Pristine Seas - National Geographic Society (original) (raw)

Protecting the Ocean's Vital Places

Since 2008, Pristine Seas has helped establish 28 of the largest marine protected areas in the world, covering a total area of 6.6 million square kilometers — more than twice the size of India.

Inspiring some of the largest marine reserves in the world.

Without the ocean, life would be impossible. It provides food, livelihoods for billions of people, and regulates the climate. But the ocean is under threat from overfishing, global warming and pollution.

Yet today, only 8% of the ocean is somehow protected – and less than 3% is fully protected from fishing and other damaging activities.

Pristine Seas works with local communities, Indigenous Peoples, government and partners to protect our ocean, but also areas that have been somehow degraded by human activities, so they can bounce back. Marine life thrives in these marine protected areas and provides multiple benefits to people, from food and coastal protection to jobs and economic revenue.

Expeditions completed around the world

6.6 million square kilometers protected

Scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals

Where we work

Since 2008, Pristine Seas has carried out 44 expeditions to over 30 places, 28 of which have since been protected, covering a total area of more than 6.6 million square kilometers.

Map by Sam Guilford, NGS Staff

The Global Expedition

In 2023, National Geographic Pristine Seas launched a bold new conservation effort: The Global Expedition. The Pristine Seas team of scientists, policy experts, and filmmakers, will spend the next five years exploring the tropical Pacific aboard the M/V Argo, a 130-foot customized research vessel and media center, with the goal of supporting communities and governments in their efforts to protect the ocean. The Argo is Pristine Seas’ modern-day equivalent of Jacques Cousteau’s famous ship Calypso, but with an ocean conservation purpose.

Field Notes

Explore updates from the field from the Pristine Seas team.

Updated on July 26, 2024

Papua New Guinea: Pristine Seas Explores One of the Most Biodiverse Oceans on Earth

Pristine Seas conducts expedition in Papua New Guinea — one of the most unique marine environments on the planet — to support ocean conservation.

Updated on February 2, 2024

Year Two of Pristine Seas: The Global Expedition Launches in Palau

Pristine Seas returns to Palau to conduct marine surveys, bringing with them Nat Geo Education team members for a special student outreach.

Updated on December 1, 2023

Pristine Seas: The Global Expedition Conducts Nationwide Survey in the Federated States of Micronesia

Pristine Seas with Blue Prosperity Micronesia are invited to conduct a nationwide assessment of the marine ecosystems including remote atolls, seamounts and reefs in the Federated States of Micronesia.

PHOTOGRAPH BY Manu san félix

Updated on October 26, 2023

Pristine Seas: The Global Expedition Surveys Four Coral Atolls in the Marshalls Islands

Pristine Seas is invited to the Marshall Islands on its fourth stop in The Global Expedition to survey Bikar and Bokak atolls in support of Reimaanlok. The team will also survey Bikini, the site of 23 nuclear tests, and Rongerik atolls.

PHOTOGRAPH BY Manu san félix

Updated on October 25, 2023

Pristine Seas Returns to Niue on the Global Expedition

Pristine Seas is invited to return to Niue to monitor changes in their marine reserve, since our original survey in 2016. The results will support the management of the reserve and Niue’s ocean conservation efforts.

PHOTOGRAPH BY Manu san félix

Updated on October 25, 2023

The Global Expedition Studies Sharks in Tongareva, Cook Islands

The Pristine Seas team makes its way to the shark-filled waters of Tongareva, Cook Islands on the second leg of its Global Expedition with Cook Islands-based nonprofit organization Sharks Pacific and Explorer Jess Cramp.

PHOTOGRAPH BY Manu san félix

Updated on October 10, 2023

Pristine Seas Launches the Global Expedition in Kiribati

Pristine Seas: The Global Expedition launches a five year voyage in the Pacific by returning once more to the southern Line Islands in Kiribati – the location that launched the Pristine Seas program.

PHOTOGRAPH BY Manu san félix

A closer look

Our team of scientists, filmmakers and policy experts have traveled across the ocean — from the poles to the tropics — to inspire the creation of marine protected areas. Take a closer look at some success stories from around the world.

Tristan da Cunha

Tristan da Cunha is a remote group of islands in the South Atlantic with an irreplaceable population of seabirds and a unique marine ecosystem. In 2020, the U.K. government and the people of Tristan da Cunha made a visionary declaration to create the Atlantic’s largest marine reserve.

Juan Fernández Archipelago

Six hundred kilometers off the coast of Chile lies the Juan Fernández Archipelago. We worked with the local community to support their proposal to create the largest marine park of the South American continent, protecting its waters from industrial fishing and benefiting tourism and local fishing.

Revillagigedo Islands

In partnership with Mares Mexicanos, we conducted an expedition to the Revillagigedo archipelago, “the Galapágos of Mexico,” home to extraordinary life, including sharks, manta rays and whales. A year later, the government of Mexico created and expanded the island’s existing MPA.

Niue

Niue, a raised coral atoll, is an island country in the South Pacific, home to an incredible shark refuge of grey reef sharks, a globally threatened species. In 2017, the government of Niue announced the creation of a large-scale marine protected area of 127,000 square kilometers.

Scientific research

Pristine Seas team members have collectively published more than 200 scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals ranging from Nature, Science Advances, PLOS One and more.

Latest stories

Our impact is often featured in the news. Here are some of the most recent stories about the work the Pristine Seas team is doing around the world.

WCS___Tom_Vierus._Papua_New_Guinea._Murat_and_Lovongai._2023

National Geographic Pristine Seas begins expedition in Papua New Guinea — one of the most unique marine environments on the planet — to support ocean conservation.

ConservationInnovationAward

National Geographic Pristine Seas received the Conservation Innovation award in recognition for its impact on marine protected areas.

In December 2021, National Geographic Pristine Seas conducted an expedition to Uruguay’s Isla de Lobos (and Bajo de Mejillones as a continuation of the team's previous work in the region). This area, which has been proposed as a 12,000 km² marine reserve, is home to sea lions, amberjacks, sharks, and sea turtles. To support the designation of a no-take marine protected area, the team collaborated with local partners and scientists to gather data, collect media, and promote education. The expedition will utilize two types of camera technology to document the waters and collect data. The deep sea cameras are self-contained, autonomous, units that are programmed to record video at a maximum depth of 7,000 meters. Pelagic cameras will be deployed on the surface of the water to document marine life who dwell closer to the surface.

Uruguay established a new marine protected area around Island de Lobos, 8.1 kilometers off the coast of the famed Punta del Este city.

Leveraging world-class expertise

Pristine Seas is made up of a unique team of scientists, conservationists, filmmakers, and communication and policy experts working together to help protect the world’s ocean.

Founder

National Geographic Explorer in Residence and Executive Director, Pristine Seas

Enric Sala

Enric Sala is a former university professor who saw himself writing the obituary of ocean life, and quit academia in 2008 to become a full-time conservationist as National Geographic Explorer in Residence. He founded and leads National Geographic Pristine Seas, a project that combines exploration, research, media, economics and policy – working with local communities, Indigenous Peoples and governments to protect vital places in the ocean. To date, Pristine Seas has helped to create 28 of the largest marine reserves on the planet, covering an area of over 6.5 million square km. Enric has received numerous awards, including 2008 World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leader, 2013 Explorers Club Lowell Thomas Award, 2018 Heinz Award in Public Policy, National Geographic Hubbard Medal, Albert I Grand Medal, and Officer of the Order of San Carlos of Colombia. He is a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

With support from

FOUNDING SPONSOR

Blancpain

FUNDING PARTNERS

Bezos Earth Fund, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Lindblad Expeditions–National Geographic Fund, Don Quixote Foundation, Inclusive Capital Partners Foundation, The Campbell Foundation, Waitt Foundation, Oracle, Dutch Postcode Lottery, LGT Venture Philanthropy, Philip Stephenson Foundation, Walmart Foundation, The Heinz Family Foundation, Beagle Foundation, Serventi Family Foundation, and other individual donors.

PAST FUNDERS

Allison Bennington, Brook Foundation, Jean and Steve Case, Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, DAVIDOFF Cool Water, Roger and Rosemary Enrico, Helmsley Charitable Trust, Google, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Vicki and Roger Sant, and other individual donors.

Photo credits (from top of page): Manu San Félix, Ossie Michelin, SerrNovik/Getty/iStockphoto, Manu San Félix, Enric Sala, Ossie Michelin, Enric Sala (2)