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31 May 2006
New communications technology
by Elaine, onboard theEsperanza
Our new advisor shows Captain Frank
where the tuna really are...
©Gavin Newman
We have a new visitor onboard - he/she seems perfectly comfortable in the bridge and demanded water on arrival. Check the out the "pigeon cam" now...
PIGEON UPDATE: Alas - the pigeon has flown the coop - fed, watered and rested. He/she was apparently Maltese (there are people on this ship who know about pigeons...) and well, we hope Chief/Polly makes it back home ok. We hope you enjoyed the "pigeon cam" while it lasted!
Video blog - tunatastic...
by Elaine, onboard the Esperanza
Well, where are they?
©Gavin Newman
Why aren't the blue fin where they're supposed to be - in the Balaeric Islands? Find out where all the tuna in the Mediterranean have gone with the crew of the Esperanza.
Watch Ocean Defenders TV
30 May 2006
Keeping an eye on the ship
by Elaine, well and truly onboard the Esperanza
The nameless wireless
webcam ready for walkies
©Gavin Newman
We have a new addition to our webby family onboard the Esperanza, it's the mobile webcam. Down girl (she's a little bit excited about going "live" today). She's wireless and wonderful - and we're going to take her out for walks and maybe even rides... Your eye on the Esperanza will be touring about everyday after lunch and whenever anyone feels like taking her out.
So check the webcam at 1pm GMT (after the humans have had their feed) and you can see a little more of life on the Esperanza through the eye of the so far nameless mobile webcam (we need a name for her so please get creative).
29 May 2006
Row, row, row your green boat
by Ido, onboard the Esperanza
Sun set on the
Mediterranean
©Gavin Newman
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27 May 2006
Hello and goodbye
by Elaine, finally onboard the Esperanza
Happy landing
Dorothee and Hugh in Tweety
©Gavin Newman
Heaving our overweight bags in the bright Barcelona sunshine we come round the corner of the dock to see the Esperanza (Espy) - "GREENPEACE" emblazoned on the helihanger - and it feels like coming home.
Strolling around the ship, the smells are more familiar than the sights - oil, cooking, exhaust fumes and the toilets combine with strange scents of things unidentified (and probably best left that way). There are many familiar faces in the new crew, some I've worked with and some I gotten to know reading the weblogs.
The Espy has been refuelled, watered and fed (literally tonnes of food brought onboard for the months ahead).
So, saying hello goes hand in hand with saying good-bye. The lovely radio operator Thom - the last of our hard working West Africa Pirates/Azores crew - waves us off as we head out to sea. We pause briefly to let Tweety the helicopter land with it's precious cargo of Dorothee our garbologist and Hughie the pilot, just in time for lunch.
In the weeks ahead we'll be focusing on the (once) wonderful world of the Northern bluefin tuna. One of the most profitable fishing industries in the Mediterranean is facing a bleak future with the introduction of tuna ranching, a shady form of fish farming.
22 May 2006
Open day in sunny Barcelona
by Slade, currently visiting the Esperanza
Nice parking spot!
©Slade Gray
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20 May 2006
Natasha - Deckhand
From: Malta
What is the meaning of life?
If anyone knows the answer to this please let me know.
What's your favourite song?
I have no particular song that I like. My choice of music reflect the mood that I am in.
If you were marine animal, which one would you be?
This is hard to decide. For me the two most cutest animals are marine animals, penguins and the marine iguanas from the Galapagos Islands.
Essential survival item for spending time onboard a Greenpeace ship?
Lots of chocolate
Daniel - Deckhand
From: Switzerland
Normally I'm in charge for Greenpeace Switzerland, this since six years. My first education is something between draftsman and engineer (you can learn this profession only in Switzerland and Germany), my second education is specialist for nature and environment. On my daily work I can bring my know-how together. I made several trips on a whale research boat in the Mediterranean - actually I really love this small, but very rich sea.
The seas and all the species who live in there are very important for me. I hope we can reach our aim with the defending our oceans campaign and set 40 percent of the worlds oceans including the Mediterranean under protection. I hope as well that we can safe the tuna. It makes me sad and angry when I think that 80 percent of this beautiful fish has gone.
Read all about Daniels experience on the Esperanza on the German weblog.
Elaine - Webby
From: Ummm
Likes to make things pretty, spends way too much time in front of a computer. Has a newly found and seemingly unhealthy fascination with animating things. Has been doing "stuff" for Greenpeace since the last millenium. Gave up the life of a freelance designer in Bondi (you know - that place with the long white sandy beach with the nice sunsets and great weather) to work "fulltime" in Amsterdam. She likes it there - they ride bicycles a lot.
Has been allowed out for some air and some sunshine after moving from Australian winter to Dutch winter. This is her second trip on the Esperanza, the first had a lot to do with cod.
Gavin - Photographer & Videographer
From: the UK
Unlike a surprisingly large number of people that I meet on Greenpeace boats I'm not multicultural and dont speak two or three languages fluently. I'm the typical Englishman. Born in London, always lived in England and only speak one language, English!
I first worked with Greenpeace 13 years ago when they were looking for an underwater cameraman and photographer to dive on Driftnets at 3am in the morning. A mutual friend suggested he might know someone mad enough to do that and so my Greenpeace life began. Since then I've dived on every kind of fishing net you can think of, taken samples from undersea nuclear pipelines, camped on the arctic sea sea ice, swam with whales and been shot at by fishermen. Life as a Greenpeace cameraman can be unpredictable but rarely dull.
I specialise in underwater and underground filming and photography, equally happy behind a video or stills camera. When I'm not working with Greenpeace I spend my time either beneath the waves or down caves working for clients such as dive magazines and the BBC with the odd very boring corporate video shoot thrown in to pay the bills...
I love the challenge of trying to find new ways to film and photo things often building specialised filming rigs to the get the shot and Greenpeace offers many opportunities to meet these challenges. Onboard the Esperanza you're as likely to find me in the engineering workshop building yet another strange camera mount as in the edit suite or photo room.
Diving with sharks... no problem.. flying my motorised paraglider.. no problem.. underwater caves.. no problem.. spiders... utterly terrifying...
You can see some more of my work for Greenpeace and others on my website at: www.underworld-productions.com
Hughie - Chopper Pilot
Hi, my name is Hughie, and I am the helicopter pilot.
I am from the Isle of Mull, in Scotland, but now live on the mainland near Inverness. I was educated, for the most part, on the Island, where I left school at 14. Since then I have gained various degrees in business management and aviation.
My involvement with Greenpeace has been a life enhancing experience over the last 16+ years that I have worked for them. Travelling to many remote areas all over the world, and witnessing the individual and corporate destruction of our planet. Flying over the visible land areas that have been destroyed is a privilege that is given to few. With a dedicated film team, we endeavour to capture the images to relay them to the world. When viewed as a photo, a lot is lost. This is no fault of the camera crew, but the fact that you cannot envisage the magnitude of the damage. Places that come to mind are Patagonia, the Amazon rain forest, and Alaska.
The helicopter is a Hughes 500d. It is small (4 people), fast (130kt), and manoeuvrable. On certain campaigns it is invaluable. This year we were in Greenland, documenting glacial melting, and were privileged to have two scientists from Maine with us to conduct the survey. By being able to land right on the top of the calving face of these huge ice flows, and with the scientists being able to place their equipment in a situation that has never been done before, they were able to gather information that has lead to groundbreaking scientific papers. They have previously conducted these surveys working with government bodies, but their conclusion was that we offered a more flexible and professional platform than they had previously encountered. Thank you Gordon and Leigh.
This is a common role for the heli, being used to gain access to inaccessible territory, and gathering images that cannot otherwise be got. She is also used in many action situations to gather images, and as a safety back up to monitor situations. When in remote areas it is a vital link should anybody need serious medical attention. This is not a privilege that we reserve for ourselves, as we have taken many people from remote areas to our own hospital on the ship.
When I do not work for Greenpeace my time is divided between my family, and delivering small aircraft for clients between Europe / Africa and the USA / Canada. My main hobby at home is building Land Rovers and competing in 4x4 off road competitions.
Prior to working for Greenpeace I have worked on trawlers, owned a trucking company, and a forest harvesting company - poacher turned gamekeeper ?? I don't think so, but I do have an insight into how people 'on the other side' think, and that, to me, is important.
Sometimes you have to think of the implications of your actions very carefully. Are they going to get to the corporation, or simply mess up a lot of hard working people in a small community? It is a difficult roll to play but with the enthusiasm of young people and the cynicism of us older ones, we do, at the end of the day, make a unique team of dedicated people.
Mathijs - 2nd mate
Netherlands
Now I find myself among a crew I have come to think of as my friends and familly, and a cause in wich I'm very involved for I love being at sea. There is no other place I would rather be.
What is the meaning of life?
I dunno, I just take it as it comes.
What's your favourite song / karaoke song
I have many and they change constantly, but I supose Nothing Else Matters by Metallica cause it is always in my top 5 :))
If you were marine animal, which one would you be?
A duck, without a doubt!!
Essential survival item for spending time onboard a Greenpeace ship?
My guitar, but that applies for all ships and where ever I go actually, I never leave home without her
Frank - Captain
From: the Netherlands
I am from the Netherlands and first went to sea as a ship's boy when I was 17 years old to see what it was like - I've been sailing ever since. I came to Greenpeace having had direct experience of the oil industry - towing oil rigs from Borneo to the Nigerian river delta and bringing flareblooms to oil rigs in the North Sea. I've now worked on numerous Greenpeace campaigns around the world; from climate campaign work in the Arctic Ocean, to surveying the Persian Gulf after the "oil war" in Kuwait, and anti-whaling work in the Southern Oceans.
Dorothee - Volunteer Deckhand
Dorothee - Volunteer Deckhand
From: Luxembourg
How come you're working on 'Defending our Oceans'?
Well, after having nearly completed my geography studies now, and before starting a job, I wanted to get involved with environmental protection work. Last year I volunteered at Greenpeace Luxembourg and they told me about this expedition and I was all for it. So, here I am.
What are you looking forward to most in this campaign?
I'm looking forward to meet the different people on board and to learn more about the scientific aspect of this expedition. I'm glad to be a part of the crew and I hope that my work on board will contribute to the success of the campaign. And, of course, I really hope to see at least one whale.
What personal connection do you have to the ocean (if any?)
Since Luxembourg obviously doesn't have any sea access, I only got to the ocean during holidays. But every time I get near the water, it makes me feel inspired and relaxed. Its grandeur is fascinating. I also love the scent of the ocean and I love feeling the wind blowing whilst being on a boat.
What made you follow your chosen profession?
I've been studying geography for five years now and the most intriguing aspect is the overlapping of subjects: It discusses topics from urban and environmental planning to the potentials and drawbacks of global tourism, from the development of the earth to the current issue of climate change. Furthermore geography often combines the theoretical with the practical and is looking for solutions and alternatives to existing problems. This is so needed for a global understanding of the world's woes.
Anything else you'd like to say?
A lot of people dont know or don't want to know what's happening out there. That's why it's even more important to inform them about the multiple problems and threats that our oceans are facing right now, but also about the ways that are getting explored to find a compromise between commerce and protection. Most people take Nature for granted and are unaware of the ongoing, merciless exploitation. We need to change that perception; otherwise future generations wont have the possibility to experience this abundant wildlife firsthand anymore like I do right now.
Speak (more appropriatly read) French? Dorothée writes regularly for the French Defending Our Oceans weblog
Paul (Frank) - Electrician
Germany
My name is Frank, living in the north of Germany and I'm almost 40 years old, maybe I will celebrate my birthday on the Esperanza?! But none of my friends would ever call my like this! Everybody usually calls me Paul since I was a young boy. This was the reason for a lot of confusion when I joined the Esperanza because I introduced myself as Paul! Funny, there was no Paul on the crewlist... So I spent the first week aboard with explaining my Nickname to all the crewmembers...
Why I'm working for Greenpeace?
Unfortunately, most of the people I've met before joining Greenpeace
were not interested in the condition of their environment. So I decided:
" I can do better!" Now I'm here for my 2nd trip ( 1st trip in Asia on
the Rainbow Warrior), with no end in sight! Cancelled my technician
school and well payed job to get involved in protecting the air that I
breathe and conservation of nature and natural resources, surrounded by
people who live for a better idea of environment and humanity.
Can life be better?
Pe@ce 2 U !
P@ul
Abri - Assistant radio operator
South Africa
How did you come to be on this Greenpeace ship? The Rainbow Warrior was docked at Incheon - a small town near Seoul, South Korea, where I have been living for the past five years. It was on a campaign against whaling.
One of my friends called me up and told me that he heard that there would be an 'open day' on the ship. I wasn't feeling very academic that day, so I decided to skip Korean class, and go look at the ship instead.
The visit to the ship must have made a tremendous impression on me, because after the open day, I couldn't stop thinking about it and all the amazing things that Greenpeace does. For the next week, I did my everyday things as usual, but the Rainbow Warrior was always in the back of my mind. I was corresponding with some of the crew via email, and it was through them that I heard that there would be another open day, this time in Busan.
The day before the ship was due to arrive I zipped south to Korea's second largest city on their new bullet train system. I had the name of the place where the Warrior was to dock, a crummy tourist map, my compass and my GPS. I guesstimated the direction I should head, and stared hiking. After 5 hours of walking along some beautiful seaside trails, I found it - The Korean Maritime University! Having found my destination, I decided to head for a backpacker's hostel and get some rest.
After getting up at 3:30 on a misty morning, I headed back to the university. It was just starting to get light when I arrived. After hanging around for a while, I saw a "Korea Friends of the Environment Movement" minibus drive by me. I started walking in the general direction it was driving. A few minutes later, they came back and asked me if I was with Greenpeace.
While I was helping them set up their inflatable welcome-boat, cameramen and reporters from the local news agencies started arriving.
Where before there was only hazy mist over the sea, the faded shape of the bow of the Rainbow Warrior gradually started to appear. It was truly beautiful, and I felt so excited! As it got closer I could see people, and it wasn't long before I started recognising some faces! Gina, the volunteer from Fiji who gave me the first open day tour, was the first of the crew to recognize me!
So, then it started; I followed the ship around from port to port, as it travelled around Korea. Because I could speak some Korean and I know how things work there, I was soon helping the crew out with things like changing money, and finding obscure parts for the ship.
Next thing I knew I was standing on the deck of the Rainbow Warrior, watching the land that has been my home for half a decade slowly fade into the horizon.
Essential survival item for spending time on the ship?
While I would probably survive without it, by far my favourite item on the ship would be the sextant. I feel humbled when I hold such a magnificent instrument, the product of hundreds of years of refinement by the sailors of the seven seas.
If you were marine animal, which one would you be?
I was christened "Beluga" (a kind of whale) during the crossing of the equator ceremony on the way to New Zealand from Korea.
Luke - Assistant Engineer
UK
Hi my name is Luke. I live in the hills just outside of Barcelona
in a small agro-ecological community that engages with the city by running
educational workshops and training courses dealing with diverse topics such
as sustainability, food production, renewable technologies and autonomy.
On board I sail as an assistant engineer, which is a bit like being a deckhand
in the engine room. I am privileged because about 4 years ago I started
sailing with Greenpeace as a deckhand, and therefore I have got to know both
sides of being at sea, that of the deck, bridge and navigation, and now that
of the systems and technologies employed to keep a ship afloat, moving in the
right direction and capable of sustaining all the things we take for granted
in our everyday lives, such as drinking water, hot water for showers, lights
power and heating etc.
Diek - Third Mate
It started in a bar... called the equator, this winter in Amsterdam. The guy just listened to my story how I was fed up with commercial sailing after ten years and how I wanted to change my way of sailing. He didn't speak much and it wasn't until the third time we met, after a couple of beers he told me he was working for GP. I thought it was just another commercial sailing company he had been working for, GP, like Global something... big ugly cargo ships, but no, non of that, it was Greenpeace!!
Then I realised I had a problem, and a chance at the same time; I had just told him how fed up I was with sailing, but sailing for Greenpeace would be a big difference. So we orderd another beer and he gave me the number of the office to call. A week later I went there, date and time accidently exactly parallel with the sun eclipse. When I rang the bell, the moon just started slowly to cover the sun and birds went silent. Everything seemed so strang to me. The interview was to be called typical and fits perfectly in the top three of 'unusual conversations for a first time meeting'. Confused and filled with doubts I left the office, not knowing what on earth they might be thinking of me. I had just been honest and myself...
Since I'm sailing I like to dig out local plants and take with me on the ship for at home, a habit wich is never really understood by fellow sailors. But here nobody seems to be surprised wen i came walking on the quay towards the ship and started to replant my four new species in a pot. So, now a little piece of the Azores (earth and plant) is hanging and swinging on the rhythm of the ocean in my cabin and doing fine. Actually, it is doing a little bit to good, and the stronger plants are pushing away the weaker. Because variety is nessecery for balance, it ends up that even in this local environment, I have to defend the little ones, and play god once a week in my small precious kingdom... with a scissor... and no excuses...
Think Global, Act Local!
Built and raised in Rotterdam, a monday morning and friday afternoon stuying economics in Amsterdam, five years commercial business putting companies in the market or expanding profits (what else is new) and then swichted to sailing, starting as a a/b (able body) on a commercial sailing ship.
What a difference a day makes.
Marc - Boat Mechanic
USA / Denmark
I've been sailing with Greenpeace since 1987. Over the years I've met a lot of interesting people even made a few friends. Whats nice is to see that some are still around even come to the ships from time to time.
My Job is to look after the inflatble boats. It can be pretty demanding
sometimes.
Sailing with greenpeace is definitely character building. I certainly
feel I'm complaining less and less anyway.
I also like to draw and paint watercolors.
When I'm not on the ship I'm at home in Aarhus Danmark. I'm married.
My wife is an Anesthesiest Nurse at the local hospital. It's not easy
for us to be separated by my work but we appreciate each other during
the times we are together.
We have an organic vegetable garden as well as flowers and herbs. I'm
slowly building on to our house. We live very close to the sea. We
sometimes run early in the morning down to the beach go for a brisk swim
then run home again. I have a small wooden boat which I enjoy sailing.
Together with my brother in laws family we have a plantation forest
which we are slowly replanting into deciduous Oak and Beech.
I've been to the Meditteranean a few times before. The last time was to
block illegal GE shipments.
It was during that campaign while we were doing an action in Greece the
Local police boat broke down and as a gesture of good will I restarted
it for them.
Francois - Campaigner
From: France
What is the meaning of life?
It would be easy to say there's none... but I would rather say the meaning is to go forward
If you were marine animal, which one would you be?
I like killer whales, on top of the food chain. On the very other end of that same chain photoplankton looks really cool. I would choose one of the two
Essential survival item for spending time onboard a Greenpeace ship?
A bit of madness, or even a bit more
Quel est le sens de la vie ?
Il serait tentant de répondre qu'il n'y en a pas... mais je préfère penser que le bon sens est d'aller de l'avant
Si vous étiez un animal marin ?
J'aime bien les orques, au sommet de la chaîne alimentaire. A l'autre bout de la même chaîne le photoplancton a de la classe. Je choisirais l'un des deux
Qu'est-ce qui est indispensable à la survie à bord d'un bateau de Greenpeace ?
Plus qu'un peu de folie
Maarten - Cameraman / Producer
From: the Netherlands
Hi I am Maarten and I am the onboard cameraman for this leg of
Defending Our Oceans. I work as a producer / cameraman at our
international office in Amsterdam co-ordinating our video output on
oceans issues. This means I am usually at the receiving end of footage
coming in from the Esperanza. It makes it all the more exciting to now
finally be onboard during the expedition!
For my sins, I have also presented the first web video produced during
this leg. It has already generated some (positive) feedback although my
mother wrote back to say she could tell we have a really good cook
onboard. Great.
I hope to get up close and personal again with the tuna, I love them -
especially grilled on the barbecue! But I have been good - the last time
I ate them it was a locally, sustainably caught fish and it has been
years ago. It was very impressive to film them through the net of the
tuna cage yesterday, but it would be much better to swim with them in
the wild.
Dave - action co-ordinator
From: the UK
Dave joined Greenpeace in 1983 after having done a variety of jobs: sailor, builder, farming (conventional then organic), forestry to name a few. After a couple of frustrating years with local peace groups - six months to organise a simple die in - with his marriage failed and building business bankrupt he decided to put his merchant navy qualifications to good use for a change.
After sailing as first mate on the Cedarlea and Sirius he was involved with the first failed attempt to block the Sellafield pipeline (where he and three others were contaminated by a big accidental radioactive leak). After criticizing the campaigner's idea for blocking the pipe he was told "well if you think you can do better, you do it." And so he was now an action co-ordinator (the first in the UK office).
After a couple of years of mixing being mate and being an action co-ordinator Dave decided to move to warmer climes. For ten years he was the action co-ordinator for the Med Campaign from its infancy. This was combined with being the ship manager for the Sirius.
During this period he was a member of the team that went to the Persian Gulf during the first Gulf War. Here he all too vividly remembers finding himself in a mine field surrounded by fifty dead camels and being told "it's Friday the 13th!" And later on led the team that went to former Yugoslavia during the Croatian Serbian war.
Since then he was a consultant for several years and helped with the logistics planning and build up for the Amazon campaign and sailed on the first campaign. More recently he came back as staff working mostly with ship related campaigns. He has worked on most Greenpeace campaigns (even the Kangaroo campaign!) and in all regions of the world except for Antarctica - too bloody cold!
When Dave is not pissing off campaigners he lives in the SW of France renovating a farm completely ecologically.
Charles-Antoine - Cook
Possibly the most important person on the ship, Charles is our French Canadian Chef specialising in French and Chinese food (though he whips up a mean Pizza...). He survived the Southern Ocean whale campaign and came back for seconds - which is something the crew are constantly doing with his food (actually this is his fourth tour with Greenpeace - but crew coming back four times might make us look greedy)!
Sebastian - Oceans Campaigner
© Greenpeace/Gleizes
A Coruña (Galicia) in the North-West of Spain
How/why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
I've been involved in the ecologist movement since I was very young, and since then I've been in touch with Greenpeace as part of the search for real solutions to the global environmental crises. We got some changes, but there will be more to come.
What personal connection do you have to the ocean? What made you become an oceans campaigner?
I've lived all my life in front of the sea (until I joined Greenpeace and then moved to Madrid). I have seen how it's been degraded. Three major oil spills in my homeland probably didn't help.
Anything else you'd like to say?
Yes, please don't eat shrimp (farmed or fished - it's really destructive).
Alain - Deckhand
I'm sailing for Greenpeace for 4 years now, it's my 5th trip on the Esperanza. After the Southern Ocean expedition, I'm back here to continue the Ocean Defender campaign.
I joined Greenpeace because I do think that as citizen of the world it
is our responsibility to keep our planet clean and healthy, we do have
this responsibility for the coming generations...
I feel very concerned by the way some people are treating our planet,
using her as a huge supermarket without any thoughts for the future, and
I cannot stand anymore those who have the arrogance of treating Nature
as some object they can bend according to their needs or their wishes,
we have to remember that we are one part of this nature and not an
external element that can act on her without facing at some point the
consequences of theses acts...
Being involved in the Ocean Defender campaign is for me very important,
oceans are the womb of life, therefore we do have to protect them and
stop the madness or the greed that push some of us to empty them and
destroy one of the most precious treasure of this planet....
A tous mes amis, ma famille et mes proches, merci pour votre soutiens,
je pense souvent à vous
Frederic - Deckhand
From: France
What's your favourite song / karaoke song
No favorite song, it depends of my mood.
If you were marine animal, which one would you be?
None, or maybe an albatros for the southern oceans and the poem of Charles Baudelaire.
Essential survival item for spending time onboard a Greenpeace ship?
A good cook like the one we have on board :)
More seriously :
I'm a Greenpeace volunteer since 2002, for the reason that it was really unbearable for me, without trying to act efficiently, to see how we treat our planet and the inaction of those who are supposed to govern us.
Acting alone, like separate garbage, save water, energy etc. is a beginning, but really not enough for me, that's why I decided to join an organization that works in the right way. It depends of the responsibility of everybody and it's important to involve every citizen, inform and make people aware of facts that we usually can' t find in head-medias.
Now I'm onboard the Esperanza as a deckhand for the campaign that you should now know.
19 May 2006
Friday makeover
by Elaine, soon to be onboard the Esperanza
Azores tubeworm wallpaper
©Greenpeace/Gavin Newman
Azores jellyfish wallpaper
©Greenpeace/Gavin Newman
18 May 2006
Videoblog - Azores wrap up
by Elaine, soon to be onboard the Esperanza
©Greenpeace/Gavin Newman
17 May 2006
A passage to Spain
by Thom, radio operator onboard the Esperanza
Washed and serviced survival
suits hanging in helicopter hanger to dry
©Greenpeace
This in no way means that work has stopped. Instead we are using our break from campaign activities to do the maintenance we did not have time for while we were so busy and also to prepare for our next period of activities. Though we are concentrating on ship tasks we continue the marine science work. We tow the hydrophone array all the time and we put out our marine debris sampler for an hour every day.
Continue reading... | Permalink | Comments (7)
12 May 2006
Slideshow: marine treasures of the Azores
by Joss, onboard the Esperanza
Watch out - the Mauve Stinger's
about! ©Greenpeace/Newman
Continue reading... | Permalink | Comments (24)
Gavin - Photographer & Videographer
From: the UK
Gavin is a freelance film maker and photographer based in the United Kingdom, specializing in photographing some of the world's most exciting and adventurous sports. Known worldwide for his cave and cave diving photography and filming work, he also covers a wide range of other subjects including documentary and actions work for Greenpeace. You can see a sample of some of the other great work he's done for us here.
As a highly experienced scuba diver, cave diver and cave explorer in his own right, Gavin's been involved in numerous international expedition projects, providing a wealth of photographic and film material.
To find out more visit his website: www.gavinnewman.com.
11 May 2006
So long and thanks for all the fish (and whales and salps)
by Richard, onboard the Esperanza
Master of disguise - the rockfish
changes colour to fit its surroundings
©Greenpeace/Newman
Nobody onboard can be in any doubt after this trip that the waters of the Azores are brimming with marine life. I just hope that we have been able to convey some of the excitement that we've felt on encountering numerous whales, exploring bits of the seabed never seen by human eyes before, and learning about whales and salps. As I write this, Joss is preparing a slideshow of images for the site, mainly taken by our extraordinary photographer Gavin, which display this extraordinary variety - from the largest animal on the planet to some of the tiniest. As a campaigner I know these images will be used time and time again in reports and public materials to illustrate the beauty of these oceans and show why they should be protected.
Continue reading... | Permalink | Comments (3)
Andreia - Marine Biologist
From: Portugal
How come you're working on Defending our Oceans?
I was invited to participate in the campaign by a colleague since Im currently working on a reference collection of marine organisms from Azores. I am very enthusiastic to be part of the Greenpeace team collaborating in the species identification.
What are you looking forward to most in this campaign?
I am currently interested in the deep-sea cold-water corals. Our knowledge of their distribution and habitat is very limited, mainly due to difficult access to these areas. So I think that the information gathered in this campaign from underwater filming will be very helpful - giving us better knowledge of these ecosystems.
How/why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
DOP are collaborating with Greenpeace in this campaign - providing scientific support. A few scientists from DOP were invited to participate and I was one of them.
What personal connection do you have to the ocean (if any?)
Im a marine biologist and Im actually working at the Fisheries and Oceanography Department from the University of Azores.
What made you follow your chosen profession?
I love the ocean and I would like to understand it and know it the best I can.
Anything else you'd like to say?
I would like to acknowledge the entire crew of the Esperanza, that are very friendly and have received me very well.
10 May 2006
It's Different for Deckies
by Moff, onboard the Esperanza
Yellow Thing - Moff thinks he loves
you! ©Greenpeace/Newman
I stand there on the deck, crying alone in the wind and rain, and thinking about the use of phosphoric acid as a homeopathic remedy, where it's indication can be summed up as 'exhaustion through communication'. That's why they put it, in smallish amounts, in Coca-Cola, because it encourages shininess and communication, and in high doses its effects give you that post-coke feeling, hence it's use in homeopathy.
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Open Boat: an invitation to join us
by Joss, onboard the Esperanza
Come and visit Esperanza in Ponta
in Ponta Delgado! ©Greenpeace
Organised in conjunction with our colleagues at the University of the Azores, were inviting you all to come aboard Esperanza, between 1pm and 6pm in the afternoon. So if you would like to find out more about the campaign, and what makes a Greenpeace boat tick, please feel free to come and join us!
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Frederico - Marine Biologist
From: Portugal
How come you're working on Defending our Oceans?
I was invited to join the tour by my colleague, Filipe Porteiro, who has been working with Greenpeace for some time now.
What are you looking forward to most in this campaign?
I want to help to spread the message about what we need to do to conserve the oceans, and to use them wisely. From a scientific point of view, I am most interested in looking at deep sea images, and particularly the ones with hydrothermal vent activity.
How/why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
I have been following the Defending our Oceans campaign since the Antarctica leg. Since then, I have become an Ocean Defender. I wanted to help to stop whale hunting for commercial purposes.
What personal connection do you have to the ocean (if any?)
I am a marine biologist, working at the Department of Oceanography and Fisheries of the University of the Azores.
W hat made you follow your chosen profession?
I have spent several holidays very close to the sea and then decided that I would like to study it deeply.
Anything else you'd like to say?
Everyone onboard 'Esperanza' has a large smile that seems to have invaded my soul. The people here are always concerned and committed in carrying out their different tasks to help the ship fulfill its mission. One could easily work here for ever.
9 May 2006
Ship life - second nature to me now!
by Laura, onboard the Esperanza
Laura exhibits a pavlovian response
as the clock strikes 12 in the ship's
mess! ©Greenpeace/Cope
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Taking the squid out of sperm whales' mouths
by Richard, onboard the Esperanza
Sperm whales in New Zealand
could be facing malnutrition
©Greenpeace/Newman
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8 May 2006
Mayday message for the deep seas
by Richard, onboard the Esperanza
A blue whale surfaces off the coast
of Pico, Azores ©Greenpeace/Newman
The first dive of the three we conducted yesterday was fabulous. It was so exciting seeing parts of the planet that nobody else had ever set eyes on before. The coral communities we found there were other-worldly, strange white whip corals, yellow tree-like gorgonians, plus blue sea cucumbers and orange fish - and once we glimpsed a deep water shark in the distance.
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Slideshow: images from the drop-camera
by Joss, onboard the Esperanza
Whip coral on the summit of Condor
seamount ©Greenpeace/Newman
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7 May 2006
Next life I'm gonna be a wave...
by Måns, onboard the Esperanza
Måns at work on Horta's
harbour wall
I liked the idea, so now, on that wall, there is a painting of Esperanza steaming through calm water. The structure of the concrete wall gave me the shapes of the waves, quite handily, and started me thinking about waves and what they mean to me.
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6 May 2006
Feeding frenzies and ctenophore signals
by Richard, onboard the Esperanza
Salp with a small fish inside (centre
left) ©Greenpeace/Newman
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5 May 2006
Bernhard - Logistics/Action Coordinator
From: Germany
How come you're working on Defending our Oceans?
I've been working for the bottom trawling campaign as logistics coordinator for the past few years. Duringthis time we've developed some interesting tools like the drop-cameras, for example, which we are using here. Also I made some of the initial contacts with the University of the Azortes in 2004 during a fisheries meeting in Horta.
What are you looking forward to most in this campaign?
Getting some images of the beautiful marine life here in the Azores and bringing them to the public together with the great team we have on the Esperanza.
How/why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
In 1992 I joined the local Greenpeace group in Kiel in Germany and volunteered there for several years as an activist. Greenpeace is one of the few organisations that really takes action and doesn't just restrict itself to PR and writing angry letters. Since 1996 I've worked regularily for Greenpeace, first on various projects and since 2004 as an Action and Logistics Coordinator for Greenpeace International.
What personal connection do you have to the ocean (if any?)
My first experiences with the ocean reach back to my childhood where we used to spend our holidays at the Mediterranean Sea. That, combined with the wish to protect what I like so much, made me and my wife Christine study marine biology. We've spent the last 12 years doing this, and also running a dive shop on the Baltic coast.
W hat made you follow your chosen profession?
Probably I"ve seen too many Jaque Cousteau films!
Anything else you'd like to say?
Mankind has already succeeded in laying waste to vast tracts of the earth's land surface. Now we"re trying to do the same to the oceans. We'd do better to first to have a look at what"s down there and try and understand it before we smash it up with huge bottom trawling nets, or dump all kinds of waste in it.
Question Time! Talk to our marine biologists on 6 May
by Joss, onboard the Esperanza
Ask our experts: Fernando; Filipe;
Alejandro and Richard
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Fernando - Marine Biologist
Fernando - Marine Biologist
From: Lisbon, Portugal
What is your involvement with Defending our Oceans?
Throughout the Azores leg of this expedition I will be supplying the latest information on the seafloor available from the Department of Oceanography at the University of the Azores, and helping to direct the drop-cam and ROV operators to the most relevant locations. I am also collaborating in identifying the species which we discover down there.
What are you looking forward to most in this campaign?
My motivation is to learn as much as I can about the deep-sea ecosystems, and to ensure that they receive adequate protection.
How/why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
I got involved after Greenpeace began to collaborate with the Department of Oceanography at the University of the Azires, where I work.
What personal connection do you have to the ocean (if any?)
My attraction to the mysteries of the oceans started as a child through my frequent trips to (and love of) the seashore, and my wonder while watching sea-related documentaries. My concerns also grew naturally as I came to realize how fragile marine life is, and how activities like bottom trawling are seriously endangering