HOPE SPOT GOTLAND

Gotland, a limestone island between southeast Sweden and Estonia surrounded by The Baltic Sea provides a marine environment unique in many aspects.  It is the largest brackish body of water in the world and is quite young – it’s approximately just 3,000 years old. Perhaps one of its most distinguishing characteristics is its salinity gradient, which allows its waters to house both saltwater and freshwater species.

“We want the Gotland Hope Spot to trigger hope that comes from being connected to the great variety of life under the surface and what it means to our existence. More than 90 percent of life on our planet is aquatic and in this part of the world, we seldom get to come close enough to explore it. Exploring is also a way of dealing with the anxiety that comes from climate change, and we hope to help children and youth to unleash their curiosity and find ways to be part of protecting the ocean, says Kirsten Åkerman behind the initiative.

Read more: Mission Blue, ocean conservation nonprofit, has named Gotland a Hope Spot in support of the Hope Spot Champions’ goals of bringing ocean awareness to the general public through hands-on and digital educational programs for children and youth. On the island of Gotland, the Swedish mainland and the countries surrounding the Baltic Sea, there are many projects targeting the health of the sea and the marine habitat. The idea is to use the Hope Spot to amplify the work of local NGOs as well as the work of the research community to bring awareness of the Baltic Sea to the public eye and enact change.

About Mission Blue

Mission Blue inspires action to explore and protect the ocean. Led by legendary oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle, Mission Blue is uniting a global coalition to inspire an upwelling of public awareness, access and support for a worldwide network of marine protected areas – Hope Spots. Under Dr. Earle’s leadership, the Mission Blue team implements communications campaigns that elevate Hope Spots to the world stage through documentaries, social media, traditional media and innovative tools like Google Earth. Mission Blue also embarks on regular oceanic expeditions that shed light on these vital ecosystems and build support for their protection. Currently, the Mission Blue alliance includes more than 200 respected ocean conservation groups and like-minded organizations, from large multinational companies to individual scientific teams doing important research. Additionally, Mission Blue supports the work of conservation NGOs that share the mission of building public support for ocean protection. With the concerted effort and passion of people and organizations around the world, Hope Spots can become a reality and form a global network of marine protected areas large enough to restore the ocean, the blue heart of the planet.

“I wish you would use all means at your disposal—films, expeditions, the web, new submarines—to create a campaign to ignite public support for a global network of marine protected areas; Hope Spots large enough to save and restore the blue heart of the planet” Founder Dr. Sylvia Earl

Hope Spots are special places that are critical to the health of the ocean —  Earth’s blue heart. Some Hope Spots are already formally protected, while others still need defined protection. Under Dr. Earle’s leadership, the Mission Blue team has launched a global effort to shed light on these vital ecosystems and ignite support to safeguard them as marine protected areas.

New Hope Spot in the Baltic Sea calls for widespread Ocean Education.

Learn more at Mission Blue

Watch Mission Blue Webinars here

Partners:

About Blue Center Gotland

The Ar Research Station is primarily for research activities but is also used as a venue for small-scale courses, study visits, workshops and other meetings.

The station is engaged in both basic research and applied research with the focus on fish ecology in terms of studying the reproduction, behavior and life-history strategies for both freshwater and marine fish species in the Baltic. This in order to obtain knowledge about the mechanisms that affect population development for different fish species. Both the effects of natural variations in the environmental conditions and the effects of human impacts are studied. The results of the research are intended to form the basis for managing Baltic fish stocks and thus contribute to the long-term sustainable use of the fish resources and favorable development of the Baltic Sea as an ecosystem.

About The Swedish Ship Götheborg

SOIC Ship Management is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Greencarrier AB. Our mission is to ensure that the ship is kept in excellent condition so that she can and will continue to sail on the world seas. After extensive maintenance, including two shipyard visits, as well as lifting and inspecting the mainmast, Götheborg is ready to sail again. She is still the world’s largest wooden ocean-going sailing ship.

The expedition to the Baltics and Baltic sea which was planned for the summer of 2020 had to be postponed due to the pandemic – Covid-19 – that has affected the world. Our focus now is to sail during the spring and summer of 2021. We will look into different options, both near and far away.

We are exited and proud to colaborate with photographer Anders Nyberg. To see more of his work go to www.worldoceanphoto.com