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Through a competitive proposal process, the Monterey Bay Sanctuary Foundation awarded small grants in support of programs that enhanced education and outreach efforts about MPAs on the central coast. Several worthy organizations, developed creative products that, not only, increased public awareness, but may also serve as examples for other MPA outreach efforts statewide. Specifically, projects focused on school and youth outdoors programs, docent training, museum and visitor center exhibits, and curricula for simulation exercises.
Descriptions o f the projects and products produced are available below for easy download. For more information about specific projects, please contact us.
| In 2011, the Monterey Bay Sanctuary Foundation helped to facilitate small grants on behalf of the National Geographic Society's Ocean Education Program. |
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| Organization: Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Save our Shores |
| Project Title: Recreational Boating Speaker Series |
 Project Summary: The speaker series was designed to engage the recreational boating community – an active, conservation-minded constituency- in activities that support ocean conservation along the Monterey Bay. A total of three events were hosted, at the Moss Landing, Monterey, and Santa Cruz local yacht clubs. The evenings consisted of three hours of active engagement and dialogue between MBNMS and Save our Shores staff, and the recreational boating community.
Products: Speaker Series
Grantor: National Geographic Society's Ocean Education Program |
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| Organization: Marine Life Studies |
| Project Title: Marine Mammals of Northern California |
 Project Summary: This project developed an ocean user’s guide, Marine Mammals of Northern California, which was printed on durable waterproof paper. The purpose of the publication was to engage the public about marine mammals and to promote environmental stewardship. The guides were distributed across a broad range of marine related businesses, organizations, and schools throughout the Monterey Bay area, including schools located in the inland cities and along the central California coast.
Products: Marine Mammals of Northern California field guide
Grantor: National Geographic Society's Ocean Education Program (1MB PDF file) |
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| Organization: Monterey Bay Kayaks |
| Project Title: Ocean Interpretive Center |
 Project Summary: Monterey Bay Kayaks developed a site-specific ocean interpretive center in both of their rental and retail locations in Monterey and Moss Landing. The interpretive centers consist of a central kiosk containing informational panels about the local area with an emphasis on marine protected areas. An interactive display with the most up-to-date, current, and relevant data is presented on a 32” digital media player in the Monterey location. Additional interpretive panels are strategically placed along the walls of the shops that receive the most visibility.
Products: Interpretive Display
Grantor: National Geographic Society's Ocean Education Program |
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| Organization: Pt. Lobos Summer Adventures Program |
| Project Title: Pt. Lobos Summer Adventures Program |
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Project Summary: The Pt. Lobos Summer Adventures Program, based at Pt. Lobos State Reserve, provided two sessions of two-week outdoor summer experiences for children, ages 8-12 years old. The program focuses on sustainability and the connections between the marine and terrestrial environments. In addition to beach clean-ups, students also learned about the importance of making positive consumer choices to protect fish species.
Products: Educational Program
Grantor: National Geographic Society's Ocean Education Program |
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| Organization: California State Parks, Santa Cruz District |
| Project Title: MPA Campfire Program |
 Project Summary: The campfire program introduced state park visitors to local Marine Protected Areas and encouraged them to become more engaged in ocean protection. The presentations were piloted during summer 2010 at three parks, including New Brighton Beach, Sunset Beach, and Butano State Park with overwhelmingly positive responses. A key lesson learned from the state park experience was to relate the abstract concept of MPAs to a charismatic animal that the public could connect with, such as the sea otter or the elephant seal. In addition, the presentations were deliberately kept short and simple, designed to accommodate the summer campfire audiences, which consisted of various age groups, cultures, and languages.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: Morro Bay National Estuary Program |
| Project Title: MPA Information Kiosk Project |
 Project Summary: Estuary staff created a site-specific interactive, visitor-directed kiosk and MPA program tailored to the Morro Bay region. An estimated 6000 people visit the estuary each year, and the materials developed for the kiosk serve as a high value, affordable template for similar independent kiosks throughout the state. Targeted for the general public, the narrated video and/or PowerPoint presentation offer a quality educational product appropriate for docent trainings and the classroom.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: Voices of the Bay, Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary |
| Project Title: Demystifying Marine Spatial Planning – An Educational Module |
 Project Summary: The project worked to develop an additional module for the Voices of the Bay curriculum that educates students about the importance of Marine Protected Areas as one of many tools used to implement ecosystem based management concepts. Specifically, the program addresses the myths, controversy, and conflicting understandings about Marine Protected Areas. The program has broad application for the central coast as well as throughout the state. While the finished MPA module is not yet complete, a description of the module is provided as well as examples of other Voices of the Bay education modules to demonstrate the product. For more information on the Voices of the Bay, please visit their website.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: Parachute Creative |
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| Project Title: Create an Aesthetic Presence for the MPA Education and Outreach Initiative |
Project Summary: Parachute Creative worked closely with the MBSF staff to create an attractive logo that was used specifically for the Point Lobos Association Summer Adventures Camp and the State Parks Junior Lifeguard Program.
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: MERITO, Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary |
| Project Title: Multicultural Voices for Ocean Literacy Project |
 Project Summary: The MERITO program engaged youth in ocean science and ocean conservation by offering them opportunities to express their personal experiences of the oceans in their own voices. The digital documentation of the original stories reflects unique cultural and socio-economic backgrounds, yielding meaningful tools for outreach and education to our diverse community. Seventeen student films were submitted; four were selected for inclusion here based on the originality of storyline, quality of production, and understanding of ocean conservation concepts.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: California State Parks and Pt. Lobos Association |
| Project Title: Joint Program of the 2010 Junior Lifeguards and Point Lobos Summer Adventures |
 Project Summary: The summer youth program incorporated MPA messaging and lessons into the 2010 Point Lobos Summer Adventures and Monterey Junior Lifeguards Program. Youth were actively engaged in ecosystem-based management concepts. The products contain examples of a summer program calendar and parent and participant questionnaires that may be easily adapted for similar uses.
Products:
- 2010 Materials (Summer activity calendar; Parent and participant questionnaire; Photos of youth engaged in the various activities; Photos of logo products) (1.2MB PDF file)
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: Friends of the Elephant Seal |
| Project Title: Augment Docent Training and Visitor Materials with MPA Messaging |
 Project Summary: The organization developed several educational and outreach pieces with information about Marine Protected Areas. Specific materials include: a new brochure, laminated cards for docent-led walks, an augmented website, and a Power Point presentation for docent training purposes.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: Camp SEA Lab, Seaside, CA |
| Project Title: MPA: Town Hall Simulation Exercise |
 Project Summary: Camp SEA Lab developed a new curriculum entitled “The Great MPA Debate”. The program was piloted on two (2) classes of 5th grade students. The project resulted in an MPA curriculum that has been added to the organization’s educational programs and shared with other institutions.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: Seymour Marine Discovery Center, Santa Cruz, CA |
| Project Title: The Creation of an MPA Exhibit in English and Spanish at Seymour Marine Discovery Center |
 Project Summary: The exhibit highlights the importance of MPAs on the central California coast. Visitors interact with trained docents resulting in greater public awareness of MPAs and their associated effects. Through impartial and user-friendly text and graphics, users learn about the importance of MPAs as one of a repertoire of ocean management tools. The installed exhibit and “take-away” guides are printed in both English and Spanish.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: Save The Whales, Seaside, CA |
| Project Title: Augmenting Whales On Wheels (WOW™) to include MPA Messaging |
 Project Summary: The organization developed and presented a sixth “WOW” program focused specifically on MPAs in the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary to elementary and middle school students on the central coast, with a specific focus on Salinas. The products represent visual, creative, and affordable tools for connecting youth to marine animals and their habitats.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: Pt. Lobos State Park, Carmel, CA |
| Project Title: Marine Protected Areas Adjacent Lands Template. (MALT) |
 Project Summary: MALT is a multifaceted community outreach template designed to supplement a variety of existing California State Parks educational and interpretive opportunities with Marine Protected Area specific content. The programs are tailored with site-specific information that addresses local outreach needs while targeting specific MPA user groups, key stakeholders, school groups, and the general public.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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| Organization: MERITO-Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, Monterey, CA |
| Project Title: Marine Protected Areas Family Field Experiences |
 Project Summary: The MERITO program collaborated with the Boys and Girls Club of Monterey County (BGCMC), the Salinas Adult School (SAS), and Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve (ESNERR) to offer a series of guided outdoor-exploration opportunities, serving historically underrepresented communities (primarily Latino) and highlighting marine protected areas (MPAs) along the central California coast.
Products:
Grantor: Resources Legacy Fund Foundation |
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