Achoo! Snot-Collecting Drones Are Revolutionizing Whale Research

Shredded coconut husk, known as Coir, is becoming a popular material for shoreline restoration projects. It’s typically used to trap sediment while protecting vegetation and wildlife from the force of waves. Once the vegetation has several years to flourish, the natural coconut fibers will have decomposed.

Protected species of animals and plants are illegally sold online mainly due to buyers and sellers having no knowledge of laws or the consequences to the ecosystem. Enforcement Gaps Interface (EGI) is a software which uses machine learning to determine if the animal product is illegal or not.

New DNA testing technology is showing promise as a faster, cheaper way to determine if a shark fin came from a protected species, an important task to curbing the illicit shark fin trade across the world. While experts warn that the technology won't act as a deterrent to the practice, it will help authorities better track and determine if shipments are suspect.

In Jamaica, locally-led coral nurseries are working to restore the coral reef that have been lost to natural and manmade disasters. These organizations have small coral gardens where they can grow free of danger and when they’re big enough, are transported to a reef. With coral and fish being so codependent in the underwater ecosystem, the regrowth of coral has meant an increase of fish and fishing for the country, which many people rely on for their livelihood.

As climate changes causes seawater to flood land and increase the salt content in soil, farms in Scotland and the Netherlands are experimenting with using the saltwater to grow food. Seawater Solutions is growing crops called halophytes that have a high-salt tolerance and can be eaten or used as material for cosmetics and biofuels. And the Salt Farm Foundation has shown that potatoes, cabbage, and tomatoes can grow in saltwater. These projects can labor intensive, but seawater irrigation could be a viable climate adaptation solution.

Coastal Shellfish, an Indigenous aquaculture company in British Columbia, is focusing on sustainable food and food security through its product Great Bear Scallops. This is the first project funded by the Costal Funds trust set up by donors, governments, and First Nations to support sustainable Indigenous-led businesses. The company has been selling scallops to several local businesses like restaurants and breweries.

Local Ocean Conservation is in Watamu, Kenya has made approximately 21,000 turtle rescues and "treated more than 650 turtles in its rehabilitation center and clinic" since it's inception in 1997. The group responds to fishermen who have accidentally caught turtles in their nets and then remunerates the fishermen for their "time, effort, and phone calls." This incentive-based relationship combined with a ban on the international tortoiseshell trade has helped decrease the poaching of turles, and the group has now expanded their efforts to include more initiatives to protect the endangered species.

A growing number of governments, companies, and nonprofit organizations are working together with new technology and data to identify fishing vessels that are breaking laws and engaging in human rights violations. Using satellite imagery and tracking signals, for example, a philanthropic company and a nonprofit worked with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime to help the Ghanian navy arrest four vessels for illegal fishing practices. Technology by itself won’t stop forced labor and unregulated ships, but it can be helpful for cash-strapped governments looking to increase oversight of their fisheries.

Scientists are testing if adding alkaline substances to seawater can allow oceans to absorb more carbon dioxide emissions. Early tests suggest this could be a potential way to combat climate change, but there are still many questions about how this can scale, how it impacts the natural ecosystem, and if it’s cost effective to implement.

The Ecosphere Restoration Institute received $5 million from the Florida State Legislature to restore the declining seagrasses on 100 acres of the coast. The organization partnered with experts who have permits to harvest the seeds, grow them in a nursery, and replant them in shallow areas. The project will also help prevent manatee deaths, as the animal depends on seagrass as a food source.