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Ocean Unite

LATEST STORIES

How could something as simple as a rubber band impact ocean conservation?

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Alexis Valauri-Orton – At the Our Ocean Conference in 2016, The Ocean Foundation made a commitment through the International Ocean Acidification Initiative to train 50 scientists around the world to monitor ocean acidification (OA).
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Alexis Valauri-Orton manages The Ocean Foundation’s International Ocean Acidification Initiative. In her capacity as manager she leads international training workshops for scientists, policymakers, and seafood sector workers, develops low-cost systems for responding to ocean acidification, and oversees a multiyear strategy for enabling countries around the world to address ocean acidification. Beyond the ocean, Alexis’ other love is music: she plays flute, piano, and sings and regularly attends and performs at concerts around town.

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The ocean now has its own dedicated park rangers

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Wietse van der Werf – A social enterprise based in Europe is rocking the boat with a new approach that could greatly increase the level of real-time ocean protection. Starting it hasn’t been without its challenges, but the effort is now gathering momentum in some of the most unlikely quarters.
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After becoming a youth wildlife ranger at the age of nine, Wietse van der Werf was involved in various conservation campaigns from the late 1990s and ultimately crewing on multiple Antarctic expeditions before being awarded the Future for Nature Award in 2016 for his work in citizen-led conservation. Wietse was elected as an Ashoka Fellow in 2018 and has run conservation initiatives in nine countries across Europe.

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The all-women sailing voyage exploring the impact of plastics and toxics in the ocean

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Emily Penn – The last time I was in a plastic accumulation zone – one of the ocean’s five gyres where the world’s waste collects – I was met by clear blue waters.

Emily is a skipper, ocean advocate and artist dedicated to studying environmental challenges in the most remote parts of our planet.

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Are you ready to drink water the London way?

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Fiona Llewellyn—Whether you’re commuting, shopping or sightseeing, touring any city can be a thirsty business.

Fiona is an ocean conservationist with over 12 years’ experience working for environmental NGOs on marine scientific research, policy, practical conservation and campaigns.

In 2016, Fiona and colleagues set up the #OneLess campaign; working to tackle the evident and growing issue of marine plastic pollution by using an iconic item – the single-use plastic water bottle – to challenge our throwaway culture and connect people to the ocean.

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@oceanunite  Twitter Feed

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OceanUnite
LewisPughLewis Pugh@LewisPugh·
3h

Finished my last training swim! Swam 300m. Out safely. Emanuel Guy dressing me as quickly as he can. It’s now a race. British emergency doctor Charlotte Haldane is on standby. I’m absolutely frozen, if you zoom into my fingers you’ll see they’re completely white. #Antarctica2020

oceanuniteOceanUnite@oceanunite·
1h

As the ocean becomes warmer, sea levels rise while marine heatwaves lead to huge coral-bleaching events. A healthy #ocean is vital in the fight against #climatechange, but it has taken a back seat in climate negotiations. https://buff.ly/35QUhm3 via @devex #oceanrisk

TheNickyHawkinsNicky Hawkins@TheNickyHawkins·
22 Jan

"Last year the world woke up to the harm we’re inflicting on our planet. But a treatment plan – not just a grim prognosis – must feature in the stories we tell."

New blog by me on @FrameWorksInst 🌊communications research.

https://www.virgin.com/virgin-unite/it-time-change-oceans-story

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Renee brings nearly a decade of internal operations experience to the Ocean Unite team. Prior to joining the team, Renee worked for eight years at The Pew Charitable Trusts where she began as an administrative assistant supporting their Shark, Tuna, and Whale conservation campaigns as well as the Senior Director of International Ocean Conservation. Particularly adept at identifying operational issues and developing methods to solve them, Renee moved into an operations role working across Pew’s international Ocean conservation projects, then all their environment conservation projects, and later the breadth of Pew’s programmatic work. She has degrees from California State University, San Bernardino, and Temple University in Philadelphia, and recently relocated from Washington, DC, to the California coast. As hard as this team works to protect our magnificent Ocean, Renee is the only person on the team who lives at the beach and relishes in enjoying the beauty of the Ocean every day.

Brittney is Ocean Unite’s digital and social media manager and is a consultant for Communications Inc. Comms Inc. is an agency which works with the not-for-profit sector, with a particular specialism in the ocean and wider environment. They are well known within the international ocean community and enjoy the trust of, and a working relationship with, most of the large international environmental NGOs and coalitions. Recognised for their ability to deliver fast, cost-effective and productive communications and campaigning, they are particularly valued for their strategic contribution based on a sound understanding of the issues, the political landscape within which the issues exist and a creative approach to bringing about change. (www.communicationsinc.co.uk)

One of the principals of Communications Inc., Sophie has nearly 20 years of experience in strategic communications. Comms Inc., is an agency which works with the not for profit sector, with a particular specialism in the ocean and wider environment. They are well known within the international ocean community and enjoy the trust of, and a working relationship with, most of the large international environmental NGOs and coalitions. Recognised for their ability to deliver fast, cost-effective and productive communications and campaigning, they are particularly valued for their strategic contribution based on a sound understanding of the issues, the political landscape within which the issues exist and a creative approach to bringing about change (www.communicationsinc.co.uk).

Nathalie has almost two decades of experience working in environmental advocacy. She worked for over 15 years for Greenpeace International, focusing mainly on biodiversity issues. For many years she worked as Senior Oceans Political Advisor focusing on international ocean governance and marine conservation. More recently she was the deputy director of the Political and Business Unit. She has wide experience of attending and leading delegations at international environmental meetings, including the Convention on Biological Diversity, Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species, and ocean-related negotiations at the UN General Assembly. When asked why she feels strongly about protecting the ocean, she says that not only is it home to the weirdest and most wonderful creatures on the planet, tomorrow’s life-saving drugs could be found at the bottom of the sea, not to mention the discovery of an anti-wrinkle cream that actually works!

Karen has over 25 years of experience working for international non-governmental organisations on environmental issues around the world with a particular focus on protecting marine biodiversity and building resilience to climate change. In 2015, Sack established Ocean Unite, co-founded by Sir Richard Branson and former Costa Rican President José María Figueres, to engage leadership voices and the business community to accelerate ocean health and resilience. Ocean Unite is committed to helping secure the strong protection of 30 per cent of the ocean by 2030. It has also developed a groundbreaking partnership with the insurance sector to address ocean risk.

She was senior director for international oceans at The Pew Charitable Trusts, where she developed their international oceans program including their ending illegal fishing strategy and initiated and was the managing partner of the Global Ocean Commission. Before that she was head of Greenpeace International’s political and business unit and head of their international oceans programme. In 2004, she was the first person from a non-governmental organization to speak at a regular session of the United Nations General Assembly, where she represented the concerns of over 60 environmental organizations from around the world over the plight of our oceans. Karen is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Expert Network. She has master’s degrees in international environmental law and in international political economy.