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Global Ocean is a non-profit organisation dedicated to the conservation of marine life. By heightening public awareness about the plight of the seas and finding funds for conservation programmes, Global Ocean aims to:
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- Fund small projects with big impacts;
- Protect endangered marine species;
- Create awareness of marine conservation.
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One of Global Ocean’s missions is to combine the Arts with an underlying message of respect for all species. Some of the messages would be political, others controversial, perhaps provocative - many would be more subtle and celebratory in tone.
The Arts can play a huge part in generating awareness of the plight of marine species being pushed to the brink of extinction, by providing a platform to relay such messages globally. The celebration of nature fosters a love of nature that, in turn, generates the public will to protect her.
In keeping with this underlying theme of rejoicing in the beauty of nature is a pressing element, that is, our well-documented destruction of nature and, therefore, ourselves. For any artist depicting nature, an association with conservation is, perhaps, a way to give back.
In addition, Global Ocean facilitates key individuals within the N.G.O. (Non- Governmental- Organisation) movement to hold important discussions to help maintain the intellectual high-ground. In recent years, the environmental movement has not been particularly good at this. In 2006, for example, Global Ocean funded a meeting of key individuals to assess progress and develop a future strategy for work on the whaling issue. The meeting was held in Paciano, Italy, location of fisheries and whaling expert, Dr Sidney Holt.
This meeting was followed up by Paciano 2008 to focus on the science of whaling, and again was the first such gathering in at least a decade.Global Ocean currently funds small projects which can have a big impact, but which other NGOs have decided not to fund. For example, Global Ocean is funding Dr Sidney Holt's personal website which will allow him to make the vast number of his publications on fisheries and whaling more accessible to a wider public.
Global Ocean prefers to fund projects in developing countries where the pound is particularly strong such as in Latin America, and is also inclined to fund young and enthusiastic marine conservationists such as the Marine Connection's anti-marine mammal captivity officer Janja Novak.
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