Monterey Bay Aquarium Receives an Additional $1.4 Million Dollars From NOAA

By Jenny Slafkosky

Monterey, CA - Monterey Bay Aquarium has received two grants totaling more than $1.4 million from the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for initiatives in Monterey and nationwide to communicate about the impacts of climate change on the oceans, and to encourage individual action to affect positive and meaningful change.

A $913,953 grant supports “Climate Change and the Ocean: Awareness to Action” – a suite of programs to compliment the aquarium’s upcoming climate-focused special exhibition, “Hot Pink Flamingos: Stories of Hope in a Changing Sea.” The exhibit opens on March 27, 2010.

A second grant for $502,050 supports the aquarium’s participation in a national coalition of aquariums educating about climate change. The collaboration, which includes the National Aquarium in Baltimore and the New England Aquarium in Boston, was awarded nearly $1.5 million by NOAA.

The “Awareness to Action” grant will fund creation of a virtual reality theater show, incorporating Google Earth technology, as well as other theatrical presentations for visitors, and development of opportunities to engage people at community events, such as an annual open house for Monterey County residents and the Hispanic-themed Dia del Niño and Fiesta del Mar.

With the grant from NOAA – the government’s lead agency for ocean governance – aquarium staff and volunteers will receive additional training to understand how best to motivate people to take action on a challenge as large as global climate change.

The grant also supports development of online activities related to climate change, and interactive exhibits that will be part of “Hot Pink Flamingos.”

“We’re delighted to have earned the support of NOAA for our climate change initiatives,” said Cynthia Vernon, the aquarium’s vice president of education, guest and research programs. “A recent ocean literacy survey showed that although climate change is a big concern for people, they don’t associate it with ocean health. It’s up to us to make this connection, in ways that offer hope and solutions.”

In 2009, the Monterey Bay Aquarium celebrates 25 years of inspiring conservation of the oceans.

Photo credit: ©Monterey Bay Aquarium/Randy Wilder

To view Monterey Bay Aquarium's web page on Zoo and Aquarium Visitor, go to:  http://www.zandavisitor.com/forumtopicdetail-560-Monterey_Bay_Aquarium