VOLVO OCEAN LOVERS FESTIVAL NEWSLETTER- ISSUE 6 |
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Watch out Bondi! The Volvo Ocean Lovers Festival Vehicles have Arrived Thanks Volvo! Two of these super XC40's will be cruising around to promote our festival, and the incredible Volvo Living Seawall project delivered with the Sydney Institute of Marine Science. The Living Seawalls project has been announced as a finalist in the Earthshot Prize, the most ambitious global initiative created by Prince William and The Royal Foundation to fund projects that help repair our planet. Read more below. |
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Living Seawalls Receive International Recognition Living Seawalls, a flagship project of the Sydney Institute of Marine Science, has been announced as a Finalist in the inaugural year of the £50 million Earthshot Prize. Created by Prince William and The Royal Foundation, the Earthshot Prize has led an unprecedented global search for the most inspiring and innovative solutions to the greatest environmental challenges facing the planet. Led by an all-female team of scientists, Living Seawalls has been recognised for their innovative and replicable seawall panels that are bringing marine life back to coastal sea defences. This incredible, homegrown science solution is one of only three finalists in the Reviving Our Oceans Earthshot category and one of 15 finalists overall from 750 entries globally. We would like to extend a huge congratulations to the Sydney Institute of Marine Science, all the scientists involved, Reef Design Melbourne and of course our partner Volvo who is a foundation supporter of the project. Come to our festival in March where the Living Seawall will be displayed in the Bondi Icebergs Pool. Don’t forget your swimmers! | | |
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Chase Zera Amping Up Bondi We are excited to unveil our first music artist for the festival - Chase Zera, who will be performing on our Sunshine Stage next March! Chase is a high energy Sydney DJ, Songwriter and Dancer who has performed at Curve Ball, Wine Machine, and NYE In The Park as well as supporting Hayden James and Bag Raiders on National Tours and selling out her own headline shows. Her dance pop single Over Here lit up a bunch of dance playlists and her newest song Supernova and video were released last month. Check it out and get dancing in your PJ’s while locked in. Many more Sunshine Stage acts coming up! | | |
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Ocean Protect launch 'Zero Litter to Ocean' Our sponsor Ocean Protect, with Stormwater NSW, have launched a new campaign and published a policy paper calling on the Federal Government to establish a ‘Zero Litter to Ocean’ target for Australia, to be achieved by 2040. Achieving this target will stop on average around 600 wheelie bins of plastic per day entering Australia’s oceans and waterways. Plus they reckon it will create upward of 7000 new jobs! See how you can support this great campaign on their site and get a copy of the Policy Paper. | | |
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Meet The Scientists Dr Maria Vozzo is a member of the Sydney Institute of Marine Science team who developed the Living Seawalls project that has been named a finalist in the prestigious Earthshot Prize. She is a marine ecologist and Project Manager for the Living Seawalls project. Dr Vozzo’s special interest is marine urban ecology and habitat restoration and she completed her PhD at Macquarie University investigating mechanisms that influence habitat provisioning by the native Sydney rock oyster. She works in our own marine backyard, where over 50% of the harbour shoreline has been modified with marine structures, having huge implications on marine biodiversity. As part of a collaborative research initiative, Maria is undertaking her Postdoctoral Research into methods to transform these structures into more ecologically friendly environments. And what success they have had. Come and meet her at our Festival. Pictured here, helping to install our Sea Science showcase at the Bondi Icebergs in 2019. This free installation will be on show with the SIMS Volvo Living Seawall tiles and Operation Crayweed projects open to the public to view and swim through during the Festival, March 11 to 13, 2022. | | |
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Kate Ceberano to Judge Ode The totally fabulous Bondi local and Oz music legend Kate Ceberano will be judging the finalists for our Ode to the Ocean song writing competition. So get to making some music for the Youth (Under 18) and Open categories with entry guidelines available online now and due by February 20, 2022. Did you know the multi award winning Kate has given us 28 albums over her 35 year career – amazing! And ever full of energy – she is back out on tour nationally from October this year so check out some dates near you in the coming months. | | |
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Matty Smith We'd like to welcome back award winning Ocean Photographer Matty Smith as a Volvo Ocean Lovers Ambassador. Matty Smith is a UK born and bred underwater photographer who is now based in Australia. After emigrating in 2007, Matty fell in love with the Pacific Ocean and has now made it his permanent playground. “Underwater photography allows me to visually communicate to the viewer the majestic feelings of scuba diving and the incredible interactions between myself and rarely seen creatures of our oceans in their natural habitat. I want to generate a compassion in people of how wonderful our seas are and how important it is to treat them with respect.” Matty is an Ocean Geographic Magazine Master Photographer and contributor, as well as an ambassador for Nikon Australia & Aquatica Digital Water Housings. His award-winning images have been exhibited all around the world including the London Natural History Museum and the Australian Museum. Recently, Matty was a finalist in multiple categories for the 2021 Ocean Photography Awards including, Collective Portfolio Awards (2nd), Ocean Photographer of the Year (3rd) and Exploration Photographer of the Year (3rd). | | |
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Whale of a Time Congratulations to Olaf Meynecke and his team for staging the Gold Coast Whale Festival successfully last month against the odds with COVID restrictions. This little whale lover (pictured) is one more advocate for the sea. Look forward to seeing Olaf in Sydney to share Whale tales in March next year. Lots of our festival scientists, associates and innovators are continuing to deliver amazing projects. Please get in touch if you would like us to promote - hello@oceanloversfestival.com | | |
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To Listen Ocean Protect Podcast Underwater Earth with Lorna Parry On all podcasting platforms now! "The health of our oceans is under major threat. Every week, Jeremy Brown (co-founder of Ocean Protect) and Brad Dalrymple (Environmental Engineer with Ocean Protect) host a variety of guests, including scientists, educators, activists, and politicians – to discuss the key issues affecting the health of our oceans – and what can be done about it. This podcast is for anyone interested in learning more about the health of our oceans, the key pressures (e.g. marine pollution, climate change, over-fishing, whaling), and the potential solutions – and not just for ‘someone else’ to implement, but for the listener too." One of Ocean Lover's favourite podcasts, The Ocean Protect Podcast, has some brilliant episodes coming out with friends of the festival including Lorna Parry, from Underwater Earth. Check it out wherever you listen to your podcasts for thoughtful and insightful conversation about the big blue. |
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