Two Days at The Marine Mammal Center

I have just spent two days in the fog on the Marin Headlands, doing graphic recording for a workshop on vessel strikes on whales. Climate change and other causes are forcing whales to change their movement patterns and when they get hit by a ship — or even a pleasure craft, like a sailboat — they get injured and often killed. There is an estimate that of every dead whale that is recorded, either floating or washed up on shore, there are probably ten that are never seen. This is particularly bad in the case of gray whales which have been coming into San Francisco Bay more and more to feed, a body of water that is full of risks for them.

This was a group of scientists, tech folks and policy folks assessing the ways to find out more about where the whales are, what the boat traffic is doing (this is very well recorded for large vessels, less so for small fishing or pleasure craft), and what can be done to reduce or mitigate the risks. It’s a bit depressing especially in the current funding crisis but being around people who are so passionate about what they do, who keep trying to find ways to save the planet in the face of unbelievable odds, was inspiring.