSU COAST Intern Jasmin Nguyen: Jasmin is on the Plasticulture team. She is pursuing her B.S degree in Geography with a minor in Art. | |  |
CSU COAST Intern Korina Rodeo: Korina is part of the Urban Water Quality Team and is pursuing a B.S. degree in Environmental Sciences with a minor in International Studies. | | | |
Communications Intern Hannah Whaley
Hannah is a student from London on exchange at UC Santa Barbara. She was recently enrolled in the Impact Media course and internship program at the Carsey-Wolf Center at UCSB, which allows undergraduate students to learn communication tools and strategies and then provides stipends for students to intern with non-profit organizations. Hannah chose CMSF for her internship as she is interested in marine conservation work and learning about non-profit management. Hannah will be supporting our internal and external communications, including social media, as well as assisting with donor stewardship activities.
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Welcome to Our New Board Members | |
Lora Lee Martin has extensive experience impacting public policy at local, state, and federal levels. She has worked on projects ranging from climate change, biodiversity, and oceans to land use, groundwater remediation, and military base conversion. She conceived of, and led, the creation of the University of California's Monterey Bay Education, Science, and Technology (MBEST) Center; an inter-disciplinary and multi-institutional initiative intended to draw upon the research expertise of multiple regional institutions. Lora Lee ran the Sacramento office of the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) and led the development of the first state-based science and technology policy fellowship in the nation, a program that places Ph.D. scientists and engineers in the California State Legislature. | |
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Donna Meyers is the owner and Principal of Conservation Collaborative, a private consulting company. Ms. Meyers has an undergraduate degree in Biology from the University of California Santa Cruz and a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning from California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo.
Donna has served in executive positions for land conservation and groundwater resource protection entities. Donna has completed multi-species conservation, watershed protection, water quality enhancement and coastal resource protection and restoration along the central coast of California. She has served on local, state, and federal expert panels during her career. Donna served 4 years as a City Councilmember
for the City of Santa Cruz, including terms as Mayor and Vice Mayor where she spearheaded environmental and municipal policy development on climate readiness, green workforce job development, and housing.
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Did you know CMSF is hiring? Share the openings on LinkedIn and with your networks! | | |
We are recruiting new board members! Check out the announcement and share with your friends and former colleagues! | | |
Follow Us On Social Media | |
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Let's connect on social media!
We post a lot of program related updates on our social channels so you can keep up on all things CMSF.
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