Ocean Defenders - the weblog

28 September 2006

Slideshow - highlights of Pohnpei

by Richella, onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

We've put together a slideshow of the best pictures from our five days in Pohnpei.

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27 September 2006

"I Am a WTO Bully"

By Daniel, at the World Trade Organization

Fisheries expert Marc Allain

The air quality in room F of the World Trade Organization building would not have passed any environmental tests. But despite this, over 60 trade bureaucrats as well as some real human beings came and participated in our session today inside the belly of the globalization beast.

When less is more

by Matthew, onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Doing the night watch in Pohnpei Harbour gave time for my mind to think about the big lofty issues around the Defending Our Oceans campaign.

Time to think about all we imagine we can't change - the desperate grip economic rationalism (blind greed and the ability to boil life down to balance sheets and words that do not have any descriptive qualities) has over our lives, over science, over perception.

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26 September 2006

Nan Madol

by Richella, onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Yesterday evening we departed Pohnpei. It had been an exhausting, rewarding five days. We had hosted two big events, an open boat and a social evening, been guests at Hayhows house, dived with mantas, discussed catches with local fishermen, caught up with our partners and officials from FSM, and visited the ancient city of Nan Madol.

The ruins of Nan Madol were a highlight for me. A legendary city built out of basalt on over ninety artificial islands, its origins and history are cloaked in legend and superstition. It is a powerful place. The ruined walls simultaneously exude a sense of disquiet and tranquility.

Picture of the day

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

The crew of the Chinese longliner Fu Yuan Yu 052 invited Alex in for tea and a look around. Alex shot this picture of four of the crew asleep in their bunks. It makes the Esperanza look postively luxurious.

25 September 2006

Fish get stolen... and our oceans get traded away

An anti-WTO banner in Cancun
Picture courtesy Friends of the Earth

By Daniel, soon to be at the WTO Public Forum in Switzerland

Its time for some campaigning in suits again, as next week the World Trade Organization (WTO) is holding a Public Forum. The WTO is as powerful as it is secretive (see our campaign information here). But once a year, it pretends to be democratic and allows the great unwashed like us - inside the WTO building next to Lake Geneva. Provided you wear a suit, that is.

Magnificent manta rays

by Richella, onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Yesterday was Sunday, traditionally a day of rest, or at least, relaxation. Five of us had been plotting to spend it underwater, exploring. Im usually a fussy diver but Pohnpeis geography, isolated position, eleven Marine Protected Areas and collection of World War II wrecks had made me relaxed about choosing the dive sites.

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Hayhow's night

by Jo, onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace

Theres a little bit of Pohnpei, which always has a place for Greenpeace. Just round the corner from the stadium is a house proudly flying a Greenpeace flag.

This is the house that Greenpeace activist Hayhow grew up in. By all accounts an amazing individual, Hayhow tragically died in the middle of an action with the Rainbow Warrior in Ecuador six years ago. He suffered a heart attack. He was only a young man. Hayhow had served in the first Gulf war, and there seems no doubt that the stress he endured there brought about his awful early death.

23 September 2006

Open boat in Pohnpei

by Richella, onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace

Today was fun, we opened the ship to the lovely people of Pohnpei all 30,000 of them. There were posters in town, an ad on local TV and I even cracked open my fresh, white, special occasion Defending Our Oceans t-shirt.

Videoblog - 26 years on the job

by Richella onboard the Esperanza

Robert Maluweirang
©Greenpeace

Robert Maluweirang, one of the two FSM enforcement officials that have been working with us on the Esperanza, shares some of the insights he has gained in 26 years of combating illegal fishing in the Pacific.

Watch Ocean Defenders TV

22 September 2006

Undercover operations

by Richella, onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Two nights ago we docked in Pohnpei. It was the end of a slightly frustrating two week collaboration between Greenpeace and the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). Together we had been patrolling FSMs fishing grounds for illegal activity but had only found five suspicious vessels.

21 September 2006

Slideshow - enforcement activities

by Richella, onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Over the last two weeks we've been working with enforcement officials from the Federated States of Mircronesia.
Check out the slideshow to see what we've really been up to...

Picture of the day

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Beautiful Pohnpei island, with mangroves in the foreground and the Pacific breaking on the reef in the background.

20 September 2006

Picture of the day

A longliner with Pohnpei in the background.jpg

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Land ho! the Esperanza arrives at the Pacific island of Pohnpei, capital of the Federated States of Micronesia, and what do we see through the oval window? a longliner.

Slideshow - all in a day's work

by Richella, onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Ever wondered what we get up to all day? Check out the slideshow of Alex's photos showing the crew in action.

19 September 2006

Avast ye bilge rat!

by Richella onboard the Esperanza

The pirate hall of fame/shame

September 19th is International "talk like a pirate day". For aficionados of Treasure Island and swashbuckling sailor movies it's a light hearted attempt at glamourising the antics of outlaws from imperialism’s golden age. I must have a sense of humour failure, because I don't get it.

16 September 2006

Picture of the day

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

A "reefer". Reefers are large refrigerated container ships that buy and transport fish from fishing vessels to international fish markets. It is illegal for reefers and fishing vessels to make these transactions at sea.

Richella - Web officer

From: England, but escaped to Sydney

Why are you on this expedition?
Im part of the team that looks after the Greenpeace Australia and Pacific website. So, luckily for me covering the Pacific leg of the expedition, kind of falls to our team...

What are you looking forward to most in this campaign?
I can't wait to get to the Phoenix Islands. I'm a keen scuba diver and the islands are a marine protected area in the middle of the Pacific - so I'm expecting them to be awesome. In my imagination there will be 40 metre visibility, breathtaking corals, 1000m drop-offs, mesmerising shoals of giant trevally and hopefully I'll see a sunfish.

Have you been on a Greenpeace ship before?
Does making coffee with a solar powered barista at a Rainbow Warrior open day count?

How or why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
I got angry at the destructive short-term approach most people, governments and corporations take to the environment. I thought it was time I got off my backside and did something more constructive than complain.

What was your best experience with Greenpeace so far?
Launching the Greenpeace Australia Pacific website a couple of months ago. That doesn't sound very action-orientated but there are many different ways to be active. The Internet is one of the most powerful tools we have for informing people, building consensus and taking the action we need to conserve our environment and build a more equitable society.

What do you like most about your work on the ship?
The view from the office.

And least?
There are no trees. Im tempted to put some pot-plants out on deck but it might get a little messy in high seas.

If you had three free wishes, what would those be?
Hmmm...I'd like to be able to crawl into other peoples heads and understand them; to change the way people relate to the natural world and to be able to travel through time.

What is your favourite place on the ship?
The back of the heli-deck. Its a great place to sit back, watch the sunset and the stars.

What personal connection do you have to the ocean?
I grew up near the sea and now live next to the ocean. I love watching it, listening to it and enjoying the sense that all things are possible.

Anything else you'd like to say?
Check my website...

Alex - Photographer

From: England, but living in Hong Kong

Why are you on this expedition?
Im here because I love all marine life, from the smallest single-cell organisms to the top predators. But Ive got a soft spot for sharks.

Have you been on a Greenpeace ship before?
No, but Ive been on a Greenpeace inflatable. I did a job for European Pressphoto Agency (EPA) and photographed the Rainbow Warrior protest the filthy coal-powered China Light and Power (CLP) power station that contributes so much to Hong Kong's chronic air pollution.

How or why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
A friends cleaner's family owns a fishing trawler, and like the rest of the fishing community in Hong Kong, were complaining that their daily catch is in steep decline, as is their income.

They have monthly mortgage repayments to make on their boat, so they had decided to generate income in other ways - one of which was to run leisure trips around the beautiful islands south of Hong Kong. I took one of these trips that they had pitched as 'a day out on a traditional fishing boat' where you could `enjoy an afternoon out at sea with real fishermen going about their work'. Which in reality meant catching...not a lot. Net after net, each haul of fish smaller than the last none bigger than a football.

So I took pictures of these guys bringing up all kinds of juvenile fish, crustaceans of every description, old gum boots, paint cans, polythene sheets, broken coral and mud. I donated the pictures to Greenpeace Hong Kong around the time the Greenpeace International Picture Editor was passing through on his way to Beijing. The right place at the right time, I believe...

What was your best experience for Greenpeace so far?
Seeing how my pesticide photographs from the vegetable fields in Guangdong Province, China had a real and tangible effect in forcing the issue of pesticide overuse onto the Hong Kong political agenda. Greenpeace succeeded in pushing the Hong Kong Government to increase their vigilance and monitoring of pesticide levels in fruit and vegetables that cross the Hong Kong/China border every day, some of it from dubious suppliers, bound for supermarkets right across Hong Kong. We all have to eat, so of course it blew up into major hot potato in the press thanks to Greenpeace. I was really proud to be part of that campaign!

What do you like best about your work on the ship?
Shooting on this ocean voyage has made me work a lot with the colour blue. It's my favourite colour, so that's really great. Oh, and watering the plants - they looked so wilted when I got on board!

And least?
The strict meal-time routine. I prefer eating whenever I please. I also miss my girlfriend, family and friends.

If you had three free wishes, what would those be?
'Amor, dinero y salud'.

What is your favourite place on the ship?
The chart room (order from chaos), and the Heli deck where I can see the ocean all around.

Why this place?
Both places can make you appreciate the vastness of the ocean in different ways.

If you were not on the Esperanza, where would you probably be instead, and what would you be doing?
Running around Central District in Hong Kong like a headless chicken, breathing in the airborne `minerals', trying to make ends meet in the humid and polluted metropolis I have adopted as my home.

What personal connection do you have with the ocean?
Diving opened my eyes up to a whole new and wonderful world. Being at a diving eco-resort in West Papua in the company of some great minds was amazing. There were scientists collecting undiscovered species of sponges for cancer research and a film crew from National Geographic who were shooting a documentary on the endangered Leatherback turtles' journey from the US West Coast to Papua. And seeing shoaling Manta Rays in West Papua was just awesome. Even snorkelling there was beyond belief - I saw a Blacktip shark (which is listed as Near Threatened on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species) as I drifted along the coral reef.

My love of the ocean prompted me and a fellow photographer to set up a Global Anti-Shark Fin Project in Hong Kong. This city is where 70% of all the fins are consumed. Shark's Fin Soup is a high status 'traditional' Chinese dish served at celebratory meals. We want to target the problem at the source, and have already travelled to Mozambique and Yemen this year to document the barbaric trade and systematic shark slaughter in those two countries. We intend to make a hard-hitting documentary and host a photo exhibition next year in Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai.

Did you bring anything special for spare time?
A book about a South Sea myth - ever heard of Nan-Madol or the `Cthulhu'?

Anything else you'd like to say?
Sharks and tuna might not seem related at first glance but sharks are threatened by the activities of the Pacific tuna fishing industry. Firstly overfishing is reducing the food supply for the sharks, and secondly many sharks are accidentally caught and killed each year by long-liners targeting tuna.

It's not just sharks and tuna that are affected by overfishing. Like the rest of the planet, the ocean is holistic, and by taking out any of the links in the marine food chain we are in deep trouble.

And to any young Chinese out there reading this, please, please convince your parents or grandparents to stop ordering shark fin soup from now on. I know it's a tough call, but it has to be done - before it's too late.

Check out my website: www.image-solutions.info
Check out my Hong Kong Shark Fin Shop photos: www.image-solutions.info/hksharkfin

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I spy with my little eye...

by Richella onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace

Something beginning with P?

Clue: they’re in the picture to the left and produce 80 per cent of all the oxygen in the atmosphere. Without them we’d all be dead.

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15 September 2006

Wallpapers - Water, water, everywhere,

by Richella, onboard the Esperanza

...and nothing else in sight, but the Pacific is a bit on the big side. Check out how big with one of these wallpapers Elaine in Amsterdam has made from two of Alex's beautiful photos.

The Esperanza, sailing through the vast Pacific.
©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

The shadow of Tweety, the Greenpeace helicopter, over the Pacific.
©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Instructions
For Windows: First, double click on the wallpaper of your choice. Next, right click on the enlarged image and select "set as wallpaper."(TIP: Once you've downloaded the wallpaper you can make the image fill your entire monitor screen; go to startmenu/settings/control panel and select background tab, then select stretch under the page display settings.)

For Macintosh: Download the wallpaper, then drag the picture to your desktop. Go to control panels/appearance/desktop and select the picture you just downloaded.

Picture of the day

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

The crew of a Korean purse seiner. Most of the ships fishing the Pacific are from distant countries, such as Japan, the US and Europe that have already over-exploited their own fisheries.

14 September 2006

Picture of the day

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

A legal purse seiner. Purse seiners are a horribly efficient method of fishing. The small boat at the back of the ship is launched with one end of the 100-150m deep net attached. The large ship encircles the shoal of fish before reuniting with the smaller boat. The net is then drawn tight (pursed) using a heavy cable. All the marine life in the scope of the net is hauled on deck. Much of it is discarded as by-catch.

A sign of things to come?

by Malcolm onboard the Esperanza

Deep sea coral caught in a bottom trawl net

©Greenpeace/Malcolm Pullman

Around the time I was preparing for this trip the New Zealand government, self-professed leaders in marine conservation, released New Zealands Pacific Fisheries Strategy 2006-2010.

Basically, its a plan for what NZ will to do in the Pacific to ensure the fishing that goes on here is sustainable and fair. From a first read, it looks pretty good - exciting even! It talks about protecting and enhancing the Pacific by combating pirate fishing, and as good neighbours, helping to develop local fisheries and promote stronger regionalism.

But what does it actually mean? Im beginning to wonder if perhaps its a case of fine words and future promises

13 September 2006

Picture of the day

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

The end of the line. A radio buoy marks the end of a Japanese longline. Longlines are fishing lines up to 100km long. Laden with up to 3000 hooks, they can take a whole day to haul in.

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12 September 2006

Picture of the day

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

We passed a legal Japanese longliner fishing for endangered yellowfin and bigeye tuna. The ship had been at sea for almost two weeks and had already caught 156 bigeye and 30 yellowfin. Each fish is estimated to be worth 200-300USD on the Japanese fish market.

11 September 2006

Jolien - Chief mate

From: The Netherlands

Why are you on this expedition?
I'm here because Greenpeace needed a Chief mate, and I know the ship. I made my first voyage with Greenpeace last year. I was part of the crew that sailed the Esperanza from Norway to South Africa for the start of the Defending our Oceans expedition. It was great, on the way we did some activities in Barents sea around overfishing and oil tankers. I found the actions really empowering and have been reading about Greenpeace activities ever since.

What does the Chief mate do?
Its like being a general manager, except I manage a ship. I report to the captain and am responsible for ensuring the crew have done their jobs. I work closely with the Bosun and Chief engineer to ensure the stores, decks, equipment and engines are well stocked and ready for action. The second and third mates report to me and it's my responsiblity to make sure they have the charts in order and safety measures in place.

How or why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
Ive been sailing all my life, in the Caribbean, the Canary islands, and I've sailed between Europe and both more than I can remember. During that time Ive seen a lot of pollution, and illegal fishing.

I had a "moment" a couple of years ago. Id been sailing round the Cape Verde islands (off the coast of Senegal); the people there are poor fishermen. They sold part of one of their islands to the Japanese, who promptly built a fish factory. The islanders were happy because they had money, but I felt really sad because I knew that in ten years time both the money and the fish would be gone. For me, this kind of behaviour has to stop.

My opportunity to do something came last year when a good friend of mine, has sailed on the [Arctic] Sunrise, called me to say there was a position on the Esperanza. I jumped at the chance.

If you were not on the Esperanza at this moment where would be instead, and what would you be doing?
Id be on a sailing ship. Recently, I've been captaining some of the tall ships that sail from Europe to the Canary Islands. Sailing ships are very special because youre intimately involved with the elements; you have to react to every shift of the wind.

Sailing the Esperanza is very different, but still special. She's very responsive and much more manoeuverable than a tall ship; you can dock her in any wind speed and you dont have four masts to worry about. I love sailing her.

What are your hopes for the campaign?
Well on the one hand, I hope we find lots of illegal fishermen; on the other, that we dont because that might mean there arent so many out here

What is your favourite place on the ship?
The bridge at night its the most beautiful place to watch the moon rise and see the stars.

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Lagi - Lead campaigner

From: Fiji

What are you looking forward to most in this campaign?
We have been planning this tour for the last 9 months and I am really glad to get on board and start the ball rolling. My personal aims are twofold. Firstly, I want to highlight the problems of overfishing in the Pacific to an international audience. Secondly, I want to inform my fellow Pacific islanders about the commercial overfishing and illegal fishing that is threatening our livelihoods and futures. I want them to feel empowered to urge our governments to address these problems.

What are you hoping the campaign will achieve?
Id like people in Europe, Asia and the US who eat our tuna to understand the role they play in overfishing the Pacific and what they can do to help us.

Have you been on a Greenpeace ship before?
Yes, I was an on board campaigner with the Rainbow Warrior in 2004 when it toured 5 pacific island countries.

How and why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
My first job after leaving university was on a Fiji inter-island ship. I really enjoyed my job but I couldnt bear seeing all the rubbish and the level of pollution in the ocean. One of my friends worked at Greenpeace, so I went to the office in Fiji to see what they could do. I signed up as a volunteer and HERE I AM. I think Greenpeace rocks, they do good work both in the Pacific and internationally. Joining was the best decision I ever made.

What do you like most about your work on the ship?
Simply being away from the busy city life.

And least?
Being away from my family and my beautiful friends. I have a good loving family and as for my friends, well I cant live without them for long.

What is your favourite place on this ship?
The bridge.

Why this place?
This is where the action happens and all the decisions are made.

If you were not on the Esperanza at this moment where would you probably be instead and what would you be doing?
Well, my job requires a lot of travelling to political meetings. I would almost certainly be out of the country giving politicians somewhere a hard time.

What personal connection do you have to the ocean?
Where do I start? This is one of the most important places on earth for coastal communities around the world. From where I come from, we live, eat, travel and give offerings to the ocean. It is not only our livelihoods but it makes us who we are. Being a pacific islander, Im constantly reminded by my elders to respect the ocean and give offerings in thanks for what is has given me. Many of our traditional gods live in the ocean and we believe they protect us. Now its my job to protect their home.

Holy calamity scream insanity

by Matthew onboard the Esperanza

©Greenpeace/Alex Hofford

Plastics are everywhere, even if you can't see them, trust me they're here. I'm trawling the Pacific with 'The Yellow Thing'. Not for fish but to see what is floating on and just below the surface. It's quite a pleasant way to spend some time on the Esperanza.

Deep dark blue water, a light swell, the horizon cutting off the ocean and layering the blue hues of the sky on top. Perfect. Paradise nothing out here but nature. Wrong. Every trawl reaps plastics. Every trawl.

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9 September 2006

Picture of the day

view of the moon from the bow of the Esperanza

Moonrise over the Pacific, viewed from the bow of the Esperanza.

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Sam - Videographer (Cebu- Pohnpei)

From: Britain, but currently living in Italy.

Why are you on this expedition? Because they couldnt find anyone elseonly kidding. I think I was asked to join because Greenpeace liked the work I did on the West Africa leg of the expedition earlier this year. Sadly its a similar story of developing nations being unable to protect their marine resources from theft on an industrial scale.

What are you hoping the campaign will achieve?
I hope it manages to make people realise that the oceans are rapidly being destroyed and that something must change in order to save them.

What are you looking forward to most in this campaign?
The sea, the sun, the sights.

How or why did you get involved with Greenpeace?
Originally through a collaboration between Greenpeace and the Environmental Justice Foundation. I do a lot of work for EJF, they're a British charity that focusses on environmental and human rights issues.

What has been your best experience with Greenpeace?
The most disturbing was the ships' graveyard off Guinea. The best, filming the action in Las Palmas.

What do you like most about your work on the ship?
The variety.

And least?
Being stuck in the editing cupboard

What's your favourite place on the ship?
The bow at nighttime.

Why?
It's quiet and I like the feeling of ploughing through the ocean in the middle of nowhere.

If you were not on the Esperanza at this moment, where would you probably be and what would you be doing?
Probably in Rome, finishing off a documentary about the West African leg of the expedition.

What personal connection do you have with the ocean?
None except I like it.

Did you bring anything special for your spare time?
A mask and snorkel.

Videoblog - Into the Pacific

by Richella onboard the Esperanza

As the Esperanza moves from the Philippines to the world's biggest ocean - the Pacific - the crew is once more on the lookout for pirates. Join Teh and Mary Ann as they talk through some of the problems the Pacific is facing.

Watch Ocean Defenders TV

8 September 2006

A summer house with a view

by Nadia onboard the Esperanza

As I stepped onto the bridge I saw Timo all excited, manoeuvring to approach a target he had detected on the radar. Finally, our second possible pirate vessel. 5 days have passed since we left Cebu and all has been very quiet. We have entered the zone this morning, so everybody is looking forward to having a bit more action. I thanked Timo for finding something that will challenge my watch.

7 September 2006

Picture of the day

Hughie takes Tweety, the Greenpeace helicopter, for a test flight.

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200 miles from Palau

by Richella onboard the Esperanza

A dolphin swims in the reflection of the rainbow on the ship's bow

Palau is famous for two things: its ethereal jellyfish lagoons and world class diving. Unfortunately we're not having a scuba stop because world class diving means world class fishing. Palau, a nation of 20,000 people needs help to protect both.

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Jo - Communications officer

From: England

Why are you on this expedition?
Ive been working for Greenpeace for over two years, and am usually based in the UK office. I first went to sea in February 2005 on the dolphin tour in the English Channel, and have desperately been trying to come back ever since!

And what a way to come back - this is the first time Ive been to the Pacific - Its incredibly exciting and so far, so beautiful. The sea is just the most amazing blue and yesterday the first day - I saw whales, flying fish and dolphins not bad for a Monday.

What are you trying to get out of the campaign?
What is happening out here in the Pacific is criminal. It really is the rich stealing from the poor, and its no exaggeration to say all well soon see is empty nets. I really hope that we can get this message out, and bring home the true price of tuna before its too late.

What is your favourite place on the ship?
My favourite places on the ship are the library a little haven of sanity - the nets at the end of the helihanger where I hope to get some reading in and the bridge. Really looking forward to catching the sunrise which eluded me so much in the Channel in February!

If you had three free wishes, what would those be?
To know what I want, to get it and to enjoy it.

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Malcolm - Campaigner (Cebu- Pohnpei)

From: Aotearoa/New Zealand

Why are you on this expedition?

Its pretty clear that healthy oceans are vital to the ongoing health of the rest of the planet. Its equally clear that the threats to our oceans are growing. Weve seen that from the voyage of the Esperanza so far and many people will have stories about it from their own backyard whether it be polluted beaches, catching smaller fish than they used to or struggling to find them at all.

In the Pacific, the vitalness of the ocean and the threats to it are even starker given the region's dependence on it for food and livelihood.

We all need to do our bit to change the way we think about our oceans, and right now, this my bit.

Have you been on a Greenpeace ship before?

Yes, mainly on the Rainbow Warrior. In fact I was lucky enough to be onboard the Warrior for the Pacific Fisheries Tour in 2004.

It was on that tour that the reality of impacts from overfishing and pirate fishing were brought home for me. Hopefully we can do the same for others with this tour and the stories we tell.

What has been your best experience with Greenpeace so far?
Thats a hard one, there have been plenty of great experiences. Highlights from the last year would be easier

On an oceans theme, being involved with the Rainbow Warrior tour that caught a NZ bottom trawler red-handed as it hauled up a giant piece of ancient coral from the sea floor, proving the industry claims that they cause no damage as absolutely false.

And blogging from the nine day rooftop occupation of a proposed coal fired power station as the local community rallied in opposition to the crazy idea of both polluting their local area, and burning more coal in the face of increasing climate change.

If you weren't on the Esperanza right now, where would you be, what would you be doing?
Probably up in the vege garden, or as an aspiring baker, in the kitchen whipping up some muffins.

Anything else youd like to say?
Brad youre a legend brother and were thinking of you.

5 September 2006

Pirates on the port bow

by Richella onboard the Esperanza

Pirate fishing trawler found in Philippine waters

At 10 a.m. this morning Timo sighted a suspicious looking vessel. We diverted to take a closer look. No name, no flag and no call-sign. It was clearly a pirate fishing vessel in the Philippine waters: our first for this leg.

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4 September 2006

A new beginning

by Richella onboard the Esperanza

We left the Philippines last night, a new campaign team, bound for the Pacific. The Pacific is vast, covering nearly a third of the Planets surface. An area over 20 times the size of Australia - more than all the Planets total landmass combined. It contains over 23,000 islands and is called home by over two million people.

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2 September 2006

Philippines leg highlights

by Heike onboard the Esperanza

31 days, eight different places, ten marine reserves, 67 fishing boats in the flotilla against Lafayette Mine, one whaleshark, more than 250 000 liters of oil spilling from a sunken tanker - the Philippines have been a stakkato of events for the Esperanza. We witnessed all life in the ocean between disaster in Guimaras and paradise in Apo Island. We were welcomed by the local population with flower garlands, songs, dance, poems - and shouted at and spit in the face by the staff of Lafayette Mine. The Esperanza has moved the Philippines and the Philippines have moved us.

Have a look at the highlights between Manila and Cebu:

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1 September 2006

Our memories of the Philippines

by the crew of the Esperanza

As we have reached Cebu, our final port of the Philippines, it is time to look back. Three very intensive weeks lie behind us, full of events and impressions, some negative, some positive, a lot of them very touching. What will we remember the most of our work in this beautiful country? We have made a little poll.

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Wherever the Esperanza goes there is hope in the hearts of men

by Esperanza Garcia, mother of gouvernor Gwendolyn Garcia, currently visiting the Esperanza

When I was a little girl I asked my father why they called me Esperanza. And he said that Esperanza means hope, and that when I was born I was the hope of the family. So when I grew up I started using my name for that: I hoped to become a lawyer, to get married to a good and loving husband and to have beautiful children. And then I hoped to help improving the quality of life of all Filipinos.