News & Media 2011

December 2011

• 26 December: In this media release Professor Terry Hughes and Professor Bob Pressey of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Coral Reef Studies urge Australians to support creation of the world's largest marine park in the Coral Sea.


• 22 December: Dr Hugh Possingham speaks about Australia's opportunity to create a Serengeti of the Seas. Check out the video here.


• 19 December: Check out Jesse Martin's Christmas Coral Sea message in our December eNewsletter. 


• 8 December: Imogen Zethoven from the Protect our Coral Sea team was on Radio Australia’s Pacific Beat program this morning, a great interview – you can listen to it here.


• 5 December: Festival goers at Homebake were excited to mail their submission on the Coral Sea to Minister Tony Burke this weekend.
  
  
  
  
• 5 December: Back recently from his trip out to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch Tim Silverwood makes his submission to protect our Coral Sea on Sunday at Ocean Care Day in Manly. Thanks for the support Tim!
  
  

  Tim Silverwood dressed in an outfit he made entirely of plastic bags

November 2011

• 29 November: These pictures are absolutely stunning! National Geographic has a series of photos all related to the Coral Sea. However, not many people know that in the proposal, only 2 out of 25 reefs are given a high level of protection, and vital breeding sites for ocean giants such as tuna and marlin, and important habitats for turtles, whales and sharks remain open to fishing. These areas need to be protected! You can send a submission to Environment Minister Tony Burke, here.


• 26 November: Check out this profile on our Patron of the Coral Sea, Dr Sylvia Earle. Here she claims our wonderful sea fauna deserve as much recognition and protection as the 'charismatic megafauna' of the land, such as Lions, Tigers and Pandas. Hear, hear!! 


• 25 November: Or if you prefer take a listen to Geraldine Coutts talking with Dr Earle on ABC Radio's Pacific Beat program. She chats about her idea for a large National Park in the Coral Sea and a network of large marine sanctuaries in the South West.


• 25 November: Check out our latest E-Alert here!


• 25 November: The Protect our Coral Sea coalition has called the federal government’s draft Coral Sea plan a good start but said it falls short of fully protecting the area’s fragile coral reefs and spectacular marine life.  Read the full media release here or download here.
  
  
• 25 November: Dr Sylvia Earle our esteemed Patron was interviewed this morning on the ABC Pacific Beat program listen here.
  
  
• 25 November: The federal government has released its draft plan for the Coral Sea: download the media release (62KB), draft plan and map (2MB)
  
  
• 24 November: Dr Sylvia Earle, internationally renowned oceans conservationist and Protect our Coral Sea Ambassador today gave a lunchtime presentation to a room full of politicians and environmentalists, about the importance of protecting our oceans and Australia's role in a global context. Environment Minister Tony Burke attended and also spoke about the need for marine protection - let's hope the Coral Sea gets the protection it deserves!
  
  Dr Earle with Minister Burke Nov 2011
  
  
• 22 November:  It’s been a week of outings for us in South East Queensland with Steve Irwin Day, Sea Shepherd’s Cocktails with the Captain and Harvest Festival. Thanks to you all for having us and especially to the very wonderful Xavier Rudd whose environmental ethic is changing many Australian’s attitude to our shores and oceans. Let’s protect the Coral Sea!
  
  Xavier Rudd at Harvest Festival Nov 2011
  
  
• 22 November: This morning we were honored to be visited by Dr Sylvia Earle, internationally renowned oceans conservationist and Patron of the Protect our Coral Sea campaign. Dr Earle will be appearing on ABC24's The Drum as a guest expert - tune in from 6pm tonight! :)
  
  Dr Sylvia Earle with PCS staff
  
  
• 21 November: These students at Tempe Public School had a great time learning about the Coral Sea and making kites with Sydney Community Campaigner Beth Hill.
  
  Tempe Public School Nov 2011
• 21 November: Check out our giant message to the PM - nobody flying in or out of Canberra airport this month will miss it!
  
  Canberra billboard nov 2011
• 21 November: Supporting the Protect Our Coral Sea campaign this weekend at the Cairns Lagoon with a flash mob that formed a heart shape to represent the Coral Sea as Queensland's 'Blue Heart'.
  
  our blue heart nov 2011
• 15 November: Great music and costumes this weekend at the Harvest Festival in Sydney. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to show their support for the Coral Sea.
  
  Harvest Festival fun
• 3 November: A new poll demonstrates strong support for a marine national park in Australia’s Coral Sea.  Read more here.

• 3 November: We are thrilled to announce that Ocean Elders, an independent group of global ocean leaders, have sent a letter to our Prime Minister supporting the creation of the world’s largest, highly protected marine park in the Coral Sea.  Read more here.

• 3 November: Check out our latest enewsletter here and catch up on what's been happening in the campaign to Protect our Coral Sea.

October 2011

• 26 October: After a presentation about ocean conservation and the Coral Sea on Threatened Species Day back in September, these kids from Belmore South Public School decided to write a letter to Environment Minister Tony Burke, it's inspiring to see the next generation speaking up for the Coral Sea. Click here to read the letter.
  
  
  
• 16 October: Nova FM could hardly resist seeing what all the fuss was about with Barry yesterday at the Green Heart Fair. What a shame he didn’t feel in the mood to do a radio interview ;)
  
  green heart fair Oct 2011

• 14 October: WOW! What a blast it was at the Underwater Dive and Ecotourism Expo in Brisbane last weekend. Great to see so many ocean lovers in one place. Check out campaigner Xanthe Rivett and Kieren from Sarah Shark posing for a photo with Barry.
  
  Xanthe at ODEX fair 14 Oct 2011
  
  
• 4 October: These kids celebrated World Animal Day at the Canterbury Earlwood Caring Community Centre. After learning about the Coral Sea and the abundance of marine creatures who live there they were inspired to create some beautiful ocean themed artworks.
  
  world animal day 2011 cantebury

• 3 October: A media release from the ARC Centre for Excellence in Coral Reef Studies outlines the benefits of no-take marine reserves, read here

September 2011

• 26 September: The Coral Sea: Our Ocean Paradise photo exhibition is now showing at the Redlands Performing Arts Centre in Brisbane from 2 September to 2 October.  For more information click here
  
  
• 24 September: View the full page ad that appeared in the Courier Mail in Queensland today, about the importance of protecting Australia's Coral Sea, here.
  
  
• 23 September: A special moment as the Protect our Coral Sea petition signatures to date are presented to Environment Minister Tony Burke at Parliament House yesterday. The Minister was suitably impressed, so a huge thanks goes out to all 52,250 of you! In the photo from L to R: Don Henry, Chris Ritchie, Minister Burke, Imogen Zethoven and Darren Kindleysides.
  
  

  Minister Burke September 2011

• 18 September: Noisy By Choice at the Burwood Festival was a great success last Sunday. There was lots of talent on show and Barry Wrasse even made a cameo appearance on stage! A big thanks to the Burwood Youth Advisory Group for their support of the Protect Our Coral Sea campaign. We agree, protecting the Coral Sea is something to be noisy about!
  
  noisy by choice burwood festival september 2011
  
  Below: John Faker, Mayor of Burwood, signing the Protect our Coral Sea petition at the Burwood Festival on Sunday.
  
  Burwood Mayor John Faker signing petition
  
  
  
• 10 September: A wonderful day of family fun with lots of kite making and colouring in. Plenty of Strathfield locals dropped by and gave their support. Barry Wrasse the blow up fish was as popular as ever! Thanks to everyone who signed the petition.
  
  strathfield festival sept 2011
• 10 September: Protect our Coral Sea held a stall at the Reggaetown Festival over the weekend - Barry Wrasse was a hit!
  
  Reggaetown festival

• 7 September: Belmore South Public School got right behind Threatened Species Day by making and flying Protect our Coral Sea kites…it looked like a whole lot of fun!
  
  flying coral sea kites for threatened species day
  
  

• 7 September: To commemorate Threatened Species Day, the Protect our Coral Sea campaign has released a supporter’s video – you can listen to Ambassadors John Williamson, Tim Winton, Jesse Martin, Pat Rafter, Kristy Hinze, Isabel Lucas and Akira Isogawa as well as hear from everyday Australians calling for a highly protected, very large marine park in Australia’s Coral Sea.
  
  Threatened Species Day is held each year to commemorate the death of the last Tasmanian Tiger at Hobart zoo in 1936, and to highlight the many other species in Australia who face a similar fate if not properly protected. Over 340 bird and animal species in Australia’s Coral Sea are included on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.  Five of the eight species of tuna are in the threatened or Near Threatened categories.  These include some found in the Coral Sea; Bigeye tuna, Vulnerable; Yellowfin, Near Threatened, Albacore tuna, Near Threatened.  The Striped marlin is also Near Threatened.
  
    Yellowfin tuna by C&M Fallows

August 2011

• 29 August: The Coral Sea:Our Ocean Paradise photo exhibition has been on display at Toombul Centro in Brisbane's northside. Isn't it stunning! It's so great to be able to show people how special the Coral Sea really is.
  
  toombul photo display
  
  
• 25 August: Competition - Help Protect our Coral Sea and WIN!!!
  We are asking dive clubs and organisations to get their divers together and take a photo incorporating the Protect Our Coral Sea logo.  It’s as simple as 1) Get some divers together, 2) take a great photo incorporating our logo and 3) share it around.  To get started visit our competition page and register today.
  
  
• 25 August: Listen to Protect our Coral Sea campaign director, Imogen Zethoven, being interviewed on Radio Australia: here
  
  
• 20 August: A new science report -- Australia's Coral Sea: A Biophysical Profile by Dr Dani Ceccarelli – delivers good news about this special place in our oceans: the Coral Sea is a healthy and relatively intact ecosystem.  As the first comprehensive scientific study of the marine region, the report’s findings recognise the Coral Sea as a global biodiversity hotspot and underscores the need for its long-term protection. Read the media release, report (8.4MB) and fact sheet (1.1MB). The report was also profiled on the ABC:  Coral Sea a hotspot for marine life.
  
  
• 10 August: Check out our latest enewsletter here, and catch up on what's been happening in the campaign to Protect our Coral Sea.


• 9 August: East Coast of Queensland Tour - The Protect our Coral Sea crew were recently out and about in Bundaberg and Rockhampton, they paused for a photo with Bundaberg's renowned whales and with a supporter at a local craft market in Rockhampton.
  
  east coast tour 1

 

 
• 5 August: Check out Coral Sea campaigner Daisy Barham's interview on ABC Radio here
  
  
• 1 August: Dan Pearce and Dean Storey are competing in the Molokai to Oahu paddle race in Hawaii on July 31 and they thought it could be a great opportunity to help spread the word and raise a bit of awareness about the Protect our Coral Sea campaign to an international audience of like minded ocean loving people.
  
  "I guess the reason we would like to support the campaign is that we are both very passionate about the ocean and protecting it for future generations to experience and enjoy.  We have both worked as lifeguards, surf guides and now work for Surf Life Saving NSW so the appreciation and respect for the ocean is obvious.  The race gathers water men and women from all over the world each year and we see it as a great opportunity to spread the word about protecting this world famous piece of ocean".
  
  The race is called 32 Miles of Open Ocean and you can find out all about it here: http://www.molokai2oahu.com/
  
  dan pearce and dean storey

July 2011

• 21 July: Protect our Coral Sea is at the Cairns Show from the 20th-23rd July.  Come and see us at the Fred Moule Pavilion between 9am to 9pm each day - our stall is the one decked out in blue with Barry the Wrasse welcoming you in!

• 11 July: Protect our Coral Sea brings the ocean to life as 'The Coral Sea: Our Ocean Paradise' photo exhibition visits Strathfield Plaza.  There is lots of enthusiasm and awe for this beautiful place. Colouring in creatures from the Coral Sea is a very popular activity for kids on their school holidays. The exhibition will be there from 11th - 17th July during the centre's opening hours.
  
  photo exhibition at strathfield plaza
  
  
• 12 July: To celebrate World Oceans Day, the Protect Our Coral Sea team gathered in Martin Place to create a big and beautiful banner. We invited passers by to help us put the fish into the Coral Sea. Thanks to Jeremiah Johnson for allowing us to use his great track 'Homeland', and to Victoria Rawlings for her help with editing this short clip.
  
  
  
  
  
• 11 July: The iconic beauty of the Coral Sea has been captured in this 25-piece exhibition ‘The Coral Sea: Our Ocean Paradise'  of works by Jurgen Freund, Mark Spencer, Xanthe Rivett, Nicola Temple, Tyrone Canning and Lucy Trippett. Each of these photographers is inspired by the Coral Sea.  The exhibition is showing at Strathfield Plaza, 11 The Boulevarde, Strathfield  from 11 July till 17 July.  Opening hours - Monday to Wednesday 9-5.30, Thursday 9am-9pm, Friday 9am-5.30pm, Sat 9am-4pm, Sun 10am-4pm.  Read more here.
  
  
  
  
• 4 July: Coral Sea Campaigner Daisy Barham wrote an editorial for mygreenaustralia.com – check it out here.

June 2011

• 8 June: Protect our Coral Sea Ambassador Isabel Lucas outlines her commitment to our campaign, read more

• 8 June: World Oceans Day went off with a bang in Brisbane! Our marine mural attracted the attention of many passing Brisbanites as the seascape came alive with fish, sharks, turtles, jellyfish and whales. Thanks for your enthusiasm Brisbane – we’ll be back on the streets in no time.
  
  
  
  
  
• 8 June: On World Oceans Day Sydney's business people found themselves momentarily swimming in the colourful swirl of the Coral Sea. Many people took a moment to sign our petition and got creative sticking some fish into our beautiful ocean scene. By the end of the day the water was positively filled with fish!
  
  
  
  
• 8 June: In Cairns, World Oceans Day was celebrated at the Centre of Conetmporary Arts with a special screening of the Disney film Oceans. All left inspired by our wondrous oceans.The event was also attended by some of those involved in the making of the film, who enjoyed seeing their work on the big screen for the first time.
  
  
  
  
• 7 June: A sold out screening of DisneyNature’s Oceans was an inspiring way to spend World Oceans Day eve in Brisbane. Over 265 people joined in to celebrate the abundance of our oceans and to call upon Environment Minister Tony Burke to protect our Coral Sea. We’ll be holding more film screenings in the future so check out our facebook page for details of up coming events.

• 6 June: We are thrilled to announce that Protect our Coral Sea Ambassador Isabel Lucas and her musician boyfriend Angus Stone have created a fantastic short video titled 'Coral Sea Love'.
  
  They say, "Protect our Coral Sea gives everyone a 'don't it always seem to go 'til you don't know what you got 'til it's gone' opportunity to protect our precious Coral Sea for our children's children to enjoy.  We believe it is our duty, together, to protect & love these beautiful sea creatures and their ecosystems living in this great oceanic garden. Please sign the petition here - it's quicker than brushing your teeth! We hope our video inspires you to help make the Coral Sea a safe haven for marine life. Thanks for your support!" - Angus Stone and Isabel Lucas
  
  
  Check it out here, like it and share it with your friends – let’s try and reach 50,000 petition supporters by World Oceans Day on 8 June and send the federal government a great big World Oceans Day message.
  
  
• 26 May - 8 June: Special screening of DisneyNature's Oceans in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney - Protect our Coral Sea and the Australian Marine Conservation Society are thrilled to invite you to a special screening of Oceans, a film that celebrates and explores the mysteries of the oceans. All money raised will go towards the Australian Marine Conservation Society's programs to protect Australia’s ocean wildlife.  Purchase tickets here. There will also be a screening of Oceans in Cairns on 8th June, organised by the Cairns and Far North Environment Centre.  For details including how to book tickets please visit our North Queensland upcoming events page.
  
  

May 2011

• 19 May 2011: Selfridges department store in London is partnering with more than 20 environmental and conservation groups to celebrate the beauty of the ocean, highlight the issue of over-fishing and help us all understand the threats to the ocean. On 19 May Imogen Zethoven, director of the Protect Our Coral Sea campaign spoke via Skype to Selfridges Project Ocean attendees.
  
  
  
  
• 11 May 2011: The Coral Sea: Our Ocean Paradise photo exhibition has travelled to Cairns - don’t miss out on viewing spectacular photos of animals found in our Coral Sea – check out exhibition locations here.
  
  

• 6 - 8 May 2011: Spokesfish Barry Wrasse was surrounded by all manner of sustainable wares and green gadgets when we held a stall at Eco Xpo at Fox studios in Sydney.  Thank you to everyone who came along and signed the petition.
  
  
  

• 5 May 2011: This year marks its 69^th anniversary of the Battle of the Coral Sea.  The Coral Sea holds great historical significance for Australia and the United States. On the 7 & 8 May 1942, it was the scene of a naval battle that reversed the tide of World War II in the Pacific.  The Protect our Coral Sea campaign has produced a short documentary in honour of those who fought and died in the Battle of the Coral Sea.  Special thanks to veterans Tommy Simms and Ted Simpson and their families and naval historian Dr David Stevens for their contribution.  You can view the documentary here.

• 4 May 2011: Media Release - New federal policy is fair to fish and fishers alike.  Read the full media release here or download here (pdf).

• 2 May 2011: Richard Fitzpatrick has headed out to sea with a new ROV called 'Picasso' to film in high-def the depths of the Coral Sea: read the full article here

April 2011

• 17 April 2011: Australia's "Shark Lady", Val Taylor, talks about the importance of creating no-take marine parks in 60 Minutes story 'Troubled Waters'. watch here

• 15 April 2011: The Coral Sea: Our Ocean Paradise photo exhibition launch on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast was a roaring success. The stunning 25 piece exhibition and a moving speech by photographer Lucy Trippett sent ripples of inspiration through the audience. The Sunshine Coast residents loved the opportunity to experience the beauty of the Coral Sea without getting their toes wet! Here you can see a glimpse of the photographs by Mark Spencer.
  
  

• 7 April 2011: Last Thursday Wendy Collis from the 2ser Thursday Daily Show interviewed Beth Hill, our NSW Community Outreach Campaigner, about the Coral Sea. Wendy got a little bit inspired to take action herself and we hope you do too! Listen here!

• 5 April 2011: GreenUps hosted an inspiring Sustainable Oceans event in Sydney last night.  Imogen Zethoven spoke to a full house of ocean lovers.
  
  

March 2011

• 23 March 2011: Leading marine scientist say there has been a rapid decline in fish stocks in some Australian waters. Read more
  
  
• 23 March 2011: We are excited to announce that we have now officially exceeded 40,000 online supporters. No other marine campaign in Australian history has reached this tremendous milestone.

• 17 March 2011: Imogen Zethoven from Pe w Environment Group was interviewed in the latest edition of MPA News: Read more
  
  
• 15 March 2011: What a great festival! Protect our Coral Sea had a fantastic 4 days at WOMADelaide over the weekend and over 1500 festival goers came and signed on in support of protecting the iconic area. Thank you to each and every one of you, together we can make conservation history!
  
  
  
  
• 15 March 2011: We had a very successful opening party for “The Coral Sea; Our Ocean Paradise” Exhibition at the Arthouse Hotel in Sydney. Imogen Zethoven and Coral Sea photographer Xanthe Rivett spoke at the event which was attended by many of the Protect Our Coral Sea supporters.
  
  
  
  
• 14 March 2011: The Coral Sea featured on Radio Adelaide 101.5FM on Monday's breakfast show. You can hear the interview by Australian Marine Conservation Society's Daisy Barham online here
  
  Daisy and Jessie from Radio Adelaide
  
• 9 March 2011: Dr Daniela Ceccarelli reviews the value of oceanic marine reserves for protecting migratory and highly mobile pelagic species: Coral Sea case study
  
  
• 7 March 2011: We are very happy to announce that Australian music legend John Williamson has come on board as an Ambassador for the Protect our Coral Sea campaign.  John believes, “It is easy to forget our natural heritage under the ocean waves. There is more colour among our fish and coral than even the amazing birdlife that we treasure. Let’s do something our grandchildren will be thankful for and preserve the Coral Sea. I am 100% behind it”.
  
  John Williamson

• 28 February – 6 March: The Coral Sea: Our Ocean Paradise photo exhibition was shown at Westfield Burwood Shopping Centre.
  
  The iconic beauty of the Coral Sea has been captured in this 25-piece exhibition of works by Jurgen Freund, Mark Spencer, Xanthe Rivett, Nicola Temple, Tyrone Canning and Lucy Trippett. Each of these photographers is inspired by the Coral Sea.
  
  Westfield Burwood

February 2011

• 28 February 2011: Coral Sea Campaigner Daisy Barham wrote an editorial for Newsport.com (a Port Douglas Online Newspaper) about the need for protection in the Coral Sea read more
  

• 24 February 2011: Thanks to the Gold Coast and Hinterland Environment Centre for having us come along to talk about the Coral Sea last night. It was encouraging to see so many people come out on a very rainy night to hear about what they can do to help protect this important and iconic area.
  
  
  

• 17-20 February 2011: Playground Weekender Festival at Wiseman’s Ferry was a huge success for Barry Wrasse and his many supporters – thank you goes out to the many volunteers who helped out on the Protect our Coral Sea stall.
  
  
• 14 February: Ambassador Kristy Hinze shows her support for the protection of the Coral Sea read more

• 14 February: Protect our Coral Sea Ambassador Jesse Martin recently paid us a visit.  He inspires us all with his love of the ocean and his fantastic support for our campaign.
  
  

• 8 February: The Inner West Courier featured an article on the "Hidden treasure of the Coral Sea" and the upcoming George Evatt event at Strathfield Library read more
  
  
  
• 8 February: The Strathfield Scene (February Edition) featured an editorial on the Westfield Burwood Coral Sea Exhibition read more

January 2011

• 26 January: The sun shone bright as Sydneysiders sweated and danced their way through this years Big Day Out. Around 1400 people stopped to give Barry , our rather pouty spokesfish a kiss and to sign the petition to Protect Our Coral Sea . Barry loved the attention and so did we! A great start to a big year for the Coral Sea.
  
  
  
  
• 22 January: The Cairns Post :Chance to leave an aquatic legacy-  read more
  
  
• 20 January: The Sydney Morning Herald:Sea parks are good for people and fish- Ian Kiernan tells read more
  
  
• 10 January: Protect our Coral Sea Ambassador Akira Isogawa tells G Magazine readers what he will do to help the Environement in 2011 read more
  
  
• 6 January : Our plight to protect Australia's iconic Coral Sea has hit the Media big time today. Check out this great article in The Australian which puts forward a strong case for the creation of a very large highly protected marine park in the Coral Sea .Our "Kakadu on the water"  Read More
  
  
• 1 January: The sun might not have shone but the true Woodford Folk Festival spirit certainly did! Over 2,000 perople came and said hello to us at Woodford over Christmas and New Year and Barry Wrasse -our campaign spokesfish -certainly did enjoy all the attention! Here he is, our life size Barry putting ona pout for the camera. 2011 is certainly going to be a big year for the Coral Sea and it was great to feel so much suppport from all those who came over to the stall--thank you!