We are hugely excited to share some big news: ORCA and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC, the UK Government’s advisory body on offshore marine environment)) have launched a new national pilot programme designed to close key evidence gaps for cetaceans in UK waters. It’s a partnership that brings together JNCC’s role in convening priorities for national monitoring and advice, and ORCA’s proven model of delivering high-quality surveys at sea through trained surveyors (you!) and “platforms of opportunity”.
More information can be found in our recent news story: Scaling up cetacean monitoring: ORCA and Joint Nature Conservation Committee launch a new national pilot for UK waters
This is citizen science in action: a community of dedicated people making a measurable contribution to conservation, and now being recognised and amplified through a partnership with a UK statutory nature conservation body.
To every ORCA Marine Mammal Surveyor, thank you. Your time, skill, determination and sheer stubborn love for whales and dolphins is what makes moments like this possible - and what makes the next chapter so exciting!