Dunedin To Celebrate Designation As Global 'Hope Spot'

DUNEDIN, FL — World-renowned oceanographer Dr. Sylvia Earle will return to her hometown this weekend to help the City of Dunedin celebrate its designation as the Florida Gulf Coast Hope Spot, one of 119 Hope Spots around the world singled out for their need for protection because of their unique role in the global environment.

Dunedin will officially be designated the home city for the Florida Gulf Coast's Hope Spot during a ribbon-cutting ceremony Saturday, Oct. 26 at 1 p.m. at Dunedin's Pioneer Park. The ceremony will be accompanied by a daylong celebration.

Situated midway between Key West and the Panhandle, Dunedin was an ideal choice for the home city for the Florida Gulf Coast Hope Spot. But Earle admits to being a bit biased.

She said growing up in Dunedin had a profound impact on her desire to seek a career in which she could study and finds ways to protect the world's oceans.

"This has special meaning to me because as a kid I fell in love with the ocean right there in Dunedin," she said, adding that she's especially proud to help the community celebrate at Saturday's ribbon-cutting ceremony. "The Gulf Coast Hope Spot has now joined more than 100 places around the world where people have stepped up and committed to making a difference. A big blue salute to the champions in Florida who have gotten behind the Florida Gulf Coast Hope Spot."

The Hope Spot designations are part of an international campaign launched by Mission Blue, which was founded by Earle in 2009. Mission Blue is a global coalition of more than 200 ocean conservation groups, research institutes and rehabilitation centers dedicated to shedding light on and garnering support for the need to protect vital ocean ecosystems from offshore drilling, plastic pollution, altered hydrology and the global warming that causes rising sea levels. Click here for a list of Hope Spots.

While the Florida Gulf Coast Hope Spot that hugs the state’s western shoreline from Apalachicola Bay in the north to Ten Thousand Island in the south is know for its beauty, its vibrant commercial fishing and tourism industries and its rich biodiversity, those same abundant resources also make it vulnerable, Earle noted.

"The moratorium on drilling within 225 miles of the coast ends in 2022, and there is a risk that the current federal administration may not renew it," she said.

However, the tide is turning against off-shore drilling. Last November, 70 percent of Florida's voters adopted Amendment 9 to keep drilling out of Florida waters 3 to 9 miles from the coast, Earle noted.

"Thanks to the work of the many organizations involved, including the Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium, the Tampa Bay Estuary Program and The Florida Aquarium, the Florida Gulf Coast and the beautiful marine life that thrives along its shores and waters is being protected, cherished and invested in for generations of Floridians and global citizens alike to enjoy its wonders," she said.

Dr. Sylvia Earle

Of special note, she said, the Tampa Bay Estuary Program and its partners have succeeded in recovering more than 40,000 acres of seagrass –exceeding 1950s levels — resulting in both environmental and economic benefits for the region.

The Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium is conducting cutting-edge research on causes and solutions for red tide, which kills untold numbers of dolphins, manatees and sea turtles.

And The Florida Aquarium just received international acclaim for successfully cultivating coral in a lab -- a major step toward saving the world's threatened coral reefs.

Florida Aquarium CEO Roger Germann praised Earle's success in uniting the world's conservation organizations and launching a global campaign to save the oceans.

“Dr. Sylvia Earle is a trailblazer and role model for thousands of young people who come to The Florida Aquarium each year,” he said. “This Hope Spot designation brings her message and her work to the Gulf Coast and reminds us that this scientific legend was inspired by the same waters we call home.”

“The recent designation of the Florida Gulf Coast as a Mission Blue Hope Spot is a true win for our region, which has globally significant coastal ecosystems such as oysters, seagrass, mangroves, salt marshes, freshwater springs and wetlands important to both the environmental and economic quality of our region will benefit greatly," said Ed Sherwood, executive director of the Tampa Bay Estuary Program.

“Mission Blue’s designation of the Florida Gulf Coast Hope Spot highlights our region’s ecological importance and biodiversity," said Dr. Michael P. Crosby, president and CEO of th Mote Marine Laboratory and Research Center in Sarasota. "Mote Marine Laboratory conducts many research projects within the Hope Spot, including dives to underwater geological formations called blue holes, which may provide invaluable insight into the Gulf’s unique ecosystem. Both Mote’s founder, Dr. Eugenie Clark, and Mission Blue’s founder, Dr. Sylvia Earle, worked extensively together in this region. So, for us, this is a legacy project in every sense as we celebrate our history by protecting the future.”

Blue-Green Connections campaigned vigorously for the Florida Gulf Coast to be named a Hope Spot. Blue-Green Connections if a nonprofit coalition of Gulf Coast organizations, governmental groups and businesses dedicated to protecting the area's lands and waters. Its 19 members include local chapters of the Sierra Club and Audubon Society, The Florida Aquarium, Mote Marine, the Pinellas County Commission, the City of Dunedin and small-business owners like Old Bay Cafe and Hog Island Fish Camp.

Blue-Green Connections is a non-profit organization whose goal is to educate, inspire and motivate local individuals, businesses and organizations to protect our lands and waters.

Blue-Green Connections board member Ray Bouchard said this was the organization's first collaborative project and they owe their success to a broad array of supporters from across the region including scientific and educational organizations, conservation groups, businesses, governmental officials and committed individuals.

“The Florida Gulf Coast hosts an incredible diversity of ecosystems and species that need responsible and sustainable actions to ensure it will thrive for generations to come. It is home to almost 100 threatened species," said Blue-Green Connections President Vicki Love. "These ecosystems are critical to the economy of the entire state of Florida, and protect both the coastal mainland from storm events and protect the Gulf from adverse human effects.”

The impact of Saturday's ceremony might not be seen for decades, said Earle. But it will have a profound impact.

“In the next 500 years, people can look back and say ‘thank you’ for bringing hope to the Gulf Coast," said Earle. "This is a moment in time where we have to take this knowledge that has been gained and to realize that all of us will win if all of us can restore health and keep it that way for generations to come.”

That support was apparent during a sold-out Hope Spot gala Friday night at the Fenway Hotel in Dunedin at which Earle was the keynote speaker.

The celebration will continue Saturday with from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at the Dunedin Library when Love and Moriah Moore, president of the Coastal Marine Education and Research Academy, discuss what it means to be a Hope Spot and the ecosystem that surrounds Pinellas County. Click here.

Following the 1 p.m. ribbon-cutting, there will be a mini film festival and Science Madness at Scottish Hall along with a scavenger hunt, native wildlife exhibits, arts and crafts, games and eco-friendly booths at Pioneer Park from 1:30 to 5 p.m. Click here for more information.

For the adults, there will be a Think & Drink Scientific Pub Crawl and Poker Run from 1:30 to 5 p.m. Participants will learn from world-renowned scientists while drinking locally brewed craft beer. Every science talk earns the participant a poker card. At the end of the evening, the best hand wins. Learn more here.

Then, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., HOB Brewing Co. will host a family-friendly event on the back patio with an ocean-themed costume contest including a prize for most creative use of recycled materials. Click here for more information.