Tag: pangaea

Shark Project – Final Blog

Written by adminmike on 15/10/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on Shark Project – Final Blog

The boat buzzes with Young Explorers, each with a job to leave Pangaea, our home for the past ten days, in a condition Mike is happy with, and we sit and reflect on the Pole2Pole Shark Project. To try and find one word to describe it would be difficult but the word that comes to mind is, ‘dynamic.’ The people we interacted with, our team and what we did were all remarkably, dynamic.

Working with Shark Spotters, the Laureus ‘Sport for Good’ Foundation, Waves for Change and GrassRoot Soccer gave our project a scientific and social aspect to our time here in Cape Town. It was both inspiring and motivating to work with such passionate and dedicated people in each of these organisations and gave us great hope for future change. The shark tagging expedition contributed valuable data to increase what we know about the seven-gill shark species here in South Africa and allowed Young Explorers the opportunity to be hands on in a once in a life time experience. The shark diving day allowed us to really interact with shark species in their natural habitat and was aimed at abolishing the negative stereotypes that the media associate with sharks. The second part of our project included engaging with local communities and allowed us an insight into a world that we are extremely sheltered from. These experiences are vital for global awareness and personal growth and allow us to identify key areas that require change as well as the tools in order to drive that change.

An unexpected positive impact of this project was the reunion of Young Explorers from different expeditions and from all around the world. Each person felt revitalized and our passion to drive social and environmental change was fuelled. Conversations were always inspiring and excitement for our future was tangible. Working as a team of Young Explorers is an extraordinary experience with dynamic individuals contributing a variety of skill sets and expertise to create something unique and highly impactful.

Ultimately, this project is just the beginning of many Pole2Pole projects to come. Our team of over 200 “Young” Explorers have grown to become veterinarians, scientists, journalists, communicators, and everything in between. Mike will be completing his extraordinary circumnavigation of the planet for the next two years; our fundamental aim is to utilize our diverse group of young people to drive the environmental and social change that the world needs.

Education is the Key

Written by adminmike on 12/10/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on Education is the Key

Education is the key,
Let us rewrite history,
On the fields we will learn,
And our lives will take a turn.

Grassroots Soccer is the place,
Where we begin to chase,
Our dreams, big or small,
We are supported through it all.

Laureus Foundation run the show,
And enable us to grow,
Self confidence and respect,
Their involvement is direct.

From land to sea we travelled,
Our love for surf unravelled.
Uncontainable joy and pride,
When we get up for the ride,
To stand up for ourselves,
Into our full potential we delve.

Working with local groups,
Rallying international troops,
When we all come together,
We create bonds that we’ll treasure.

United by our common goal,
We all need to play our role,
Give more, consume less,
Let’s clean up this mess.

These poems were inspired by our activities today which included joining the Grassroots Soccer Programme and Waves for Change surfing programme in the Khayetlisha Township, just outside of Cape Town. We were moved by how the Laureus team use these sports to both instil life skills as well as build confidence in the youth. We were overwhelmed by how much joy and love the children had to give and thoroughly enjoyed interacting with them on the soccer field and in the waves. Our team took away many learnings and insights including the power of sport as a means of uniting and connecting people and the ability to empower through creating a sense of belonging.

It’s encouraging to know this isn’t country specific and we’re excited about how we can all better utilise sport to connect and empower our communities.

By Leni Greundl & Saskia Bauer

“Fish are friends, not food”

Written by adminmike on 09/10/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on “Fish are friends, not food”

My ears perked up at the sound of conversation nearby and forcefully opened my eyes. Could it be 6am already? It felt like I had just gone to bed. I was feeling nervous, a little apprehensive and excited. Today was a much anticipated day. Freshly qualified as an open water diver, this would be the first time I would officially dive, and we would be diving with sharks. Wow.

I swallowed down a quick breakfast, loaded my bag with gear and off we went. Looking up through the windscreen I gazed at droplets falling from the threatening skies. The chill in the air and ominous clouds didn’t really calm my nerves.

We arrived at the Dive Shop, suited up in thick neoprene, and made our way to the dive site. Previously known as Pyramid Rock, the renowned Shark Alley has been renamed due to regular shark sightings. Gave me shivers. I felt cold water trickling into my wetsuit and down my back as I descended into the kelp forest below. I gave my dive buddy the signal and we all met at the sea floor. Two darth vaders under water. I had to stay focused in order to remain close to the group seeing that the visibility was low. The idea that a shark would only be visible once it was within 5 metres of me was an uncomfortable thought.

A sense of freedom overcame me as I glided through the water. Seeing marine life that is exposed to a really small percentage of the world left me feeling humbled and in awe. I felt a something poke me on the shoulder and I turned around to see my dive buddy frantically pointing to the left. And believe it or not, there was a shark! Instantly all my senses were alert and I felt so alive. Every fibre of my being was tuned into the movements of this fascinating animal. For a few seconds time stood still. I gazed at the beauty in which the shark wove through the kelp. Calm. At ease. Content. At first I thought these words were fitting to describe the shark, but I realised that those were actually my own feelings.

Being able to see a shark in its own environment was surreal. Fear was replaced by awe. The shark and I were in the same space and we were both okay. I didn’t think I would be okay if faced with a situation like this. Before disappearing, the final swish of its tail was like a confirmation of our companionship. I think I would like to see him again.

By Lani van Niekerk & Shruthi Vijayakumar

“Shark! We have another shark!”

Written by adminmike on 07/10/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on “Shark! We have another shark!”

“Shark! We have another shark!” Yesterday, 22.23 o’clock, the fifteenth shark was in the books. This meant that we surpassed everybody’s expectations, since we all had thought we would catch far fewer sharks. This fifteenth shark is the end of our scientific shark research. Now, being back in Cape Town Harbor we had some time to reflect on those eventful and busy days spent onboard Pangaea.

I was personally always quite reserved towards sharks. Coming from Germany, where sharks don’t play a big role in the media, I never came in touch with the topic of sharks. That’s why in the beginning I stayed rather passive, watched the specialists do the work and was nervous about joining in. However, when I saw Dr. Allison Kock and her team bring the first shark onboard, I realized that there is no reason to be afraid of these animals. I looked at the shark, a 1.87m male, and was amazed by the sheer sight of it. Never had I dreamed that I would see a shark or even get the chance to touch it and be involved in the process of tagging it. I realized how beautiful those animals are, just as beautiful as any other kind of living being on this planet. This first encounter with a shark took all my fears away and I even jumped into the water after the first day of tagging, without being afraid of the animals that live beneath the surface. This experience once again showed me that fear is oftentimes only caused by a lack of knowledge.

Looking back, all Young Explorers feel extremely privileged of having had the unique opportunity to join a world class shark research team on one of their field trips. But not only joining and watching, but even being actively involved in the whole process. Only when you come in contact with a shark first hand, you can form a judgment about this endangered species, which is often portrayed in a very misleading way.

By Leni and Saskia

Poem: A Shark Date

Written by adminmike on 04/10/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on Poem: A Shark Date

Shark project in Cape Town, South Africa with Alison and her team from shark spotters on board of Pangaea with Mike Horn and Young Explores. — Setting sail for Robben Island!

The sun began peeking up through the sky,

We looked back at the table and bade it goodbye.

Within the sails the southern wind played,

As we headed for Robben Island where Mandela stayed.

Onto our lines we hooked on our bait,

With the seven gill sharks we made a date.

They fell for our charm and devilish good looks,

Until we had their data signed in our books

Into their abdomen we inserted a tag,

To track every place their tails would wag.

The date was short it was time to go,

With a push and a shove we said later bro.

No time to be sad no time to despair,

Because date number two was already there.

We repeated the process and by the end of the day,

We had lots of sharks being tagged on their way.

The cherry on top of Tim’s birthday cake,

Was seeing dolphins and whales in the boat’s wake.

In wonder we watched as the sun receded,

Content and happy with expectations exceeded.

Lani van Niekerk & Shruthi Vijayakumar

Why Tag Sharks?

Written by adminmike on 02/10/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on Why Tag Sharks?

Understanding shark movement and location is a central component of effective conservation strategies. In many cases, policy makers have been unable to conserve threatened sharks due to the lack of appropriate data on shark movements and behaviours, data which tagging and tracking work can provide.

Two types of tags are primarily used: satellite and acoustic tags. The satellite tags are short-term data loggers that pop off the animal, float to the surface and transmit to a satellite. Acoustic tags are a long-term data collection option. They emit a series of pulses for up to 10 years, their pattern individually identifying each tag and therefore each shark. Tags are attached to the sharks usually with a tag pole when a shark swims near the surface in proximity to a research vessel.

You may be wondering if the tagging causes the sharks any pain. Many tags are attached on the fins, which have no nerve supply, and therefore do not harm the study subject. Scientists and engineers are constantly working together to improve tag performance, power, data acquisition, sensor capabilities, as well as reduce tag size, drag and improve animal welfare.

Let the Shark Adventure Begin!

Written by adminmike on 02/10/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on Let the Shark Adventure Begin!

Shark project in South Africa in Cape Town

& the Pole2Pole Shark Project begins!!! We are so excited to be on board Pangaea and kick start this exciting project. But first things first! Delegate boat chores and tasks, clean the deck, and go through the equipment.

Rethinking Education

Written by adminmike on 01/10/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on Rethinking Education

Climate change, inequality, the refugee crisis, debt, corruption, depression, pollution.

There is no shortage of crises and challenges that our world faces today – social, environmental and economic. Yet how many of truly understand these issues? How many of us learnt about the biggest challenges of our time through our formal education and developed the skills, abilities, mindsets, and heartsets required to tackle them?

Mandela so beautifully captured the vast untapped potential that exists within education when he said ‘education is the most powerful weapon with which we can change the world.’

Many of our current day education systems enable us to master academic concepts, secure test and examination scores to enable further education, but how many of our education systems place fostering empathy, creativity, collaboration, developing a connection with nature and all people, a core outcome?

I believe that we need to begin shifting the way we learn and rethinking our priorities. There are many examples to learn from around the world. Kaitiaki Collective is creating the world’s first bush school, where all education is learned with and through experiences with nature. Resources like Better World Ed enables us to teach empathy and talk about social and environmental issues in math classrooms. And we find pockets of schools embracing 21st century skills and values of education. How can bring these conversations front and centre in our classrooms?

And beyond the realms of formal education, we are all ultimately students and we are all educators too. How can each one us seek out information and experiences that will help us live more socially and environmentally conscious lives? And how can we through our everyday actions inspire the same of others?

By Shruthi Vijayakumar

Sharks in the Media

Written by adminmike on 25/09/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on Sharks in the Media

We need to talk about sharks. They are not out to get us. The only frenzied attacks are by some media and it is impacting conservation efforts. I’d be a rich woman if I was given one dollar for every time a shark was labelled as a “man-eater” or “dangerous monster” in a newspaper or an evening news bulletin.

However, as an Australian who loves being in the ocean, I also understand the concerns about these marine animals. Since the start of last year, four people have died of a fatal shark attack on our shores. One man died just kilometers south of where I swim every day. It is human nature to be scared of something unknown. Sharks are so mysterious to most of us and their habitat, the sea, is too.

Unfortunately fear sells papers. People seem to love reading about events that stimulate their emotions whether it be fear, anger or outrage. Shark stories also often end up on front pages because they make for good headlines. And if you believe everything you read or hear, it is easy to start thinking sharks are killers just waiting for you to go into the water so that they can eat you. As author Allain de Botton explains it: “In its stoking of our fears, the news cruelly exploits our weak hold on a sense of perspective.” His choice of words is harsh but holds some truth. If we are not informed on a subject, our opinion can be swayed towards fear rather than understanding.

Of course, there are many facts and figure to counter sensationalised headlines but fear is something that quickly becomes ingrained. It is difficult to start looking at sharks as an important part of our eco-system if you have always been told they are “man-eaters”.

Education is the only way to interrupt this cycle. People need to understand sharks and their behaviours to be able to overcome their fears. The media is one way to start the shift. We need factual information on shark ecology and behaviour. That way, we can have a better understanding of these animals and how to share their natural habitats. For example, next time there is a shark attack, instead of demonising the animal, the other side of the story needs to be presented by including interviews from knowledgeable experts. Story by story, the public perception of sharks will start to evolve in a constructive way which will help conservation efforts.

By Shaya Laughlin

Let’s Talk About… Sharks

Written by adminmike on 15/09/2016. Posted in Pole2Pole, Shark Study. No Comments on Let’s Talk About… Sharks

With many of the world’s shark and ray populations declining, there is a growing need for greater research to inform conservation management. Sharks and rays face a variety of threats, most notably from fishing, habitat degradation, pollution and climate change.

A change in public perception, from one where it is believed that we need to protect humans from sharks to one where we understand the necessity to protect sharks from humans needs to occur.

The changing public perception of sharks and rays has increased awareness of the risks faced by this group, adding to calls for better management.

As part of the Shark Project, we aim to raise awareness about sharks and reach out to the public. We want you to engage with the topic, hope to challenge the stereotypes and help you make you form your own opinion about the importance of sharks in our ecosystems.

Your voice does matter. Your conversations help shape people’s beliefs.

Let’s not be silent.

– Zofia Drapella