World Oceans Day
Today is World Ocean Day, a good reason to remember that we have only explored 5% of our world’s ocean. This means that 95% of our ocean is still unknown. Therefore we risk causing the extinction of many thousands of species before we even discover that they exist. Each one of us has not only […]
The Unknown Corals of the Aegean
Joint Action UNDER THE POLE ( https://underthepole.org ) & “Archipelagos” Institute Aiming for Urgent Protection The action in the deep waters of the island complex of Fourni reveals a unique underwater world. But much of it will never be discovered because we have already destroyed it. Corals and coral ecosystems that formed within thousands of years […]
Our crews have been coordinating at the port of Fourni
The collaboration between the French organisation UNDER THE POLE, which specialises in scientific diving at depths of more than 100 metres, and the Archipelagos Institute of Marine Conservation, aims to find an effective protection for the corals in the deep waters of the Aegean Sea. These ecosystems of fundamental importance and unique beauty were, until […]
Actions for the DEEPLIFE program of the French organisation UNDER THE POLE in cooperation with Archipelagos Institute of Marine Conservation started today, focusing on the island of Fourni.
This is an official program of the “United Nations Decade of the Oceans” and aims to contribute to the protection of corals in deep waters through specialised research. Following similar research from previous years in many of the world’s oceans, e.g. in the Arctic, Canary Islands and the Caribbean, the focus for the next 5 […]
“Tackling Illegal and Destructive Trawling in the Mediterranean and beyond” – Event at the 9th World Ocean Conference in Athens
Dr Sylvia Earle (Mission Blue), the well-known and distinguished American oceanographer who at 88 years of age continues her dynamic efforts for the effective protection of the oceans, shared her experience and her anguish as the years pass but the threats to our seas are becoming more and more intense. Anastasia Miliou from the Archipelagos […]
Local Ecological Knowledge in the Aegean
Local Ecological Knowledge – what has recently been described by the scientific community as Local Ecological Knowledge – the knowledge about the environment that local island communities bring to us is an invaluable source of information that in Greece has been devalued for decades and nowadays we are in danger of losing it. We are […]
The action on board the Aegean Explorer continues with the main objective of identifying and mapping protected ecosystems
The action on board the Aegean Explorer continues with the main objective of identifying and mapping protected ecosystems, such as the Poseidonia seagrass meadows and coral habitats, but also the correction of official mapping – where it exists – or the creation of detailed maps from scratch. It should go without saying that it is […]
Establishing a Protocol for Coastal Elasmobranch Biodiversity Assessments (CEBA)
Mühlenweg, Z., Moran Garcia, M., Macrina, L., Miliou, A. Establishing a Protocol for Coastal Elasmobranch Biodiversity Assessments (CEBA). Sharks International 2022. Introduction Currently, fishing operations are the main sources of information on sharks in Greece. Social media and citizen science have also been tested as a tool to both inform the public and fill gaps […]
Coralligenous Habitats: An Imperative Need for Immediate Protection
The research expedition of the “Aegean Explorer”, in the waters of the north eastern Aegean, continues despite the strong prevailing north winds. The first results of the focused and intense work of the research team, within the framework of “Protecting Aegean Sea Coralligene”, have been exceptionally interesting! In a marine area of just 7000m2, the […]
Underwater Gardens of Sea Pens
The first results of the research expedition, as part of the action “Protecting Aegean Coralligene”, shows very promising results regarding a biodiversity hotspot within these hidden marine habitats! Within only the first 2km of surveys with advanced equipment, such as a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) and sonar, the international team onboard already identified over 250 […]
