Tag Archives: Esperanza

“Hope” giving hope

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Crew of the Greenpeace ship, M/Y Esperanza, and volunteers unload supplies from the Esperanza at the port Sasa km10 Wharf in Davao City. The ship transported relief goods from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Save the Children, and ABS-CBN Foundation to the communities devastated by typhoon Pablo (Bopha).

Greenpeace ship the Esperanza transported relief goods to communities in the Philippines devastated by typhoon Pablo (Bopha).Mark Dia, our Regional Oceans Campaigner, is currently serving as our onboard team leader for our Pablo Response mission. He sent us the following update from the field just before the Esperanza made landfall in Davao City on 11 Dec. 2012.

It’s 2230, and I’ve just come back from the bridge of the Esperanza, drawn by the gleam of a light show on our starboard. Up above was the Milky Way, and I was telling Steve, our photographer, that there was no way you could see that many stars in Manila, with all the light pollution.

That’s when it struck me: the coast was pitch black. Continue reading →

Taiwanese people want fish for the future

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Originally posted to Greenpeace International

The warmth of the sun overhead mirrored the warmth of the welcome we received this morning from officials in Keelung, Taiwan. The day dawned sunny, despite warnings of a typhoon moving in on Taiwan, and our press conference to launch this leg of our tour with the Esperanza went ahead successfully.

Sadly, the future for tuna may not be quite as sunny as the skies over Taiwan. Continue reading →

Eavesdropping on whales

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I grew up with the ocean in my life. Being from Southern California, it was only natural to become a diver and body surfer. I have been lucky to swim with coastal dolphins in California, and even dive with humpback whales when I lived in the Cook Islands. These experiences changed me as a person, and  I pursued learning about them in college. Continue reading →

Dear Mr. President: Shell stepped down, will you step up?

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Hello, my name is Anna and I’m an intern with the Greenpeace Activist Network.

Receiving thousands of Save The Arctic petitions

My fellow interns and I are having a fantastic time working here, it’s such a great opportunity. One of the things that we are all very passionate about is saving the Arctic. It’s been so cool to witness how much people care, and their willingness to take action to protect this fragile region. We’ve had over 4500 petitions (4771, to be precise) sent into our San Francisco office alone!

Continue reading →

Truck-sized jellyfish and submarine dives

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Biologist Kirk Sato embarks on submarine dives in the Arctic

Watching the Esperanza move across the horizon of the Bering Sea, I realized I was about to embark on an experience of a lifetime. However, my training at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and more recently the research cruise, San Diego Coastal Expedition, prepared me for the field research I was about to conduct with Greenpeace in Pribilof Canyon.

In 2007, a research team led by John Hocevar (Greenpeace) set out to explore Zemchung and Pribilof Canyons for the first time with submersible technology. During these scientific dives, video recordings and collected samples were analyzed by expert biologists around the world. This process was repeated at 36 sites, a new species of sponge was discovered, and new ecological associations were found. Video footage of habitats rich with biodiversity and of unremarkable complexity were documented. We are now exploring the sites missed in 2007 to get a more complete picture of the canyon’s gems. Continue reading →

Saving the Arctic and what it’s got to do with Russia

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Blogpost by Kumi Naidoo 

  • Today marks my third visit to Russia, the last being in 2006 when I had the privilege of meeting President Putin to talk about the freedoms with which NGOs can operate in this country. In a curious turn of events, and some six years later, both Putin and freedoms are still very much in the news.

    A Greenpeace activist dressed as polar bear on Moscow's Red Square demands immediate global action to protect the Arctic. The activity is part of the 'Arctic Rising' actions which follow the rising sun across the globe on the longest day, June 21st. Greenpeace is campaigning for a global sanctuary around the north pole, and a ban on oil drilling and unsustainable fishing in the wider Arctic.

    You can take your pick from any number of scandals currently making headlines in Russia: planned legislation aimed at hampering NGO activity and the right to protest, draconian laws aimed at internet censorship – even the fallout from the recent performance by punk group Pussy Riot, which has garnered international attention.

    What is different, between my last visit and now, however, is the scale and unbridled nature of the public’s response. Russians have taken to the streets en masse to protest the shrinking democratic space in their country – up to 100,000 at various times in Moscow alone to speak out against Putin’s rule. It’s clear that Russians are no longer prepared to tolerate civil injustices and are increasingly prepared to speak up fearlessly in their own defense. Continue reading →

Photo of the Month – July 2012

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The July Photo of the Month is a powerful image of a Steller sea lion, its head raised high in the air against a beautiful panorama of the Alaskan Arctic.

Dutch Harbor, Alaska

Sea lion, Dutch Harbor, Alaska

   I like the subtle reflection of the giant animal in the glossy mud of the foreshore. He seems rooted in the dark band of earth setting off the lighter upper fur. His posture embodies the rugged angles of the snowy peaks beyond. Continue reading →

A freeway through a playground

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Guest blog by Kelly Newman, acoustician at University of Alaska

Listen to the calls of a killer whale and join us to save the Arctic.

I have been staring out at the Chukchi Sea for days, looking for a blow, a flip, a jump, anything that moves. I am hoping to find whales and seals while Greenpeace marine biologist John Hocevar and his co-pilots survey the seafloor with a small two-person research submarine in the Shell’s proposed drill sites. Continue reading →