Turtle Island Restoration Network 

November Newsletter

 

Microplastics Research Underway in Gulf of Mexico

Turtle Island Restoration Network is working with partners Gulf-wide to establish a snapshot of the microplastic issue on our beaches and in our coastal water. This month, with the help of our partners at Moody Gardens, fourth grade students from Oppe Elementary participated in the filtering processes to remove microplastics from sediment and water samples from local beaches. They learned how to identify and quantify microplastics in a sample, as well as the harmful environmental effects from plastic marine debris. Follow our Gulf team's Facebook for updates on our research and do your part to keep plastic out of the ocean!

TIRN Awards Cocos Scholarship to Early Career Conservationist

TIRN has awarded a scholarship for our upcoming Cocos Island Research Expedition to Selene Erantzcani Jacobo Cabral, pictured above, a recent graduate of the Michoacán University of San Nicolás de Hidalgo in Mexico! Selene will help us study, tag, and track sharks and sea turtles with leading environmentalists during the December research expedition to Cocos Island National Park. Congratulations, Selene, and thank you to the 200 students and early professionals from around the world for applying. Crucial conservation work like the Cocos trip is possible because of citizen scientists who engage first-hand in environmental action! Learn more about Selene and the research she will be helping us with and join us on our next Cocos Island Research Expedition. 

TIRN Director Named Honoree of Eleanor Fletcher Award

Todd Steiner, our founder and executive director, has been named Honoree of the Eleanor Fletcher Award at the Loggerhead Marinelife Center’s Go Blue Awards in Florida. Named for the founder of Loggerhead Marinelife Center, the Eleanor Fletcher Award recognizes an individual who has exemplified a lifelong, extraordinary commitment to marine conservation through their work or volunteer activities. Todd has more than 30 years experience in environmental protection and education, devoting his life to activism and saving aquatic creatures. Learn more about Todd's dedication to protecting the world's oceans, streams, and marine wildlife. Congratulations Todd! 

Save the Date: Giving Tuesday is November 27

Whether we are engaging local students in microplastics research or protecting nesting beaches, all of our work at Turtle Island Restoration Network is made possible by the generous gifts of our donors. This November, you can kick off the charitable season by joining the movement of Giving Tuesday, on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving (in the U.S.) and the widely recognized shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Please consider making a donation to Turtle Island Restoration Network this Giving Tuesday. We’ll use your generous gifts to continue fighting the front line battle for the future of our blue-green planet! Join the Giving Tuesday movement by making a donation to Turtle Island today.


'Return of the olive ridley: Sea turtles make a spectaturlar comeback in Mexico' 

 

Although they are still listed as endangered, recent research reveals the olive ridley sea turtle has made a spectatular recovery. According to a recent article from the Los Angeles Times, conservationists credit both legal protections and a generational shift in attitide among Mexicans who once sustained the industrial-scale looting of eggs. Click here to read the article and help support Turtle Island's efforts to protect all sea turtle species.

What once was a concrete retaining wall and patio buried under 4 ft of fill is now a perennial side channel with innovative freshwater shrimp structures that offer habitat for endangered wildlife!

SPAWN update: Phase 1 of the Tocaloma Resoration Project is Complete!

Time has flown by! After 10 weeks, phase I of the Tocaloma Restoration Project is complete. Now, the revegetation and monitoring begins! In total we removed 11,920 cubic yards of fill, concrete, asphalt, and other debris from the floodplain; installed several large woody debris structures, numerous living willow habitats, and 150 feet of endangered California freshwater shrimp habitat structures; and put over 200 pounds of seeds over our newly-graded slopes. Follow SPAWN on Facebook for project updates.

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Turtle Island Restoration Network
PO Box 370, Forest Knolls, CA 94933
415.663.8590
[email protected]

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