Conservation

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The Seattle Aquarium’s mission—Inspiring Conservation of Our Marine Environment—begins right here at home. Beautiful, majestic and teeming with a rich diversity of life, the Salish Sea is nevertheless in trouble. At the same time, problems facing our local waters are global in scale.

The Aquarium’s conservation initiatives focus on two geographic regions: the Salish Sea and Washington’s coastal waters, and the Coral Triangle, a region of the Indo-Pacific ocean.

Species recovery

Research

Public policy

Engagement

A new perspective

One world ocean

If you look at a typical globe or world map, you’ll see many named bodies of water—oceans, seas, gulfs, bays and more. All appear to be distinct. But what actually separates these waters? There are no physical borders or barriers between them. In reality, they’re all connected, flowing together into one world ocean that sustains us all.

Learn More about our connected waters

Guiding principles

Co-generate solutions

Our work is and will always be partnerships‐based. We recognize and respect the power of diversity—of perspectives, expertise, cultures and values. Together with diverse partners, we can generate and advance effective, mutually beneficial and innovative solutions. We understand that environmental burdens and benefits are not equitably distributed and embrace the responsibility to foster inclusive conversations.

Track community impacts

Our conservation programs have clear objectives and outcomes that aim to improve the health of Earth’s one ocean. We continually adapt our programs to respond to changes in the conservation, socioeconomic, academic and political landscapes. To understand the outcomes of our work, we track changes in, and impacts to, affected ecosystems and communities.

Plan for the long term

As a conservation organization working to regenerate ocean health, we understand that change takes commitment and time. We work to ensure our projects are operationally, environmentally and financially sustainable—and not at the expense of one community for the benefit of another.