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Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory

@benioffoceansciencelab

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Working to improve and safeguard the health of our oceans through science and technology 🌊💙
@ucsantabarbara

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We’re feeling so inspired after an incredible week in San Juan, PR for the 26th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals #SMM2026 ! 🐋✨

Connecting with over 1,500 scientists, conservation experts, and fellow whale lovers from around the 🌏 was a powerful reminder of just how big—and dedicated—this community really is.

A few big takeaways:

🌊 Innovation in the Field: The research being done to protect marine life is staggering—from cutting-edge drone surveys and eDNA sampling to predictive habitat modeling. The knowledge, energy, and passion in every room were infectious.

🚢 Collaborating on Vessel Strikes: We joined the International Whaling Commission (IWC) vessel strike workshop to share insights from our work in California, learn from global efforts, and build new partnerships to reduce shipping impacts on whales.

💡 Scaling What Works: We were thrilled to present the success of Blue Whales Blue Skies during the conference and share how voluntary, incentive-based conservation models can be adapted and implemented in other regions around the world!

Huge thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth to connect with us. See you in Portland for #SMM2028! 🐋

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Spend an afternoon with us partnering with the Benioff Ocean Science lab!

This week, we’ve been partnering with the @benioffoceansciencelab to teach all of our Campus Point teams about California spiny lobsters and the problem of ghost fishing gear.

Kids held lobster molts, learned how to tell a male from a female, and found out what the buoys off Campus Point are actually there for. Then we learned about “ghost traps,” lost gear that continues catching marine life long after it’s abandoned.

Benioff uses side-scan sonar and their vessel Echo-1 to find and pull them out of the Channel, and our teams got to check out the sonar boat and try the equipment for themselves.

Huge thanks to Chase and the BOSL team for sharing their work with our kids. Future ocean stewards in the making!!!

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🌊✨ WooHoo! Our Marine Science Institute 2027 Calendar is here! 📅

Just a glimpse into the incredible breadth of research happening across the Institute—from the depths of the ocean to the many environments that shape our planet. 🌎🔬

Each stunning image offers a window into the science, discovery, and dedication that make our Institute a leader in marine and environmental research around the world. 🌊🐋🪸

A heartfelt thank you to all our researchers for being so prompt, generous, and willing to share these extraordinary images. Your work and your passion for understanding our oceans and environment bring this calendar to life. 💙

📸 Swipe through the calendar pages and take a look at each month’s featured image.
Which month is your favorite? 👀👇
1—Cover, Arroyo Burro Beach,
2—Dec 2026
3—January
4—February
5—March
6—April
7—May
8—June
9—July
10—August
11—September
12—October
13—November
14—December

Photos: @erick.jmorales (cover, 8)
@katie.fisheye (2, 5, 6, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14)
@k_emery2012 (3)
@colddarkbenthos (4)
@benioffoceansciencelab (7)
@naturebebuggin / Lambert Research Group (11)

Here’s to a year of discovery, curiosity, and protecting our blue planet! 🌍🌊

#marinescienceinstitute #ucsb #sciencecommunication #2027calendar #discovery Aerial view of Arroyo Burro beach, ocean on the left and beach and vegetation on the right

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The future doesn’t shape itself. The time to act is NOW 🌊

Written public comment closes Thursday at 12 PM, making this our FINAL chance to put our community’s voice in front of the Fish and Game Commission before the October meeting 🗣️

Submit your MPA comment today through the link in our bio 🔗

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🗞️2026 Mid-season results are out, with a record-breaking 63 #shipping and #cruise lines joining the program this year.

🐋 Thus far, participating vessels have voluntarily transited at whale (and clean air) safer 10 knots or less for more than 310,700 nautical miles!

Highlights ⬇️ (including how top performing lines are tracking this season):

> Star Sapphire (90% Cooperation Rate): MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company, CMA CGM, COSCO SHIPPING (North America) Inc. / COSCO SHIPPING, Evergreen Shipping Agency (America) Corp., OOCL, APL, The CSL Group Inc., ConocoPhillips - Polar Tankers, Scorpio Group, Swire Shipping, Liberty Maritime, Neptune Pacific Direct Line, Swire Bulk, Virgin Voyages, Toyofuji Shipping Co, NAVARONE S.A., MMS Co, and MSC Cruises.

> Sapphire (75%-89%): Maersk, MOL-ACE, NYK Line, Yang Ming, Hapag-Lloyd, Marathon Petroleum, Wan Hai Lines, OSG Ship Management, Wallenius Wilhelmsen, Eastern Pacific Shipping, BP Shipping, and Anglo-Eastern Ship Management.

> Gold (50%-74%): ONE, K-Line, Hyundai Merchant Marine, Hyundai Glovis, MT Maritime, Tsakos Shipping and Trading, Gulf Energy Maritime Shipping, Precious Shipping, UNISEA, Hakuyo Kisen, and NHAT VIET Transportation.

> Cargo owners and ambassadors who elected to provide detailed shipment data at the mid-season mark and are tracking towards awards include: NX GROUP @nippon_express, The Block Logistics @theblocklogistics, and Honeylove @honeylove.

> The 2026 season expanded the California VSR zone by 115%, for a total coverage of 55,461 square miles of important whale habitat and to protect coastal communities affected by air pollution.

> Enrolled fleets represent 80% of container vessels and 78% of car carrier vessels transiting California waters.

> Preliminary season data indicates that vessel speeds across adjacent waters - including off the coasts of Oregon and Mexico, and offshore of the expanded boundary - have remained stable, suggesting no shift toward higher speeds in surrounding areas.

Congratulations and *thank you* to the many shipping companies and program ambassadors leading the way on responsible shipping!

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Lots happening for safer whales, cleaner air and a quieter ocean this week - stay tuned !

Big thanks to @ourairsbc for hosting BWBS’ two day internal meeting for the team to review and discuss latest participation data, environmental benefits analyses, strategize on program priorities AND for a too rare chance for many of our partners — @slocleanair @bayareaairdistrict @sdapcd @ourairsbc @mbardaq Ventura County APCD, @noaasanctuaries, @benioffoceansciencelab @scripps_mbarc and @ca.marinesanctuaryfoundation — from all over California to get together. 💙🐋

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At the @climateimaginarium, artists, scientists, visionaries, and industry leaders come together to imagine what a more sustainable future can look like. ⁠
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We’re proud to partner with @bluewhalesblueskies and @ca.marinesanctuaryfoundation to spotlight their commitment to protecting marine biodiversity, creating safer oceans for whales and cleaner air for humans.⁠
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Building a sustainable future takes all of us. When commercial brands and shipping companies join the conversation, we can turn bold ideas into meaningful action.⁠
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🌎 Learn more about Blue Whales Blue Skies: bluewhalesblueskies.org

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❓Did you know ❓

Gray whales have the longest migration of any mammal.
(In some cases ~14,000 miles!)

🗺️ And, the BWBS Vessel Speed Reduction Zone only covers a portion of that.

Gray whales have recently experienced an Unusual Mortality Event presumed to be linked to a steady reduction in Arctic sea ice that has decreased their critical food sources, altered where they forage along their migrations, and brought them into higher risk areas that overlap with vessel traffic.

BWBS’ Rachel Rhodes joined the Gray Whale Science Symposium. Dr. Anna Nisi ’s work: “Gray whale habitat suitability and spatial and temporal overlap with vessel speed reduction program along the US West Coast” was presented alongside other research efforts and observations around trends in gray whales’ health, feeding, distribution, and population dynamics.

Takeaways:

▶️ The existing BWBS zone has a high degree of overlap with gray whale habitat as well as patterns of gray whale occurrence.

▶️ BWBS’ VSR season timeline has historically been designed to prioritize timelines of peak threatened and endangered whale presence in the region. It’s not optimized to protect gray whales during the early months of the year when migrating through the zone.

▶️ Expansion of VSR measures across additional gray whale migratory habitat would offer additional protection benefits and warrants consideration.

#Graywhale photo & video credit: @adamernsterwildlife

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Our Summer 2026 newsletter is out! Highlights:

✔️A new resource to share (in multiple languages) on the impact of - and how to get involved in - responsible shipping;
✔️Season updates with record industry participation; ✔️A warm welcome to Nippon Express @nippon_express as our newest ambassador;
✔️Appreciation for @cmacgm @maersk_official and Carbon Shipping for supporting science & submitting whale sightings reports!
✔️A blog post on the amazing ways whales are incredibly important to the health of our oceans, air & ourselves; AND
✔️A recap of (many) recent/upcoming events & news including with @santabarbarazoo @sonos @sustainablebrands @trellis_group @theportofhueneme @solarpunk.studio @ourairsbc @marinemammalogy and more!

🔗: bluewhalesblueskies.org/news (Summer 2026
Newsletter)

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Blue Whales & Blue Skies exists to reduce the risk of ship strikes to whales, reduce underwater noise pollution & protect public health by protecting air quality.

For 🐋, high shipping traffic by large vessels in important migratory and feeding habitat is one of their top threats.

Unfortunately, this fin whale (struck several years ago off San Diego 💔) - helps us understand why.

Watch to see how the force of a large vessel can sever the vertebrae of one of the largest animals to ever grace our planet, and why scientists study the (rare) carcasses that come ashore to learn more, and help more people understand what can be done to protect our ocean and its inhabitants.

Thank you to BWBS’ Kelly Tseng and Danielle Alvarez, Kayden Minton and Professor John Hildebrand for sharing thoughts and to @scripps_ocean for leading this excavation project!
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#finwhale
#sandiego
#conservation
#science

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🌊 This week’s ocean jobs roundup is here!

Looking to build your career in ocean science, conservation, policy, communications, research, or beyond? We’ve rounded up some of the latest opportunities across the ocean space.

🔎 Swipe through to explore this week’s openings and find your next opportunity.

Know someone who’s looking? Tag them below or share this post with your ocean network! 💙

#OceanJobs #OceanCareers #OceanScience #MarineScience #OceanConservation

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