Seaweek’s World Ocean Day celebration at Sir Peter Blake MERC was an opportunity for the community to join a guided intertidal exploration, engage in water activities and be inspired by a series of short films.
Encouraging curiosity; through exploring and learning
The event kicked off in the afternoon with a guided exploration of the rocky reef at the Southern end of the Long Bay-Okura marine reserve. Everyone was excited to peer into rock pools and crevices filled with a wide diversity of intertidal species. There were many animals to look at, from colourful ambush stars, sponges and nudibranchs to well-hidden camouflage crabs and sea hares that blended in with the coralline turf algae.
Everyone was invited to participate in a Bioblitz, a survey of marine life through photos uploaded to iNaturalist. It involves photographing species with a cell phone and uploading them via the iNaturalist app. Through this, we can tell that over 40 different species were recorded during our event – which is really just a fraction of what was observed!
Explore our findings here: inaturalist.org/projects/merc-database
.png)
Connecting with the ocean; in & on water activities
Once everyone had returned from the rocky shore, participants adventured out on MERC’s four giant stand up paddleboards and went for a sunset swim. Following this, refreshed and energized, everyone settled into the hall to share food and watch films.
-1718240415-COPY.png)
Inspiring action; evening film screening
Our event featured a series of films showcasing our beautiful marine environment, research efforts and people taking action. These provided inspiration on the ways action and advocacy can be used to protect the ocean. The film sequence took attendees on a journey; we took a dive into the waters of a wide range of places. From Northeast New Zealand and the Hauraki Gulf, to the Southern Ocean, over to the Pacific Islands, then to the Great Barrier Reef and back to feature local stories from our blue backyard.
You can watch most of these from home, we've put them in a playlist for you which you can start right here:
Press play on the player above and picture this: we dimmed the lights and a loud, clear voice started to play over the speakers, the chatter in the room stopped and eyes became fixed on the screen ahead.
Following this, we played a recently released film from SeaLegacy. This 14-minute mini-documentary takes us beneath the surface, revealing the stark difference between our flourishing, yet rare, protected waters and the more widespread, overfished, and diminished ecosystems.
Dive into the under: A Sea of Hope | Aotearoa New Zealand: The Beauty and The Barrens
Next, we learned about Aotearoa’s manta rays, the challenges they face, and the people committed to studying and protecting them. The full 25-minute film is not yet available online, stay tuned to the Manta Watch New Zealand's social media and look out for screenings near you.
Check out this trailer for: Manta Watch - Discovering Aotearoa's Gentle Giants
In a hugely courageous effort to highlight ocean health, Jono Ridler swam for over thirty-three hours, from Great Barrier Island to Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland. This epic feat of human endurance was driven by Jono’s desire to shine a spotlight on the urgent need for action to restore the health of Tīkapa Moana, Te Moananui-ā-toi, the Hauraki Gulf.
We are awestruck Jono Ridler's courageous efforts: Swim4theGulf
The annual freeze-thaw cycle of the Antarctic sea ice is one of the defining properties of our planet. Antarctica plays a hugely important role in regulating our climate, driving ocean currents and drawing down millions of tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This mini doco gives insight into this incredible ecosystem and what we are learning about it.
Get a new perspective of Antarctica through: Science in the Ross Sea
A call to action from the Pacific Climate Warriors: Matagi Mālohi: Strong Winds
A story inspired by diving The Great Barrier Reef, by Cinematographer Tom Park: The Reef
Residents of Goat Island marine reserve & concerns for their future, by Frances Dickinson: Snapperazzi
-1718141986-COPY.png)
