Just 22 miles off the coast of Los Angeles is Santa Catalina Island, known by some as Pimuu’nga or Pimu. It is one of the eight Channel Islands and the only island with a permanent human presence. Today, the island is surrounded by nine marine protected areas, two of which are the Blue Cavern Onshore and Offshore State Marine Conservation Areas. These areas work in tandem to safeguard 10 square miles of marine life, from the shoreline through kelp forests and rocky reefs to the sandy seabed as deep as 2,616 feet. Every year, researchers and students work and learn together along this protected marine area at the nearby Wrigley Marine Science Center, the satellite campus of the University of Southern California’s Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability.
International marine conservation nonprofit Mission Blue has named Blue Cavern State Marine Conservation Area a Hope Spot in recognition of what Dr. Sylvia Earle, Founder of Mission Blue, describes as “an example of the successful steps society has already taken to protect ocean ecosystems and an impetus to work together in expanding these protections and further advancing similar efforts; a model for the rest of the world.” She congratulates the USC Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability for its programs that are creating the next generation of dedicated ocean stewards.