MCBI Receives Award from the US Fish and Wildlife Service

On January 6, 2009, President Bush designated as national monuments, three large areas encompassing 195,000 square miles of the Pacific Ocean. The three monuments are the Marianas Trench, Pacific Remote Islands and the Rose Atoll Marine National Monuments.

Marine Conservation Biology Institute and Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), celebrated this enormous win for the marine environment at a dinner in mid April.  The event was hosted by the Honorable James Greenwood and attended by Philippe Cousteau, both MCBI Board Members.  The dinner was widely attended by prominent leaders from the former Bush Administration, new members of the Obama Administration, scientists, and other non-profit organizations and included a presentation from Nancy Knowlton, Sant Chair in Marine Science at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. 

The evening was a joyous occasion, focusing on the collaborative effort that resulted in the protection of these biologically diverse areas, but also stressed the many threats that continue to plague these ocean ecosystems and the importance of addressing proper management and enforcement of these areas.  The evening ended with the presentation of an award by the staff of the National Wildlife Refuge System - part of the US Fish and Wildlife Service - for our “dedicated commitment in securing a national ocean conservation legacy that is unprecedented in the history of the United States.”